LEXINGTON — A Lewis County man pleaded guilty Friday to involvement in an international pornography ring that featured videotapes of sexually sadistic spankings of children, federal officials said.

        David S. Bradner, 38, pleaded guilty on five charges, according to the office of U.S. Attorney Gregory F. Van Tatenhove. The plea agreement calls for a 20-year sentence.

        Mr. Bradner admitted taking part in a conspiracy to produce and distribute sexually explicit videos involving children, possessing child pornography and firing a shotgun into his computer to destroy evidence when federal agents raided his house June 18.

        “It's the worst case I've seen in 20 years of working these cases,” said Mark A. Wohlander, the assistant U.S. attorney who prosecuted Mr. Bradner.

        Mr. Bradner's case was part of a large investigation of a child pornography ring that began after Canadian border patrol agents intercepted sexually explicit videos.

        The U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the FBI tracked the tapes and in August 2000 raided a Georgia man's home, confiscating 400 videos that contained child porn, some involving his own children.

        Authorities also found computer records linking others to the conspiracy, including Mr. Bradner. The scheme operated from March 1996 until August 2000.

        Corbin attorney C. Wayne Shepherd, who represented Mr. Bradner, said Mr. Bradner was not charged with producing child porn, but was “just more of a viewer.”

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