FAYETTEVILLE (KFSM) – A Springdale man was sentenced to 97 months for child pornography on Oct. 15, according to a news release from U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Arkansas Conner Eldridge.
Michael R. Pankey, 45, of Springdale was booked into the Washington County Detention Center on March 21. He was sentenced on Wednesday to a little more than eight years in prison without the possibility of parole and ten years of supervised release for knowing receipt of images of child porn, the release states.
Judge Timothy L. Brooks presided over the sentencing in United States District Court in Fayetteville.
U.S. Attorney Eldridge stated, “With today’s sentence, justice has been served on behalf of these kids. Every time a video or image involving sexual abuse of children is downloaded or viewed, those children are re-victimized. We will continue to aggressively prosecute cases such as this and hold those who commit crimes involving children accountable for their actions.”
Court documents state that in Nov. of 2013, Homeland Security Investigations and Internet Crimes Against Children Taskforce were notified that an individual in the Northwest Arkansas area using the screen name of “Pankster87” posted multiple images of child porn to a publicly available Internet site, according to the release.
An investigation led to the execution of a federal search warrant on the home of Pankey. During the search, an iPhone was seized, and Pankey admitted he’d used it to trade and download child porn, the release states.
A forensic examination on the phone revealed over 100 images of child porn, with multiple images of minors, some as young as four years old, being sexually assaulted by adults. Pankey pleaded guilty to knowing receipt of images of child porn on May 12, according to the release.
