Man gets 23-year sentence in child porn case

A man convicted on child pornography charges has been sentenced to serve 23 years in federal prison.

Russell Eugene Blessman, 52, was sentenced in federal court in Salt Lake City on Wednesday to serve 276 months in federal prison, and a lifetime of probation when he is released. Blessman pleaded guilty earlier this year to three counts of possessing child pornography.

Blessman was wanted in Iowa, accused of sexually abusing an 8-year-old girl. He was arrested at a Heber City motel room last year after being encouraged to go to Utah to join a Native American tribe the government does not recognize, authorities said.

For a brief time, the 6-foot, 350-pound man lived in a cave, the Utah Attorney General's Office said at the time of Blessman's arrest. He will be extradited to Iowa to face charges, authorities said.