photo by: Kansas Department of Corrections

Benjamin Grace, pictured in July 2010

A registered sex offender from Lawrence was sentenced to a decade in federal prison for possession of child pornography, according to a news release from the U.S. District Court in Kansas.

Benjamin Grace, 32, was identified in an FBI investigation of an internet service involved in the production, advertisement and distribution of child porn, according to the release. Agents searched his Lawrence home, then interviewed him in Overland Park, according to the release.

Grace’s previous conviction, from 2008 in Johnson County, was for electronic sexual solicitation of a child, according to the release. He had to register as a sex offender for 25 years, and he did so in July 2010, according to the Kansas Bureau of Investigation’s online registry.

Grace pleaded guilty to one count of possession of child porn. He admitted to viewing images including children as young as 5 years old.

In addition to his 10-year sentence, Grace must pay $5,000 to the fund established by the Justice for Victims of Trafficking Act. He will remain registered as a sex offender indefinitely.