Glee actor Mark Salling pleads guilty to possession of child pornography

Soon to be sentenced: Glee star Mark Salling has pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography and faces 4-7 years in jail. Photo / Getty Images

Glee star Mark Salling has pleaded guilty to possession of child pornography.

As part of the plea agreement, Salling, 35, is looking at a reduced sentence of between four to seven years in jail.

He was originally facing a maximum sentence of 20 years behind bars after being charged with two counts of child pornography last year, the Daily Mail reports.

Salling must register as a sex offender and after serving his time he will be under supervised release for 20 years.

After being released from prison he is banned from coming within 30m of schoolyards, parks, public swimming pools, playgrounds and video arcade venues.

He cannot communicate verbally or electronically with any person under 18 without their parent or guardian present.

The agreement also states that Salling has been ordered to pay "approximately US$50,000 [$69,800]" restitution to each victim who has requested it.

He will also have to enter an offender treatment programme as part of the plea deal.

Following a tip-off Salling was arrested at his home in Sunland, California in December 2015 where police found a cache of explicit images on his computer depicting children as young as 10 in sexual situations.

They later discovered more than 50,000 photos and videos on his laptop and another 4000 on a flash drive

Lieutenant Andrea Grossman, of the LAPD, described some of the lewd images depicting grade school-aged girls as "disturbing", reported the New York Daily News at the time.

Sources who spoke with TMZ in December said police were "100 per cent" certain they would find child pornography in Salling's home based on a tip they had received from his ex-girlfriend and additional evidence.

The allegations were first reported by Crime Watch Daily. It said police used battering rams to get into the house because Salling refused to let them in to the home.

His computer and other electronic devices were reportedly seized by cops after Salling refused to tell them his password.

According to records, the house raided by the LAPD belongs to Jonathan Hernandez, who has been Salling's roommate as far back as 2011.

Salling shot to fame playing Noah "Puck" Puckerman in the hit FOX series Glee.

He first appeared in 2008 and was a regular until season five.

His December arrest was not the star's first brush with the law. In March he allegedly reached a US$2.7million ($3.7m) settlement with a woman who had sued him for sexual battery.

In 2011, Roxanne Gorzela claimed he forced her to have unprotected sex and then when she confronted him several days later, he pushed her to the ground injuring her knees.

It was reported that the case was settled midway through trial after Gorzela dropped the sexual battery claim.

Salling admitted to negligently causing her to fall and injure herself. She is not believed to have been the woman who tipped off the authorities.