Albion Man Sentenced For Child Pornography Conviction

An Albion man was sentenced to between 5 and 20 years in prison by a Calhoun County judge on Monday. The 59 year old Edward Eugene Sobie was arrested and charged in 2018 after he was identified by 517 Child Predator Exposure. Sobie had unknowingly contacted the vigilante group, who work undercover posing as teens online. The group says the 59 year old relentlessly began messaging what he thought was a teen girl everyday, eventually asking to meet in person and offering to take her to a festival. That is when members of the group agreed to meet with Sobie posing as a teen.

On August 4, 2018, 517 Child Predator Exposure released the video of that meeting. Sobie was arrested shortly after the video was made public by the Albion Department of Public Safety. Investigators said they found pictures of young girls on a computer in his home. He was initially charged with multiple counts of child sexually abusive activity and distributing or promoting child pornography. Sobie later pleaded no contest to one count of distributing child porn and two counts of possession of child porn.

Sobie served for years as a trustee and as a property manager at his church. He was also ordered to pay $258 in fines and court costs and will be required to be registered on Michigan's sex offender registry upon release.