A mother-in-law went undercover to expose the lewd behavior of his son-in-law after he was caught by his wife soliciting photos from underage boys.

As announced by Atty. Marc Krickaum, Senior United States Circuit Judge Honorable Michael J. Melloy sentenced Iowa native Ryan Mitchell Budde to 10 years and 10 months in prison for receiving and distributing child pornography.

The 34-year-old Budde was also ordered to serve six years of supervised release and to pay $100 to the Crime Victims' Fund and $5,000 in restitution after serving his time behind bars.

Budde, who, according to NBC News, pleaded guilty to one count of receiving and distributing child pornography in July, will also comply with the sex offender registry requirements upon his release.

The investigation that led to Budde's sentencing started in 2017 after authorities received a tip from a social media company. It claimed that Budde had uploaded 27 files containing child pornography onto their website.

Law enforcement confiscated two cellular phones and two laptops from Budde and retrieved a total of 365 images that were identified as child pornography.

Pedophile Gang Harasses Vigilante
A vigilante in London whose efforts brought 28 sex offenders to justice is now reportedly being harassed by a pedophile gang. In this image, the social networking site Facebook is displayed on a laptop screen, in London, England, March 25, 2009. Getty Images/Dan Kitwood

The assistant U.S. attorney said that Budde's wife became suspicious of her husband's fidelity after she discovered that he had been talking with underage boys while asking for their photos at the same time.

To recompense for his behavior, Budde promised his wife that he will stop communicating with the boys, but his guarantee was short-lived when it was discovered that he was still keeping in touch with them.

Budde's mother-in-law helped with the investigation and pretended to be a 15-year-old boy. Her character then started to chat with her son-in-law online.

After two weeks, Budde expressed his intent to meet with the “boy” with the intent to have sex with him.

This, among other things, led to the divorce of the couple and for Budde to lose his parental rights, added the assistant U.S. attorney.

Further investigation also uncovered Budde pretending to be a 15-year-old virgin and had chat sessions with young boys.

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