Benjamin Dennis - MySpace Pedophile Arrested

An alleged MySpace pedophile suspect was arrested Wednesday by the Tehama County District Attorney's Office.

Benjamin Dennis, 32, of Corning, faces counts of attempted obscenity, contact with a minor with intent to commit sexual offense, and sending sexually explicit material to a minor, according to Tehama County District Attorney Gregg Cohen.

Dennis faces arraignment at 1:15 p.m. today, and if convicted on all counts, faces a maximum sentence of five years, eight months.

Thursday, Cohen told a press conference the arrest was the result of a sting called Operation Safe Sam, inspired by television shows that target pedophiles.

"Why couldn't we do the same thing that 'To Catch a Predator' does?" Cohen said. "My thought was I'd like to do what I can locally."

Cohen, along with the aid of district attorney investigator Martin Perrone, created a fake MySpace account under the guise of a 13-year-old girl named "Sam." Sam proceeded to contact Dennis through his MySpace account. Dennis' account, "jeepnaked7," was still online as of Thursday and shows Dennis' Jeep-brand car, a Green Bay Packers background, and photos of his family.

That an account belonging to a husband and father of three would belong to someone who would attempt pedophilia was something the office had no way of knowing at the start of the operation, the district attorney said.

The office is confident it avoided any issues of entrapment as Dennis was the one who initiated talk of a sexual encounter, Cohen said.

"The first thing we did was to go to the penal code," Cohen said. "We feel very solid."

Cohen said the sting yielded "mountains of evidence," including sexually explicit chat logs and phone conversations where a member of the Sheriff's Office voiced Sam.

Initial attempts to meet Dennis at the Red Bluff Community Center on Friday failed when the arrest team couldn't be mobilized in time, Cohen said. He then played a series of messages Dennis left on the phone account used for the sting.

The district attorney considered the operation a success for a number of reasons, including the low cost, the fact that no officers were endangered, and the speed at which the operation progressed.

After making claims that he had no intention of seducing Sam, Dennis' primary emotion was embarrassment, the district attorney said.

"He, from what I've been told, did hang his head and express how stupid he was," Cohen said.

Similar operations will follow in its wake, Cohen said.

"We're out there; we want to be out there," he said.

Geoff Johnson is a reporter for the Red Bluff Daily News.

Protecting your children:

It took only eight days for "Sam" and Benjamin Dennis to go from harmless conversation to seduction, said Tehama County District Attorney Gregg Cohen. Here are a few tips he offers for protecting your children online:

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PASSWORDS: "The first thing is to have their MySpace password," Cohen advises. Monitoring your child's e-mails and online account should be approached with the same diligence as "brushing your teeth."

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GHOSTING: Alternatively, technology can be set up to "ghost" other computers in the house, allowing one computer to watch another, or see the same things your child sees. "It's easily done," Cohen said.

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RUNAWAYS: Children who are suffering from depression, or have a strained relationship with their parents are more susceptible to manipulation and are more likely to turn to strangers for sanctuary. Talk with your kids, and make sure they know the dangers of talking to strangers — online or off.