Sioux Falls man receives decade-long federal prison term for child pornography

Toby Ferguson will begin a ten-year federal prison sentence that effectively secures his status as a registered sex offender for the next quarter-century. The 55-year-old Sioux Falls resident was sentenced on October 26, 2026, by United States District Chief Judge Roberto A. Lange. Following his release from custody, Ferguson must complete five years of supervised release and register as a sex offender for 25 years. He was also ordered to pay a $100 special assessment to the Federal Crime Victims Fund.

The conviction rests on a guilty plea entered on July 9, 2026, for possession of child pornography. The underlying incidents occurred between January 1, 2024, and September 4, 2024. During that window, Ferguson’s attempts to download files triggered a CyberTip, which initiated the investigative process. Federal authorities determined that the files contained images of minors, including children under the age of 12, being sexually abused. A federal grand jury had indicted Ferguson in December 2024, marking the formal start of the federal proceedings.

The sentence follows a history of state-level sexual offenses that ended with Ferguson’s release on parole. In Lawrence County, South Dakota, a jury convicted him of first-degree rape of a victim under 13 on January 21, 1993. Shortly after, on March 3, 1993, he was convicted of sexual contact with a child under 16 in Fall River County. State courts sentenced him to 180 years in prison, with 90 years suspended. He served 22 years before being paroled. At the time of his federal arrest, he was still serving that state parole.

The federal case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth A. Ebert-Webb and announced by U.S. Attorney Ron Parsons. The investigation involved a multi-agency effort including Homeland Security Investigations, the South Dakota Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, the Sioux Falls Police Department, the Minnehaha County Sheriff’s Office, and the South Dakota Highway Patrol.

The prosecution was part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched by the Department of Justice in May 2006. The program coordinates federal, state, and local resources to locate and prosecute individuals who exploit children. The case highlights the continued federal focus on digital child sexual exploitation through coordinated task force operations.