Thomas Motley, the Kewanee man charged with five counts of possession of child pornography and one misdemeanor gun charge, was hit with five more counts of possession of child pornography, at his preliminary hearing in Henry County Circuit Court on Monday.
Henry County State’s Attorney Catherine Runty motioned the Court to add the charges without objection from Motley’s attorney, Clark Miljush. That brings the total number of charges against Motley to 11.
Motley, 29, waived his right to a formal arraignment and preliminary hearing, entering a not guilty plea with a demand for a jury trial, and a request for preservation of all audio and video evidence.
The Kewanee Police Department announced Motley’s arrest on Aug. 23. The arrest came after a joint investigation between the KPD, the Illinois Attorney’s General Office, the Illinois State Police and the Henry County Sheriff’s Department, and followed a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
Information provided led law enforcement to Motley, who allegedly possessed multiple images of child pornography. Search warrants executed on Tuesday, Aug. 22 of both his residence and car, provided evidence to, at that time, charge Motley with the five initial counts.
Possession of child pornography is a Class 2 felony and each of the 10 counts carries a potential of three to seven years in the custody of the Illinois Department of Corrections. The next pretrial hearing is set for Nov. 9.
