Rawlins Man Sentenced for Child Pornography Possession

A Rawlins man will spend more than three years behind bars for possession of child pornography, according to federal court records and a press release from the Wyoming U.S. Attorney's Office on Monday.

Nathan Lucas Heibeck, 26, heard the 38-month sentence handed down by Chief U.S. District Judge Scott Skavdahl on Thursday.

Besides imprisonment, Skavdahl ordered Heibeck to serve five years of supervised probation after his release from custody, pay a $100 special assessment and pay $48,000 in restitution.

Court documents say the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation initiated a peer-to-peer investigation of Heibeck sharing child sexual abuse material via the BitTorrent network, according to the press release. The press release did not say when this investigation began.

Law enforcement executed a search warrant on Heibeck’s residence. An analysis of the evidence seized identified more than 50 videos and more than 2,200 images of child sex abuse material on the defendant’s devices.

On Nov. 17, the grand jury indicted Heibeck on one count of distribution of child pornography and one count of possession of child pornography.

As part of his plea deal on April 18, the federal government dismissed the child pornography count at the sentencing.

The minutes of the sentencing did not detail specifics of the $48,000 restitution. However, the indictment lists two possible special assessments:

• $10,000 special assessment pursuant to the victims of the Sex Trafficking Act of 2015.
• Up to $52,000 special assessment and mandatory restitution of not less than $3,000 per requesting victim pursuant to the Amy, Vicky, Andy Child Pornography Victim Assistance Act of 2018.

The government regards child pornography as a crime of violence because it involves brutal assaults on very young children who cannot give consent to sexual activity.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Z. Seth Griswold prosecuted the case.