Rick A. Benavides, Attempted Child Enticement, Texas 2021

A federal jury in San Antonio, Texas, has convicted Rick A. Benavides, a 48-year-old Department of Defense information technology contractor, of attempting to entice a child to engage in sexual activity.

Benavides, a San Antonio resident, was convicted of one count of attempting to entice a minor to engage in sexual activity, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2422(b), according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas.

The jury delivered its verdict on October 20, 2021, after a three-day trial. Benavides faces from 10 years to life in federal prison following his conviction.

According to evidence presented during the trial, Benavides repeatedly requested that the minor send him a photograph of her full body while she showered through multiple online chats, including while at work. During his chat conversations, Benavides described the sexual acts he wanted to engage in with the minor.

Benavides made plans to pick up the minor on Joint Base San Antonio (JBSA)-Lackland, take her to his off-base residence to engage in sexual activity, and then return her. However, when Benavides arrived at Lyons Park on JBSA-Lackland on February 20, 2019, to meet the minor, he discovered that the individual he believed he was communicating with was in fact an undercover U.S. Air Force Office of Investigations agent.

Benavides remains in federal custody pending sentencing. U.S. District Judge Xavier Rodriguez will preside over the sentencing hearing scheduled for October 20, 2021.

The U.S. Air Force Office of Special Investigations conducted this investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Bettina Richardson is prosecuting this case as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse.

Project Safe Childhood was launched in May 2006 by the U.S. Attorney’s Offices and CEOS. The initiative 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.

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