Man gets 17 years for distribution of child porn

A San Antonio-area man who worked with children has been sentenced to more than 17 years in prison for sending child pornography to an undercover agent, the U.S. Department of Justice said.

Kyle Ross Rivers, 38, of Garden Ridge, pleaded guilty in August to one count of distribution of child pornography. At the time of his arrest, he worked at a residential autism treatment center, caring for nonverbal children.

Rivers was sentenced this week to 17 years and six months in prison plus 10 years of probation upon release. He also was ordered to pay $30,000 in restitution to six victims.

When Rivers was arrested, he had thousands of videos and photos depicting sexual abuse involving prepubescent children, the Justice Department said. He was caught after he sent the material to the agent using a social media app.

“The exploitation of innocent children is a heinous crime and demands our relentless focus on bringing these terrible subjects to justice,” said Oliver Rich, special agent in charge of the FBI San Antonio Field Office.