ANGOLA, Ind. (WANE) — A tip and a lengthy investigation led to the arrest by Angola police of a Trine University professor on 15 counts of felony child exploitation.

Officers with the Angola Police Department took Steven Messer, 32, into custody on Tuesday.

According to a news release posted on the department’s Facebook page, the investigation began after it received a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. A probable cause affidavit said someone uploaded 21 images of child porn showing a child under 12 using a Google Drive.

Police tracked the IP address of the user to an Angola home owned by Messer, the affidavit said.

In an interview with police, Messer said he spends time on his computer doing “fun stuff for myself,” which he clarified to mean pornography, the affidavit said.

He said he’d looking at “stuff I know that isn’t entirely legal,” and “child related,” the affidavit said.

Messer told investigators he “hates himself for it” because “he knew this was going to happen and he kept going,” the affidavit said.

Messer said he has roughly 100 images of nude children saved. He said he knows possessing child porn is illegal, according to the affidavit.

Messer had been employed by Trine University as a biology professor. The university issued the following statement following his arrest:

Trine University has terminated, with immediate effect, instructor Steven Messer following an investigation into potential violations of Messer’s contractual obligations and potential violations of University policies. Trine University has followed the direction of law enforcement since being first made aware of possible criminal charges related to Messer. Messer is prohibited from returning to the Trine campus. The university will make no further comment.

Trine University

The Indiana State Police Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force and Homeland Security Investigations also assisted in the investigation.