Rapid City man sentenced for possession of child pornography

RAPID CITY, S.D. (KEVN) - Matthew Shawn Buchko, 40, was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison Monday for the possession and receipt of child pornography.

Prosecutors say there were 10,400 images of children under the age of 12 found on multiple devices.

Buchko had images of one local girl whose photos appeared to be taken off Facebook, and some of the images were cropped to show just her. These were significant because Buchko also had a folder labeled ‘look-alikes’ which featured pornographic images of other children who resembled the local girl.

The photos were described as sadistic.

Prosecutors requested he serves 11 years behind bars.

Buchko’s defense requested the minimum five-year sentence. They claimed he has health issues, and was beaten in jail, and are concerned this will happen again. He did write a 14-page letter to the judge claiming his innocence.

Judge Jeffrey Viken sentenced him to 10 years in federal prison, followed by five years of supervision.