JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Former Live Oak Police Sergeant Kyle Kirby received the maximum sentence Wednesday on child pornography charges.

A federal judge sentenced Kirby to 120 years in a federal prison on charges of producing, attempting to produce, possessing and accessing child pornography. He was found guilty by a jury Dec. 8, 2017.

Kirby was arrested on October 28, 2015, and has remained in custody since that time.

He was arrested after FBI investigators found 87 images depicting child pornography on his patrol car laptop. Agents took him to a detention facility in Jacksonville.

According to court documents, he tried to get another LOPD officer to delete evidence. The other officer, however, did not comply with the request.

According to testimony and evidence presented at trial, Kirby had used the patrol car computer to download, access, and possess child pornography from as early as Dec. 24, 2014.

According to court documents, a search of an LOPD desktop computer used by Kirby revealed images depicting nude and partially undressed children in at least three different bathrooms.

Kirby had used one or more concealed cameras to surreptitiously film the unsuspecting minors. He then transferred these images to the LOPD desktop computer, and later unsuccessfully attempted to delete them.

Agents were able to locate folders on the computer named for several of his victims.

“I have been in law enforcement for 30 years, and this has been the most difficult situation I have faced,” Live Oak Police Chief Buddy Williams said after the trial. “A trusted friend, officer and protector of the public betrayed all facets of the job he swore to do. I realize that mistakes happen, but this was no mistake, it was a choice, a choice that has impacted not only his agency, but his trusted friends, family, and community to include all brothers and sisters of the badge. I am appreciative of the F.B.I, the U.S Attorney’s Office and all others involved.

“Justice did prevail.”

“This case is another example of the relentless efforts of the FBI and our law enforcement partners to identify those who prey on our children,” Charles P. Spencer, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Jacksonville Division, said in a release about the case. “It is made even more egregious having been committed by someone who swore to uphold the law and protect the community. Let it be known that the FBI will stop at nothing to protect innocent victims, and seek justice for the heinous acts committed against them.”

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office, and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, with the full cooperation of the LOPD. It was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney D. Rodney Brown.