Man Going To Prison For 7 Years For Burglary, Child Porn
JOLIET, Ill. (CBS) -- A New Lenox man is going to prison for the next seven years after admitting to two separate unrelated crimes – burglarizing a house and collecting child pornography.
Alex J. Shingler, 21, accepted a plea bargain in Will County court Tuesday, in which he pleaded guilty in exchange for a four-year sentence for residential burglary and a consecutive three-year sentence for possession of child pornography.
In 2009, Wheaton police were investigating child pornography cases when they found the IP address of Shingler's computer, Will County Sheriff's spokeswoman Kathy Hoffmeyer said.
Will County Sheriff's police raided Shingler's house. Records show they seized three laptop computers, a cell phone and a portable drive and found about 25 sexually explicit photos and videos showing minors.
Shingler was released on bond while the case moved through the court system and was at home May 20, 2011, when he decided to break into a neighbor's house and steal some computers.
Shingler stole four computers from the neighbor, but came back the next day to apologize and said he had been drunk at the time, Hoffmeyer said. He told the neighbor he had thrown the computers off in a field, Hoffenmeyer added.
Shingler was able to turn over two computers. But when he was unable to find the others, his neighbor contacted police to press charges a few days later, Hoffmeyer said.
The Joliet Herald-News contributed to this report, via the Sun-Times Media Wire.
(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2012. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
