Owatonna, MN (KROC-AM News) - A former employee of a southern Minnesota school district has been sentenced for a child pornography conviction.

Charges were filed last October against 30-year-old Jeremy Martin Alvarez following an investigation conducted by the Steele County Sheriff's Office. Court documents say the investigation was opened after the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension forwarded a cyber tip to the sheriff’s office, based in part on information provided by Yahoo.

According to the criminal complaint, the tip included information that linked the Owatonna man to an account on the Kik social media platform, which was associated with the download of suspected child sexual abuse materials. At the time, Alvarez was employed as a school custodian by the Owatonna School District.

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According to the charges, Alvarez told investigators “he had gotten into meth and coke and then he got hooked on child pornography during that time.” In his statement to police, Alvarez indicated he had been addicted for five years, but denied ever having meeting with a juvenile in person.

Alvarez was charged with five counts of possession of child pornography. He entered into a plea agreement in March and admitted to one of the charges in exchange for the dismissal of the others.

READ MORE: Former Southern MN School Employee Admits to Child Porn Charge

He was sentenced Monday in Steele County Court to five years on probation and was ordered to register as a predatory offender. He also received a stayed 15-month prison term that could be imposed if he violates the terms of his probation.

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