Georgia sextortionist convicted of child exploitation crimes

Benjamin Jenkins has been convicted by a jury of multiple counts of producing and distributing child pornography. Jenkins lured numerous young girls into sending him sexually explicit photos and videos, and then retaliated against the girls who refused to send him more.

“Jenkins is a predator who used various social media sites to lure and coerce young girls into sending him child pornography,” said U.S. Attorney Byung J. “BJay” Pak. “He terrorized his young victims by threatening to post their photographs online if they did not comply, and he frequently made good on these threats. A jury has now held Jenkins accountable for his horrific crimes, and he faces a lengthy prison sentence.”

“Sextortion is a growing threat that traps our youth in a horrific situation they aren’t able to get out of.  The removal of Jenkins from our community makes us all safer,” said acting Special Agent in Charge Robert Hammer, who oversees HSI operations in Georgia and Alabama. “With studies showing that over half of children over 11 years old have a cellphone, I urge parents to educate themselves and their kids about the dangers that exist on their phones.  Parents need to know and monitor their children’s social media usage and ensure their children are only ‘friending’ people they personally know.   Unfortunately, once the child decides to hit send on a photograph, there is no way to pull it back or remove it from the internet.   HSI Atlanta will continue to prioritize our investigations to protect our youth from these online predators.”

According to U.S. Attorney Pak, the charges and other information presented in court: Beginning in 2015, Jenkins targeted girls between the ages of 13 and 16 years. To lure the girls, he used different aliases and profiles to trick the girls into sending him sexually suggestive photos of themselves. After a girl sent him a photo, Jenkins coerced the child into sending him more photos and videos by threatening to post the photos online or to send the images to the girl’s family and friends.  Jenkins instructed the girls on what body parts to show, what poses to make, and what objects to insert into their bodies.  Jenkins further humiliated his victims by forcing them to send him videos showing them drinking their own urine or licking toilets. He also humiliated many of his victims by making them watch him masturbate.

Once a girl blocked Jenkins online, he sent her explicit photos to her parents and friends with demands that the girl resume communications with him.  Jenkins also posted his victim’s nude photos and contact information online with messages instructing men on how to contact the girls directly for more photos or for sex.

Benjamin Jenkins, a/k/a “Rei,” a/k/a “Reithe8th,” a/k/a “Dani Domo, 25, of Mableton, Georgia, was charged with nine counts of producing child pornography and three counts of distributing child pornography.  Nine of his victims testified at trial.  Jenkins was convicted of all of these charges by a federal jury on January 16, 2020.

Sentencing is scheduled for April 2, 2020, at 10:00 a.m. before U.S. District Judge Michael L. Brown.

The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s Homeland Security Investigations is investigating this case.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Paul R. Jones and L. Skye Davis, Coordinator of the U.S. Attorney’s Office’s Project Safe Childhood and Anti-Human Trafficking programs, are prosecuting the case.

This case is being brought as part of Project Safe Childhood.