Lyndonville Man Sentenced To 18 Years For Sexual Exploitation Of A Child

The United States Attorney’s Office has announced that yesterday, Chief United States District Court Judge Christina Reiss sentenced Benjamin H. Weisinger, 48, of Lyndonville, Vermont, to 216 months in federal prison for production, receipt and possession of child pornography. Weisinger was convicted of the charges in April after a four-day jury trial. The production of child pornography conviction carried a mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years in prison.

According to trial testimony and court documents, Weisinger began his sexual abuse of the minor female when she was 9 or 10 years old. The abuse continued for several years and when the minor female was approximately 12 years old, Weisinger had her create sexually explicit videos and had her send him texts of the same conduct. One of these videos was discovered by the minor’s mother in November 2011 and the mother called the police. A later search of Weisinger’s computer and email accounts revealed numerous sexually explicit videos depicting the same minor female.

The case was investigated by the Vermont State Police, specifically, members of the Special Investigations Unit located in Hyde Park and the Vermont Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. The Department of Homeland Security also assisted in the investigation. The prosecutors on the case were Assistant United States Attorneys Wendy L. Fuller and Paul J. Van de Graaf.