Former Cape cop to serve federal prison sentence in child-porn case

Former Cape Girardeau police officer Jason McDonald, 33, was sentenced Wednesday to 57 months in federal prison after pleading guilty earlier this year to a child pornography charge.

He entered a guilty plea March 6 in federal court in Cape Girardeau. U.S. District Judge Stephen N. Limbaugh Jr. handed down the sentence, according to a release from federal prosecutors.

The investigation began in 2014 after federal agents discovered McDonald was uploading images and videos of child pornography to an online storage account from his residence in Jackson, the release said.

Investigators obtained a search warrant and recovered a laptop containing "numerous images and videos of children engaging in sexually explicit conduct," the release said.

A grand jury indicted McDonald in November 2016.

McDonald was employed with the Cape Girardeau Police Department from August 2009 to August 2014. Police said he resigned to seek employment elsewhere.

Federal prosecutors said, "After a thorough investigation, there was no evidence to suggest McDonald was obtaining or viewing child pornography while on duty as a police officer."

After serving his sentence, McDonald will be placed on supervised release for 10 years and will be subject to lifetime sex-offender registration requirements, the release said.