BENTON – A district court judge in Benton has sentenced a registered sex offender to 35 years in prison after he admitted to distributing child pornography and obscene material to a minor.

According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Illinois, 57-year-old Edward J. Bates, most recently of Olney, pleaded guilty to one count of felon in possession of a firearm, one count of distribution of child pornography, two counts of attempted transfer of obscene matter to a minor, and one count of offense by a registered sex offender, Bates will be on supervised release for the rest of his life following his time in prison.

According to court documents, Bates distributed child pornography in Richland County on Jan. 26, 2022. In April 2023, he transferred sexually explicit material to a 10-year-old minor. On June 4, 2024, Bates was found in possession of two firearms and ammunition as a felon.

Bates was previously convicted of two separate child pornography offenses and was therefore required to register as a sex offender. The Government seized a 9mm semi-automatic handgun, a .38 caliber revolver and ammunition.