COEUR d’AENE — A man will spend up to nine years in prison after pleading guilty to soliciting sexually explicit images from a 9-year-old.

Timothy E. Durkin, 68, of Coeur d’Alene, pleaded guilty to sexual exploitation of a child, a felony that carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison.

Judge Rich Christensen sentenced Durkin last week to nine years in prison, with two and a half years fixed and six and a half years indeterminate.

Durkin must register as a sex offender upon his release. He is also ordered not to contact the victim for nine years.

The 9-year-old’s mother reportedly tipped off police earlier this year after she found correspondence between Durkin and her child. She learned that Durkin had told the child to delete the messages they exchanged over a period of several weeks in February and March, court documents said.

Durkin was arrested April 1 on a warrant after police confiscated his cellphones for a forensic investigation and found the images, according to court documents.

Authorities told a judge that Durkin had been under investigation for lewd conduct with a minor in 2014.

Durkin was originally charged with sexual abuse of a child, sexual exploitation of a child by possession of sexually exploitive material, and disseminating harmful materials to minors, all felonies that can carry sentences of up to life in prison.

He pleaded guilty to the sexual exploitation charge as part of a pretrial settlement offer, according to court documents.

Ralph Bartholdt contributed to this report.