Former TLC star Toby Willis, 46, pleads guilty to child rape and is sentenced to FORTY years in prison

Willis, 46, pleaded guilty to four counts, a week before he was set to go to trial
The Willis Clan patriarch, of TLC fame, was arrested in September after fleeing from Tennessee to Kentucky
Married father-of-12 was charged with raping a young girl about 12 years ago
Willis appeared in the show with his wife and 12 kids until it was canceled due to poor ratings in April 2016

Published: 22:39 BST, 11 July 2017 | Updated: 04:32 BST, 12 July 2017

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Former TLC reality star Toby Willis, of the Willis Clan fame, was sentenced to 40 years on Tuesday after pleading guilty to four counts of child rape.

The 46-year-old Tennessee musician and married father-of-12 was handed two 25-year prison terms on two of the charges, and two 40-year terms on the remaining two. Those sentences will run concurrently, meaning that Willis will spend a total of 40 years behind bars.

Willis has been in the Cheatham County Jail since September 2016, when he was arrested for the rape of a young girl between the ages of 9 and 12 that had occurred 12 years ago.

Guilty: Former TLC star Toby Willis, 46, has pleaded guilty to four counts of child rape and was sentenced on Tuesday to a total of 40 years in prison

Singing family: Willis, his wife and their 12 children got their first taste of fame when they reached the quarterfinals in season nine in America's Got Talent in 2014

Toby's wife Brenda and the Willis family on Tuesday released a statement through their attorney thanking their fans and friends for their love and support, reported The Tennessean.

'Although the criminal case has concluded with Toby Willis receiving 40 years for the crimes he committed, the impact on the victims will remain much longer,' the statement read, in part.

The investigation into Toby Willis began in August 2016 after a family member reported the rape allegations to police.

Toby's wife Brenda and the Willis family on Tuesday released a statement through their attorney thanking their fans and friends for their love and support, and expressing sympathy for his 'victims'

Willis was arrested On September 9, 2016, in Greenville, Kentucky, after allegedly trying to flee police in Tennessee. Detectives said he had been hitchhiking through the state to evade them.

During his arraignment in March, Willis denied the four charges of child rape. His guilty pleas on Tuesday came a week before he was scheduled to go to trial.

Willis, his wife and their 12 children got their first taste of fame when they reached the quarterfinals in season nine in America's Got Talent in 2014.

The Willis Family aired for two seasons on TLC before being canceled in April 2016 due to poor ratings.

Producers said they had conducted extensive background checks on all of the family and were 'shocked' by the news.

Following the father's arrest in September, network officials removed all reference to the family from its website.