GILMER, Texas — A 72-year-old man who pleaded guilty to three counts of possessing child pornography in Upshur County was sentenced to 20 years in prison.
John Charles Plunkett, of Ore City, entered his guilty plea to three counts of possessing child pornography with the intent to promote or distribute Thursday.
His attorney asked for probation, while Upshur County District Attorney Billy W. Byrd said he asked for nothing less than the maximum sentence, which is 20 years for each charge. These sentences will be served at the same time.
If he were to receive parole, Plunkett would have to register as a sex offender.
According to a statement from Byrd's office, evidence last year showed Plunkett was downloading child pornography and sharing the images on a software that allowed people from all over the world to access the images.
Byrd said some of these images included "very young children being raped."
Plunkett had more than 2,300 images of child pornography, Byrd said in his statement.
"Let this sentence be received crystal clear to all that hear or read; Upshur County is not the county to commit any criminal offenses especially those against children," Byrd said. "This is never a victimless crime."
