Ex-Georgia Cub Scout leader sentenced to federal prison on child porn distribution charge

A former Georgia Cub Scout leader and football coach will spend years in federal prison for distributing sexually explicit images of children.

A federal judge sentenced 73-year-old Ernest Vera to six years in prison without the possibility of parole on Monday.

According to prosecutors, the charges came after FBI agents searched Vera's home in Powder Springs in September 2021 after receiving information that he had used social media to send and receive child sex abuse materials.

In an interview, officials say Vega admitted to investigators that he used the messaging application Kik to trade sexually-explicit images of children as young as 13, as well as using it to encourage users he believed to be teenagers in India, Thailand, and South Africa to send him sexual images.

A search of Vera's phone led to the discovery of around 90 images and videos of child pornography, authorities said.

Vera pleaded guilty to the distribution of child sexual abuse material in January. Following his prison sentence, he will remain on supervised release for 10 years.