News Releases

Former Oakland Co. Sheriff Deputy sentenced on child pornography charges

DETROIT- A 36-year-old former Oakland County Sheriff Deputy was sentenced April 15 on child pornography charges following a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) investigation.

Vaughn Benear, of Clarkston, Mich., was sentenced to five years imprisonment followed by five years supervised release, during which he must register as a sex offender. He pleaded guilty in December to one count of possession of child pornography in federal court before U.S. District Court Judge Bernard A. Friedman.

This investigation is part of Operation Predator, a nationwide ICE initiative to protect children from sexual predators, including those who travel overseas for sex with minors, Internet child pornographers, criminal alien sex offenders, and child sex traffickers.

ICE encourages the public to report suspected child predators and any suspicious activity through its toll-free hotline at 1-866-DHS-2ICE. This hotline is staffed around the clock by investigators.

Suspected child sexual exploitation or missing children may be reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, an Operation Predator partner, at 1-800-843-5678 or http://www.cybertipline.com.