MURPHYSBORO — A Murphysboro man was sentenced Friday for possessing child pornography.

Jackson County State’s Attorney Micheal Carr says on Feb. 11, 72-year-old Eric E. Deutsch entered an open plea of guilty to one count of child pornography, a Class 2 felony. On Friday, Deutsch was sentenced to serve four-and-a-half years in state prison, followed by three years to life mandatory supervised release. He will be a registered sex offender for the rest of his life.

Carr says on Oct. 16, 2017, the Internet Crimes against Children Task Force received a report from Yahoo, Inc. of a user sharing an image of child pornography on its platform. The investigation stemming from that report led law enforcement offices to an IP address associated with Deutsch’s home in Murphysboro.

On Nov. 16, 2017, law enforcement executed a search warrant at Deutsch’s home and seized multiple computers and computer peripherals. Local law enforcement officials conducted a forensic analysis of those computers and peripherals and found images and videos of child pornography on many of them.

The investigation was conducted by the Murphysboro Police Department. Assistant State’s Attorney Jayson Clark was responsible for the prosecution.