Glasford Man Pleads Guilty to Child Pornography Offenses

PEORIA, Ill. – A Glasford, Illinois, man, Benjamin C. Lascelles, 35, of the 600 block of East Main Street, pleaded guilty on November 18, 2022, to production of child pornography and possession of child pornography. Sentencing for Lascelles has been scheduled for March 23, 2023, at the U.S. Courthouse in Peoria, Illinois.

In court before U.S. District Judge James E. Shadid, Lascelles admitted that he produced child pornography images and possessed child pornography. During the hearing, the government stated that Lascelles video recorded and photographed himself sexually assaulting two children, ages 8 and 6, on multiple occasions in December 2019.

Lascelles remains in the custody of the United States Marshals Service pending sentencing.

Lascelles faces statutory penalties including a term of imprisonment between fifteen and fifty years, a fine of up to $500,000, and up to a lifetime term of supervised release.

The case is a result of the joint investigation by the United States Secret Service, the Peoria County Sheriff’s Office, and the Canton Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Ronald L. Hanna is prosecuting the case.

The case against Lascelles was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative by the Department of Justice to combat the epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Criminal Division’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov.