Bradley J. Hebert - 15 years for producing child pornography

A 38-year-old Kalamazoo man was sentenced Thursday to more than 15 years in prison, plus lifetime supervision upon his release, for producing child pornography.

Bradley J. Hebert, whose last reported address was an apartment at 616 Lynn Ave., was arrested in 2008 on federal charges of transporting, distributing or selling child sexually exploitive material. He pleaded guilty to the charge in December.

According to U.S. Attorney Donald A. Davis, federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement initially "identified Hebert as a subscriber to child pornography websites" and subsequently executed a warrant at his home. There, Davis said, agents recovered "a collection of more than 700 images of child pornography," including some Hebert had created by hiding a video camera in his bathroom and "videotaping a minor female friend while she was showering and changing clothes."

"Subsequent investigation disclosed that Hebert had a history of sexually assaulting minor girls, including sexual assaults of two girls when they were 14- and 15 years old," Davis said in the sentencing announcement.

Davis was placed on the Michigan Public Sex Offender Registry in January, after following his guilty plea in the current case.

At Thursday's sentencing, U.S. District Judge Robert Holmes Bell said he hoped Hebert's 188-month prison sentence, plus lifetime supervision after he is released, will be a deterrent to other potential offenders.

The case was investigated by ICE and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, with assistance from the Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety. It was part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative that involves federal, state and local investigators and prosecutors, plus an Internet Crimes Against Children task force.

In addition to investigation, officials say Project Safe Childhood is designed to educate the public about the dangers of online child exploitation and teach children how to protect themselves from being targeted by adult sexual predators. For more information on Project Safe Childhood, go online to www.projectsafechildhood.gov.