ST. LOUIS – A St. Charles man appeared in federal court on Monday to be sentenced for collecting and keeping child sexual abuse material (CSAM) on a thumb drive.

Prosecutors with the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Missouri said Brian Larkin, 54, pleaded guilty last October to one count of receiving child pornography.

Larkin had been named in tips made to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. In September 2023, the FBI’s St. Louis office was made aware of these tips, indicating Larkin had used Kik Messenger to upload files containing child porn and discussed child sexual exploitation in chat rooms.

On Nov. 29, 2023, authorities served a court-approved search warrant at Larkin’s home. The thumb drive was kept hidden inside a gun safe.

The thumb drive contained at least 972 image files and 962 video files showing child sexual abuse material.

A U.S. District Court judge sentenced Larkin to 72 months in federal prison and ordered him to pay $170,500 in restitution to the victims who appeared in the CSAM he collected, as well as an additional $30,000 in fines, which will go to child pornography victims.