Lincoln man sentenced to over 21 years in prison for child porn

LINCOLN, Neb. (KLKN) – A Lincoln man whose home operated as a day care has been sentenced to over 20 years in prison for child pornography.

On Friday, Matt Tibbels, 59, was sentenced to 21 ½ years in prison for the production of child porn, according to a press release from the United States Attorney’s office.

The case began through an FBI investigation of someone getting child porn from Freenet, an anonymous peer-to-peer communication website.

A search warrant was served after federal investigators traced an IP address back to Tibbels’ home, the attorney’s office said.

Matt’s wife, Theresa, operated the home as a day care.

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Inside the home, investigators found devices containing 887 child porn image files and 147 video files.

On other devices, investigators found seven images and a video of a child changing clothes inside the Tibbels’ home.

Federal agents later identified the child as someone who had attended the day care, the attorney’s office said.

After his sentence, Tibbels will serve 10 years of supervised release.

U.S. District Judge John Gerrard also ordered him to pay $29,000, which will go toward funds established for victims of these types of cases.

There is no parole in the federal system.