Raleigh registered sex offender facing 10 child porn charges, warrants show

RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) — A Raleigh man who is a registered sex offender and has served time in prison is facing the same kind of child pornography charges that put him behind bars previously, according to a Wake County arrest warrant and arrest records.

Benjamin Michael Lineberger, 27, is facing 10 counts of third-degree sexual exploitation of a minor, warrants show.

Lineberger is accused of possessing at least 10 video or image files depicting graphic sexual content involving girls ranging in age from 5 to 12 years old, according to warrants.

He is a registered sex offender after previously being convicted of third-degree sexual exploitation of a minor in 2018. Lineberger was charged with the crimes in July 2017 and was convicted in March 2018.

Lineberger was sentenced to 19 months in prison but was released on Jan. 20, having served approximately 10 months. He was registered as a sex offender on Jan. 24, according to sex offender registry records. He was set to remain on the registry for 10 years.

The crimes Lineberger is most recently charged with date back to Nov. 20, warrants show.

He was arrested Tuesday and taken to the Wake County Detention Center where he was given a $500,000 secured bond and electronic home monitoring, but because the latest charges are considered violations of his parole, he is being held without bond, arrest records show.

The investigation was conducted by the State Bureau of Investigation.

Lineberger is scheduled to appear in court on Wednesday afternoon.

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