Former Roswell councilman pleads guilty to child pornography charges

Kent Igleheart, a former Roswell city councilman, plead guilty to six felony charges related to child pornography on Friday.

Kent Igleheart, a former Roswell city councilman, plead guilty to six felony charges related to child pornography on Friday.

Kent Igleheart is going to spend at least 15 years in prison for crimes related to child pornography.

On the 23rd floor of the Richard B. Russell Federal Building in Atlanta on Friday, Igleheart  a former Roswell city councilman and actor  pleaded guilty to six charges related to child pornography. The first four counts are producing child pornography, which carry a minimum sentence of 15 years.

The fifth charge is receipt of child pornography, which carries a minimum sentence of five years. The sixth count, possession of child pornography, does not carry a minimum sentence.

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Igleheart entered a plea agreement with the U.S. Attorney’s Office representing the Northern District of Georgia, and was indicted on these federal charges on Dec. 18.

The prosecution was led by Richard Moultrie, who recommended that Igleheart, 54, be sentenced to 30 years in prison.

As part of the plea agreement, DeKalb County will dismiss charges against the former councilman and the U.S. District Attorney will not bring additional charges against him. Igleheart must register as a sex offender if and when he is released from prison, and must also pay restitution to his victims.

The plea hearing  which lasted about an hour  was presided over by U.S. District Judge Amy M. Totenberg.

She explained to him that she is not bound by the plea agreement, or the  prosecution’s recommended sentence. As part of the plea agreement, Igleheart also surrendered his right to appeal Totenberg’s sentencing, which is set for March 26 at 10:30 a.m.

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Igleheart — wearing ankle shackles and orange sweats  said little during the hearing besides "yes ma'am" and "no ma'am." He was represented by Noah Pines, an Atlanta-based lawyer.

During the hearing, Moultrie revealed that not only did Igleheart ask for and receive sexually explicit photos and videos from girls under the age of 18, but he was also deceiving them, posing as a 17-year-old boy online under the name of “Kent Allen.”

DeKalb County police began investigating Igleheart after one of his victims told her mother about their relationship. She was 17 at the time, but said the relationship started when she was 13. Igleheart exchanged sexually explicit photos and conversation with that victim for four years, Moultrie said.

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DeKalb County police and the FBI began posing as the victim online and continued conversation with Igleheart. This led to him booking a hotel and arranging a meetup with the victim at Northlake Mall. That's where he was first arrested in October 2016.

At that time, Igleheart was still a councilman in Roswell, a post he was first elected to in 2001. Igleheart resigned after his arrest and was succeeded on the council by Lori Henry, who went on to be elected mayor of the city last month.

A native of Louisville, Kentucky, Igleheart is also an actor. According to his IMDB.com page, he appeared in "We Are Marshall," two movies directed by Tyler Perry and several other films.

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Moultrie also described three other times Igleheart enticed minors —  ages 16, 14 and 13 —  and asked for sexually explicit material from them in 2016.

After the prosecutor finished reading facts and charges, Totenberg asked Igleheart if anything he heard was false.

In a courtroom filled with just nine other people, he replied quietly, “No ma’am.”

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Police are searching for the couple after the victim’s daughter confronted them.