Matthew Valkinburg, a 35-year-old former soldier from Pueblo, Colorado, has been sentenced to more than seven years in federal prison after pleading guilty to possessing child sexual abuse material. At the time of the offense, Valkinburg was stationed at Fort Jackson.
Investigators found that Valkinburg began uploading child sexual abuse material to his Discord account in 2023 while he was in Colorado. Local authorities linked online accounts associated with him to this illegal activity. After his transfer to Fort Jackson, Army investigators executed a search warrant at his residence there and discovered child sexual abuse material on several electronic devices, including his cell phone.
United States District Judge Cameron McGowan Currie sentenced Valkinburg to 87 months in prison, followed by 25 years of court-ordered supervision. There is no parole in the federal system. In addition, Valkinburg must pay $124,000 in restitution and register as a sex offender for life.
The case was prosecuted under Project Safe Childhood, an initiative launched by the U.S. Department of Justice in May 2006 to address child sexual exploitation and abuse by coordinating efforts among federal, state, and local agencies. More information about Project Safe Childhood can be found at http://www.justice.gov/psc.
The Army Criminal Investigation Division conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott Matthews and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Amanda Beckham handled the prosecution.
