Former North Platte Police Investigator John Deal, who was arrested by FBI agents on Aug, 31, was officially indicted Thursday by a federal grand jury for receipt and possession of child pornography.

Deal was placed on administrative leave from his police job on Aug. 4, the day the FBI searched his home. He officially resigned from the police department when he was arrested on Aug. 31. He was taken to Omaha that day, and after a bond hearing the next day, he was placed in the custody of U.S. marshals, where he remains.

Count I of the grand jury indictment charges Deal, 46, with receipt of pornography, beginning at least on Oct. 21, 2011, and continuing to Dec. 29, 2024, if not longer.

If convicted, he faces a penalty of 5-20 years imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, followed by a term of supervised release of five years to life, and a $100 special assessment. 

Count II is possession of child pornography on or about Aug. 4, the day his home was searched. If convicted, the penalties would be the same as Count I — 5-20 years imprisonment, a $250,000 fine, supervised release for not less than 5 years up to life, and a $100 special assessment. 

North Platte police were not involved in the FBI investigation and did not receive any details about it until after Deal was arrested, Sgt. J. Johnson said.

At Deal’s bond hearing on Sept. 1, prosecutors asked that he remain incarcerated. The judge agreed, saying Deal posed a risk of not appearing for future courts dates, and could be a risk to the public if he were released on bail.

At the hearing, the lead FBI investigator testified that Deal was licensed to investigate pornography cases as a law officer. Using the dark web, he evidently downloaded pornographic content to his computer. He was not doing undercover work, the FBI investigator said.

During cross examination, the investigator admitted that the content could have been downloaded by someone else operating Deal’s computers.

The full complaint against Deal, including the arrest affidavit, remain under a court seal.

In North Platte, Johnson has said police are cooperating fully with the FBI investigation.

“We understand this news may cause concern and raise questions within our community,” Johnson said. “We recognize the
importance of maintaining the public’s trust and are committed to ensuring matters involving department personnel are handled
appropriately and in accordance with the law.”

Deal was on the North Platte police force for 20 years, according to court statements. He is represented by Lincoln attorney Justin B. Kalemkiarian of the Liberty Law Group.

In all, the federal grand jury for the District of Nebraska returned 12 unsealed indictments Thursday, charging 12 defendants, the majority of which were immigration violations.

Indictments are charging documents that contain one or more individual counts that are merely accusations, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty, spokeswoman Amy Donato said.

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