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SEATTLE - The U.S. District Court sentenced a 43-year-old Snohomish County man to almost 22 years in prison for the production of images of child sexual abuse and attempted enticement of minors.
Bennett S. Park preyed on young teens using common social media platforms, like Instagram, Snapchat and Facebook, for five years. Whether he preyed on young girls prior to this timeline is unknown and was not mentioned in the U.S. District Court documents. He will serve 262 months, or 21.8 years, in prison.
"This defendant damaged untold lives – those of his victims and those of their family members, friends and adults who tried but could not keep them safe from a predator lurking on the internet," said Acting U.S. Attorney Miller. "I commend the quick work by law enforcement to intervene before he could molest another child."
Timeline:
Authorities arrested Park in Aug. 2023, when he attempted to pick up a 13-year-old in a residential area of Everett. Park said to an undercover law enforcement officer that he planned to pick up and molest the 13-year-old child.
According to the plea agreement, in July 2023, Park responded to an online advertisement placed by an undercover Homeland Security Investigation agent. In the advertisement, the agent made the false claim that he had two young children that could be molested. Park said to the undercover agent that he was interested in the agent's fictional children, but he was already meeting a 13-year-old child.
Promptly, law enforcement quickly put Park under surveillance to identify and protect the teen. Then, after 1:45 am on Aug. 8, 2023, law enforcement arrested Park right after the teen got into his car.
What law enforcement found after Bennett Park's arrest
What they're saying:
After Park's arrest, a review of his electronic devices revealed that he communicated with dozens of minors. Law enforcement identified 23 of the minor victims.
Park preyed on these minors through Discord, direct messaging on Instagram, Snapchat, Facebook, Gmail and Zoom platforms. Park detailed his crimes with eight different minor victims in the plea agreement.
Fourteen cybertips from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children were subsequently issued by Discord, which eventually confirmed the 23 minor victims between the ages of 10 and 17.
Park enticed and exploited minors from April 2018 to his Aug. 2023 arrest.
"The fact that twenty-three victims were identified, and the imagery of countless others remain saved to his devices and accounts underscores the lengths Park was willing to go to in order to victimize innocent children," said Assistant United States Attorney Cecelia Gregson.
What's next for Bennett Park?
Judge Martinez ordered that Park be required to register as a sex offender and a hearing is scheduled for Nov. 14, 2025 to determine the amount of restitution he owes. Park also needs to pay a $3,000 fine into a fund for victims of child sexual abuse imagery.
The U.S. Department of Justice launched a nationwide initiative in May 2006, named Project Safe Childhood, to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. This case was brought as part of the initiative.
The initiative is led by the U.S. Attorneys' Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who sexually exploit children, as well as to identify and rescue victims on federal, state and local levels.
"Park profoundly harmed countless minors, only several of whom are reflected in the charges brought in this case. He dedicated years of his life to cultivating, grooming, and enticing young girls in an effort to manipulate them to engaging in sexual chatting, sexual acts, and producing sexual imagery for the sole purpose of feeding his pedophilia," Gregson said.
The Source: Information in this story came from U.S. District Court documents.
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