Adam Lehnertz, a former police officer for the South Dakota State University Police Department, has been sentenced to eight years in prison for soliciting a minor and possessing child pornography.

The 25-year-old, of Rochester, Minn., plead guilty back in March and received one count each of solicitation of a minor and possession of child pornography. He was sentenced on Tuesday in the Brookings County Circuit Court.

According to Beadle County State’s Attorney Michael Moore, Lehnertz was serving as a UPD officer when these offenses took place in April and June 2019. He solicited a 13-year-old girl from Minnesota using electronic communication and exchanged photos with her. He also was in possession of pornographic images at the time.

The exchanges were discovered by the minor’s parents, who noticed the material on one of her devices and turned it over to law enforcement in Minnesota. After determining the origin of the material, the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation became involved in the case, as well.

SDSU severed its connection with Lehnertz as soon as the case against him was discovered.

Lehnertz was indicted by a Brookings County grand jury in September 2019 on one count of solicitation of a minor and 10 counts of possession of child pornography. The remaining counts of pornography were dropped, however, due to his guilty pleas earlier this year. No further charges, either in Minnesota or South Dakota, were pursued in the case.

Circuit judge Greg Stoltenburg sentenced Lehnertz to 10 years in the state penitentiary but suspended the execution of two of those years.

In addition to time served in prison, Lehnertz must also pay $1,000 in fines and court costs, along with $1,800 to cover the cost of his psychosexual evaluation. He must remain a law-abiding citizen, follow the rules and regulations of the Board of Pardons and Paroles and register as a sex offender. After sentencing, he was turned over to the custody of the sheriff’s office and transported to the state penitentiary.

Both charges given are Class 4 felonies and are punishable by up to 10 years in prions and $20,000 in fines each.