The Department of Justice (DOJ) on Monday, March 7, hailed the conviction of an American who was sentenced to 160 years in prison for producing and attempting to produce child pornography and receiving and distributing pornography of Filipina children.

“The conviction of Benjamin Walter is a triumph not just for his victims but also for other victims of sexual abuse and exploitation,” declared DOJ Undersecretary Emmeline Aglipay Villar, who is also the undersecretary in charge of the Inter-Agency Council Against Trafficking (IACAT).

Villar issued the statement on the announcement made by the United States DOJ that last March 4 a federal judge sentenced Walter, 41, to 160 years in prison “for using internet applications to seek images and live transmissions of the violent sexual abuse of Filipina children as young as five years old.”

“Online exploitation of children is one of the vilest of crimes that preys upon the most vulnerable -- our innocent children,” Villar lamented.

“Most of them are left scarred for life and it is important for their complete recovery and healing that their abusers are held accountable for their crimes,” she stressed.

She also lamented that the Philippines has “the highest incidence of Online Sexual Exploitation of Children (OSEC) in the world and the numbers keep on growing every year.”

“But the IACAT has responded with great force to eradicate OSEC in the Philippines,” she said.

“Each year our rescues of abused and exploited children, investigations of OSEC, cases filed, and convictions secured are increasing due to our continued efforts to strengthen and scale up our response against OSEC,” she noted.

The US DOJ’s announcement stated that Walter, who hails from Decatur, Alabama, was convicted by a federal grand jury for four counts of producing and attempting to produce child pornography and one count each of receiving and distributing child pornography.

“According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Walter used two web service provider accounts, including messenger and webcam applications, to seek women in the Philippines to sexually abuse their own children and relatives. Walter’s requests to these women, which spanned approximately three years, included directions to arrange for the gang rape of young children and to sexually assault several young children in other harmful ways,” the US DOJ said in a statement.

“Walter sent money to the Philippines for the videos, images, and live transmissions via Moneygram, Western Union, and other money remitters in $25 to $50 increments. In addition to the live webcam shows, Walter also sent and received emails to which the senders attached images and videos of young children engaged in sex acts with adult men. This investigation and prosecution were part of a joint FBI and Homeland Security Investigations operation that targeted the buyers and sellers of these types of webcam shows in the Philippines,” it added.