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Press Release

Former Hastings Man Sentenced for Receipt and Distribution of Child Pornography

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Nebraska

United States Attorney Deborah R. Gilg announced that Todd Tackwell, age 39, formerly of Lincoln, Nebraska, was sentenced on August 26 in Lincoln, Nebraska, to 13 years in prison by United States Senior District Judge Richard G. Kopf, for receipt and distribution of child pornography.  After his release from prison, Tackwell will be required to serve a life term of supervised release and be registered as a sex offender.

Tackwell came to the attention of law enforcement through an investigation initiated by Immigration and Customs Enforcement into a criminal organization which was operating a commercial child pornography website.  Tackwell was determined to be a subscriber to the website.  In August of 2008 investigators contacted Tackwell at his residence in Hastings, at which time Tackwell admitted he possessed child pornography on his computer.  An indictment was filed in the District of Nebraska in 2010, as a result of a forensic examination of Tackwell’s computer hard drive which revealed videos depicting sexually explicit conduct of children. 

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice.  Led by United States Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division's Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.

This case was investigated by the Adams County Sheriff, Nebraska State Patrol, and Immigrations and Customs Enforcement.

Updated January 29, 2015