Fairfax man to serve 10 years for having sex with underaged girls he met through Facebook

A 21-year-old Fairfax man was sentenced Monday in Linn County District Court to 10 years in prison for sexually abusing four teenage girls he met on Facebook.

Thomas J. Lindley, 21, pleaded guilty in August to one count of lascivious acts with a child and three counts of third-degree sexual abuse. He was sentenced to 10 years on each count, but the terms were ran concurrently for a total of 10 years.

The defense asked for probation, but 6th Judicial District Judge Nancy Baumgartner gave him prison time because there were multiple victims, and because of the nature of the offenses.

He will also be on the special lifetime parole required by law for sex offenders.

Lindley had consensual sex with four girls, including a 13-year-old, two 14-year-olds, and one 15- year-old, according to court records. The sexual relations were illegal acts because of the girls' ages. Lindley arranged to meet the girls through Facebook, starting in June 2010 and continuing through April 2011.

Linn County Attorney Jerry Vander Sanden said the offenses came to light when one of the girls contracted a sexually transmitted disease from Lindley.

Vander Sanden said police suspected there may be other victims, but none of them would disclose or admit to it.