January 4, 2013 (BARNSTABLE) _ A 24 year old Barnstable man has been sentenced to 15 years in federal prison for persuading young girls to pose nude or perform sexually explicit acts over the Internet.

Kevin McNicol was also sentenced in U.S. District Court to seven years of probation upon release.

He pleaded guilty in September to one count of production of child pornography. Police began investigating after getting a tip in March 2011.

Authorities searched McNicol's laptop and found 92 videos depicting apparently underage girls either nude or in sexually explicit acts.

The videos were allegedly captured during video chats between McNicol and as many as 78 victims.