Serial child predator given sentenced

ERIE, Pa. (AP) - A federal judge has sentenced a northwestern Pennsylvania man with a history of child molestation convictions to 37 years in federal prison for possessing child pornography.

Thirty-three-year-old Eric Lee Stafford, of Cambridge Springs, was sentenced Tuesday after pleading guilty before U.S. District Judge Sean McLaughlin in September.

The judge justified the sentence by calling Stafford a "predatory pedophile who is not deterred by his previous incarcerations."

Online court records show Stafford received six- to 23-month sentences for his state court convictions in 2001 and 2005. He also revealed that he had molested seven other children during sex offender treatment he received between those convictions.

McLaughlin said Stafford had a "very troubling criminal history" which made his latest criminal conduct "particularly egregious."

FBI agents found about 70 movies and more than 5,000 illegal images on his computer and cellphone.