William Dean Blankenship, Child Pornography Production, Virginia 2024

A 42-year-old Bland County man has been convicted of producing child pornography and illegally possessing a firearm, despite previously being convicted of a felony offense.

William Dean Blankenship, 42, was found guilty of 17 counts of producing child pornography at his home and one count of illegal possession of a firearm after the Bland County Sheriff’s Office and Virginia State Police executed a search warrant at his residence on February 12, 2021.

During the search, law enforcement discovered a firearm, cellular phone, and other electronic devices belonging to Blankenship, which contained over 50 video files of child pornography. The videos depicted Blankenship engaging in sexual intercourse with two minors under the age of 18, who he had coerced and enticed to participate in the abuse after providing them with narcotics and other controlled substances.

The abuse began when the minors were approximately 14 and 13 years old. Blankenship’s actions were described as ‘horrific’ by Acting United States Attorney Bubar, who expressed gratitude for the work of the Department of Homeland Security Investigations and Virginia State Police in investigating and prosecuting the case.

Blankenship pleaded guilty to the charges and faces an agreed upon sentencing range of between 20-50 years in federal prison. He is scheduled to be sentenced on December 17, 2021.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel J. Murphy is prosecuting the case, with the Department of Homeland Security Investigations and Virginia State Police continuing to investigate the matter.

Blankenship’s sentencing is expected to serve as a reminder to others who victimize children that they will be brought to justice, according to Raymond Villanueva, Special Agent in Charge of Washington D.C. Homeland Security Investigations.

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