Houston area man sentenced to more than 30 years for sexually exploiting children

FRIENDSWOOD, Texas - Officials have sentenced a man to 35 years behind bars for sexually exploiting children, and buying and possessing child pornography.

Benjamin C. Slaughter, 24, of Friendswood, located just south of Houston, pleaded guilty to charges in August 2021, according to a press release.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Homeland Security Investigation (HSI) in Galveston, and the Houston Metro Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force launched a joint investigation into Slaughter's crimes. Officials say Slaughter met a girl who was 15-years-old at the time through a social media website called Skout, and asked her to become engaged in sexually explicit activities.

Additionally, investigators say Slaughter demanded one victim to go out and sleep with strangers "without using protection." The press release also states "Slaughter began receiving child pornography prior to becoming an adult and created a Dropbox account to store some of his collection."

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Thorough searches of his computers showed graphic photos and videos involving babies and even animals, law enforcement agencies said.

For these crimes, the 24-year-old was sentenced to 35 years in federal prison. After his sentence, we're told he will be held on supervised release "for the rest of his life," meaning he will have to adhere to certain requirements meant to "restrict his access to children and the internet."