FREDERICK COUNTY, Md. (DC News Now) — A Thurmont man was sentenced to 18 years in federal prison on Monday for the sexual exploitation of a child.

Jose Alexander Diaz-Rodriguez, 23, of Thurmont, was sentenced after breaking into a neighbor’s home and taking sexually explicit photos of a child.

On July 26, 2021, Diaz-Rodriguez broke into a home and entered the bedroom where two kids were sleeping. He got into bed with one of them, an eight-year-old girl, and produced a series of four images, intending to create sexually explicit images.

Her mother heard a noise and went into the room, where she found Diaz-Rodriguez on the ground next to the bed. He fled and was arrested at his home soon after.

A search of his phone revealed over 1,000 files depicting the sexual abuse of children, including the four photos of the eight-year-old, which he had deleted before police arrived.

Diaz-Rodriguez admitted he also distributed child sex abuse material on his social media account.

Upon his release, Diaz-Rodriguez will have to serve 25 years of supervised release and register as a sex offender.