Decatur, Alabama: The Department of Justice's Office of Public Affairs released a statement on Friday, March 4 announcing the sentencing of 41-year-old Benjamin Eugene Walter to 160 years in federal prison.
On October 4, 2021, Walter was convicted by a federal jury on four counts of producing and attempting to produce child pornography, one count of receiving child pornography, and one count of distributing child pornography.
According to the announcement of his indictment and arrest on March 7, 2019, the crimes were said to have occurred between November 2013 and December 2015, during which time, "Walter used and attempted to use five minors to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of transmitting a live visual depiction of such conduct."
Based on evidence presented at the trail, Walter used multiple online applications to contact women in the Philippines, seeking those that would be willing to sexually abuse their own children and relatives in exchange for money sent via MoneyGram, Western Union and other transfer services.
He would send money in increments of $25- $50 in exchange for images, live webcam shows and videos of the abuse of children as young as five years old.
This investigation was part of an joint effort conducted by the FBI and Homeland Security Investigations targeting the buyers and sellers such webcam shows in the Philippines.