Glee star Mark Salling pleads guilty to possessing child pornography

Former Glee star Mark Salling faces up to seven years in prison after he pleaded guilty to two counts of possessing child pornography.

The actor was arrested in December 2015 after one of his ex-girlfriend’s tipped off the police about the images on his computer, with Salling later being released on $20,000 bail.

However, when the police saw the severity of the images, the case was passed onto the federal authorities.

Over 50,000 “sexually charged” images were found on the star’s computer, including pictures of pre-pubescent children.

Salling, who played Noah ‘Puck’ Puckerman in Glee, was said to be facing 20 years in jail, however, when he entered a guilty plea following a plea bargain this was reduced to seven behind bars and 20 of supervised release, TMZ report.

The 35 year old is also said to have agreed to pay $50,000 to each of the victims, which will presumably go to the children in the images.

Once released from prison, Salling will be a registered sex offender and will be banned from living within view of any school yards, parks, public swimming pools, playgrounds, arcades, or anywhere else regularly visited by those under the age of 18.

Lieutenant Andrea Grossman, commander of the LAPD Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, said of the case: “It doesn’t matter who you are or what you do, if you hurt a child you will be held accountable.”

Salling’s former Glee co-star and ex-girlfriend, Naya Rivera, previously hit the headlines when she confessed that she “wasn’t shocked” by her ex’s child porn arrest.

Speaking in her memoir, Naya wrote about the moment that she learned about Mark’s alleged crimes, sharing: “My son’s nanny actually told me about it when the story broke.

“I can’t say I was totally shocked, but still – WTF? Then I had no doubt that God really did have my back along the way.

“When Mark dumped me, I thought it was the worst thing ever, but can you imagine if that didn’t happen? And I was laying there in bed when the battering ram came through the door?”

A judge will decide Salling’s sentence imminently.

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Read more:

[ Glee’s Mark Salling axed from new TV show after child porn arrest ]

[ Naya Rivera claims she ‘wasn’t shocked’ by Mark Salling’s arrest ]

[ Mark Salling accused of rape as he awaits child pornography trial ]