Photo Courtesy: Greene County Jail

Man from Springfield Pleads Guilty to Child Pornography Charge

A man from Springfield now awaits sentencing after pleading guilty to charges of receiving and distributing child pornography.

43-year-old Ronald Goins entered into his guilty plea on Tuesday in federal court, says the U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Missouri.

Goins is a repeat offender, having been convicted of furnishing pornographic material to a minor under the age of 14, as well as two convictions for failure to report as a sex offender.

The investigation began after a cell phone was found in an abandoned car, which contained sexually explicit material on the phone’s SD card.

Information on the card also proved the device belonged to Goins at the time the pornographic material was put on it.

He faces a minimum of 15 years in prison without the possibility of parole. It was a federal case, so he will serve his sentence in federal prison.