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Weare man convicted of sex trafficking boy in Louisiana; facing charges in New Hampshire

Facing 14 pending similar charges for six separate victims in New Hampshire, prosecutors say

Weare man convicted of sex trafficking boy in Louisiana; facing charges in New Hampshire

Facing 14 pending similar charges for six separate victims in New Hampshire, prosecutors say

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      PROSECUTORS SAY THAT MAN HAS áSIMILARá CHARGES PENDING OUT OF áNEW HAMPSHIREá. OUR IMANI FLEMING IS HERE TO EXPLAIN. <PROSECUTORS SAY HART USED ONLINE GAMING TO GAIN THE CHILD'S TRUST.. ISOLATE HIM AND BEGIN áYEARSá OF ABUSE> AFTER A 4 DAY TRIAL.. A 20 MINUTE JURY DELIBERATION.. AND A áUNANIMOUSá GUILTY VERDICT.. 28 YEAR OLD BENJAMIN HART.. FROM WEARE.. IS FACING UP TO 99 YEARS IN PRISON. JURORS IN WASHINGTON PARISH, LOUISIANA CONVICTED HIM OF MULTIPLE FELONY OFFENSES INVOLVING THE SEXUAL EXPLOITATION OF A 10 YEAR OLD BOY FROM THERE. PROSECUTORS SAY HE MET THE CHILD IN 2020... WHILE PLAYING XBOX ONLINE... THEIR COMMUNICATION.. EVENTUALLY MOVING TO SNAPCHAT.. WHERE HART SENT A SEXUALLY EXPLICIT PICTURE OF HIMSELF.. TO THE 10 YEAR OLD. <AS SOON AS A CHILD STARTS TO USE THE INTERNET, THEY'RE VULNERABLE TO THESE TYPES OF CRIMES> LAW ENFORCEMENT EXPERT RICHARD MELLO SAYS INVESTIGATORS LIKELY USED DATA TRACKING FROM BOTH XBOX AND SNAPCHAT.. TO FIND AND ARREST HART IN NEW MEXICO.. IN 2023. <THEY HAVE TO BE AS ADEPT, AT USING.. IN MOST CASES..MORE ADEPT AT USING THE INTERNET AND THESE RESOURCES THAN THE OFFENDER> PROSECUTORS SAY HART WOULD TRAVEL TO WASHINGTON PARISH OFTEN..TO SEXUALLY ABUSE THE 10 YEAR OLD. FROM 2020 TO 2022.. THEY SAY HART WAS BUYING THE CHILD GIFTS.. THEN USING THEM AS LEVERAGE TO COERCE HIM INTO FURTHER SEXUAL ACTS. <THESE OFFENDERS WILL TARGET ANY CHILD THEY CAN FIND ON THE INTERNET, THAT THEY CAN FIND WHO IS VULNERABLE> AND IN NEW HAMPSHIRE -- HART'S FACING MORE THAN A DOZEN, SIMILAR, PENDING CHARGES...LIKE INDECENT EXPOSURE.. FOR SIX, SEPARATE VICTIMS. THE CAROLL COUNTY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE SAYS QUOTE : WE WERE AWARE MR. HART WAS FACING SIMILAR CHARGES IN LOUISIANA, AND ONCE THOSE CHARGES AND SENTENCES ARE FINALIZED, WE CAN BEGIN THE PROCESS OF DETERMINING THE BEST PATH FORWARD FOR THE CHARGES HERE IN NEW HAMPSHIRE." < AND OFFICIALS ARE URGING PARENTS TO RECOGNIZE HOW PEOPLE CAN TARGET THEIR CHILDREN ONLINE... THEY SAY ITS A GOOD IDEA TO KNOW HOW YOUR CHILDREN ARE USING THESE PLATFORMS AND SITES. THEY SAY RED FLAGS LIKE: A SUDDEN DECLINE IN THEIR PERFORMANCE IN SCHOOL.. SECRETIVE BEHAVIOR ABOUT THEIR ONLINE ACTIVITY.. OR RECEIVING UNE
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      Weare man convicted of sex trafficking boy in Louisiana; facing charges in New Hampshire

      Facing 14 pending similar charges for six separate victims in New Hampshire, prosecutors say

      A New Hampshire man could be sentenced 25 to 99 years after being convicted on multiple charges, including sexual exploitation of a child in Louisiana.Benjamin Hart, 28, of Weare, was convicted after a four day jury trial in Washington Parish, being found guilty of computer-aided solicitation of a juvenile under the age of 13, trafficking of a child for sexual purposes, and sexual battery of a juvenile under the age of 13. Prosecutors said Hart met the 10-year-old boy in 2020 while playing Xbox and the communication continued and moved to Snapchat, where Hart sent sexually explicit images of himself. >> Download the free WMUR app to get updates on the go: Apple | Google Play <<Hart traveled to Louisiana regularly to meet the boy, staying for extended visits and sexually abused the child. Much of it took place in Hart's 18-wheeler, prosecutors said. Between 2020 and 2022, Hart gave the boy money, a cell phone and gaming systems and used those gifts as leverage to coerce the child into further sexual acts, prosecutors said. Hart was present for jury selection but did not return for the rest of the trial, prosecutors said. He is facing 14 pending similar charges for six separate victims in New Hampshire, prosecutors said. Carroll County Attorney Keith Blair told News 9 that the cases are still active and being prosecuted and that Hart has active warrants for charges.Blair said they were aware Hart was facing similar charges in Louisiana and once the charges and sentencing are finalized, they can begin the process of determining the best path forward with the charges in the Granite State. >> Subscribe to WMUR's YouTube channel <<Detectives with the Washington Parish Sheriff's Office initiated the investigation in November 2022, the sheriff's office said. In a January 2024 release, the sheriff's office said he had an existing case involving multiple juveniles in Carroll County and despite being aware of the pending charges in Louisiana, he did not surrender to law enforcement. Richard Mello is a safety consultant and retired Chief of the Lebanon Police Department, and he says cases involving technology at this level can be challenge for investigators."They have to be as adept (in most cases more adept) at using the internet and these resources than the offender." he said.Mello also believes that investigators used the data tracking from both Xbox and Snapchat to track Hart down.Hart was apprehended in Albuquerque, New Mexico, in April 2024. He contested extradition and after a competency hearing in January 2024, was found competent by a New Mexico medical examiner and judge and taken to the jail in Louisiana.Hart will be sentenced on May 16 where he faces the possibility of 25 to 99 years.

      A New Hampshire man could be sentenced 25 to 99 years after being convicted on multiple charges, including sexual exploitation of a child in Louisiana.

      Benjamin Hart, 28, of Weare, was convicted after a four day jury trial in Washington Parish, being found guilty of computer-aided solicitation of a juvenile under the age of 13, trafficking of a child for sexual purposes, and sexual battery of a juvenile under the age of 13.

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      Prosecutors said Hart met the 10-year-old boy in 2020 while playing Xbox and the communication continued and moved to Snapchat, where Hart sent sexually explicit images of himself.

      >> Download the free WMUR app to get updates on the go: Apple | Google Play <<

      Hart traveled to Louisiana regularly to meet the boy, staying for extended visits and sexually abused the child. Much of it took place in Hart's 18-wheeler, prosecutors said. Between 2020 and 2022, Hart gave the boy money, a cell phone and gaming systems and used those gifts as leverage to coerce the child into further sexual acts, prosecutors said.

      Hart was present for jury selection but did not return for the rest of the trial, prosecutors said.

      He is facing 14 pending similar charges for six separate victims in New Hampshire, prosecutors said. Carroll County Attorney Keith Blair told News 9 that the cases are still active and being prosecuted and that Hart has active warrants for charges.

      Blair said they were aware Hart was facing similar charges in Louisiana and once the charges and sentencing are finalized, they can begin the process of determining the best path forward with the charges in the Granite State.

      >> Subscribe to WMUR's YouTube channel <<

      Detectives with the Washington Parish Sheriff's Office initiated the investigation in November 2022, the sheriff's office said. In a January 2024 release, the sheriff's office said he had an existing case involving multiple juveniles in Carroll County and despite being aware of the pending charges in Louisiana, he did not surrender to law enforcement.

      Richard Mello is a safety consultant and retired Chief of the Lebanon Police Department, and he says cases involving technology at this level can be challenge for investigators.

      "They have to be as adept (in most cases more adept) at using the internet and these resources than the offender." he said.

      Mello also believes that investigators used the data tracking from both Xbox and Snapchat to track Hart down.

      Hart was apprehended in Albuquerque, New Mexico, in April 2024. He contested extradition and after a competency hearing in January 2024, was found competent by a New Mexico medical examiner and judge and taken to the jail in Louisiana.

      Hart will be sentenced on May 16 where he faces the possibility of 25 to 99 years.