Former South Lake Tahoe fire captain sentenced in child porn case

A former South Lake Tahoe Fire Department captain has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for transportation of child pornography.

Mark McLeod Wygant, a 46-year-old Chico resident, has been in custody since his arrest on Jan. 29, 2015, according to a U.S. attorney’s office news release. He was sentenced Friday in Sacramento by U.S. District Judge Garland E. Burrell Jr.

According to court documents, from early 2011 to early 2012, Wygant surreptitiously filmed a child on numerous occasions using a hidden cellphone and hidden “spy cameras” that he purchased for that purpose. Wygant then transported the videos and photos from Butte County to South Lake Tahoe, where he worked as a captain with the local Fire Department.

The charges were not related to any conduct during his interaction with the public in his Fire Department duties, the news release said.

Wygant’s arrest followed an investigation by the South Lake Tahoe Police Department. City officials received an internal tip of a potential crime regarding a city employee, and an investigation was launched by federal and local law enforcement agencies, according a new release issued at the time of Wygant’s arrest. He initially was placed on paid administrative leave, but he resigned from the Fire Department after the city completed its internal investigation.

This story was originally published March 3, 2017 at 6:26 PM with the headline "Former South Lake Tahoe fire captain sentenced in child porn case."