Kearney man targeted by vigilante group gets seven years for child porn

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) — A man who was the target of a vigilante group will serve seven years in prison for child pornography.

Royce Love, 45, of Kearney was sentenced Wednesday for receipt of child pornography, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.

U.S. District Judge John M. Gerrard also ordered him to spend eight years on post-prison supervised release.

The case started when a vigilante group posed as an underage female online and tried to trap Love into agreeing to meet for sex.

But Love blocked the account and never agreed to meet, so the group confronted Love at his home and called police.

Love let police search his phone, where investigators found multiple child porn images.

He admitted that he received them, authorities said, but said he couldn’t remember where.

Law enforcement then seized Love’s other electronic devices and found more explicit images of children.