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KANKAKEE — A Kankakee County man was sentenced to four years in prison for possessing child sexual abuse material Wednesday.
Kankakee County Circuit Judge Kathy Bradshaw-Elliott sentenced 38-year-old Wayne R. Hipple, 38, of Bourbonnais, to four years in prison after Hipple pleaded guilty to one Class 2 felony count of possession of child pornography, a release from Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul said.
Hipple was prosecuted as part of Raoul’s ongoing efforts to apprehend offenders who download and trade child sexual abuse material online. Raoul’s investigators, with the assistance of the Bourbonnais Police Department, searched Hipple’s residence in September 2024 and arrested him after finding evidence of child sexual abuse material, the release said.
“Survivors of child abuse and exploitation are revictimized each and every time an individual downloads or trades one of these horrific photos or videos,” Raoul said in the release.
“My office’s Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force works tirelessly to identify and track down individuals who assault and exploit children. I will continue to partner with local law enforcement to locate and hold these offenders accountable.”
Assistant Attorney General Shantikumar Kulkarni prosecuted the case for Raoul’s High Tech Crimes Bureau, the release said.