Sex offender sentenced on federal child pornography charges

A federal judge has sentenced an Osage County man to more than seven years in prison for having child pornography.

Richard Hays, 50, of Loose Creek pleaded guilty in February, nearly a year and a half after his arrest. In October 2014, Google told law enforcement officers an image of child porn was uploaded to Hayes’ e-mail account.

Authorities searched Hays’ home, but didn’t find the image on any of the phones, and Hays said he had removed and thrown away the hard drive of his computer. Court documents indicate Hays, a registered sex offender, uploaded the pornographic image after a long history of failed supervision by parole and probation officers.

Throughout supervision for prior crimes, including rape and attempted rape, Hays has refused to receive sex offender counseling and treatment.