Mattoon Man Sentenced to Decade in Federal Prison for Trafficking Child Pornography

URBANA, Ill. – A Mattoon, Ill., man, Tyler L. Foote, 29, described by the government as an avid collector of extremely violent child pornography, was sentenced today to 10 years in federal prison. Senior U.S. District Judge Michael M. Mihm further ordered that Foote remain on supervised release for a period of 10 years following completion of his prison sentence.

In court filings, the government represented that Foote is a collector of extremely violent child abuse images. These image and video files include acts of sexual violence against minor children, including infants, bestiality, bondage and urination.

On Dec. 20, 2019, Foote entered open pleas of guilty to five counts of trafficking child pornography. Foote, of the 1300 block of Champaign Ave, in Mattoon, was arrested on Aug. 16, 2019, on Coles County state charges, and was indicted by a federal grand jury in October 2019.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Elly M. Peirson and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Shannon O’Brien of the Illinois Attorney General’s Office. The charges were investigated by the Illinois Attorney General’s Office, Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force and the Mattoon Police Department.

The case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative by the Department of Justice to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.