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Mattoon Sex Offender Sentenced to 45 Years in Prison

URBANA, Ill. – A Mattoon man was sentenced to 45 years in prison for child sex crimes.

Jeffrey M. West, 53, was convicted of multiple child sex offenses in April 2021, including two counts of sexual exploitation of minors, two counts of commission of the offense by a registered sex offender, two counts of receiving child pornography, and one count of possession of child pornography.

According to the government’s evidence, law enforcement became aware of West in 2019 when a minor disclosed that he had been sexually abused. During the investigation, computer forensic analysis revealed that West had collected over 1,000 images and videos involving child pornography, including explicit depictions of infants and prepubescent minors.

The evidence also showed that West used the video-chatting website Omegle to entice and coerce multiple minor males to engage in sexually explicit conduct, which he captured for his child pornography collection.

West has a prior conviction in Coles County for aggravated criminal sexual abuse of a 10-year-old minor female and a 4-year-old minor male. He was arrested in May 2019 and released on bond, but was subsequently arrested on federal charges in September 2019.

Following his sentencing, West will be on supervised release for 15 years and will be required to register as a sex offender.

“Those who choose to sexually abuse children will be caught, prosecuted, and severely punished,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Douglas J. Quivey. “I commend the diligent investigators of the Mattoon Police Department, working in conjunction with the FBI, for making our community safer.”

The charges were brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat child sexual exploitation and abuse. The investigation was led by the Mattoon Police Department, with assistance from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Springfield Division, and the Coles County State’s Attorney’s Office.