Game store owner’s 290 year child porn sentence

An American man who ran sleepover gaming tournaments at his video games store has been sentenced to nearly 300 years for producing and possessing child pornography.

Leland Beasley, 43, had been running overnight tournaments since 2006, and during these events would videotape himself fondling the sleeping boys and performing lewd actions, as well as sexually abusing them. His behaviour has lead to ten counts of production of child pornography, and two counts of possession - and the largest federal sentence ever handed down for the crime in the eastern district of Missouri, 290 years in prison.

The videotapes aren't the extent of his crimes, either. Beasley is still facing charges for those events captured on tape - two counts of first-degree child molestation, five counts of first-degree statutory sodomy, two counts of third-degree assault and one of attempted statutory sodomy. He was first indicted for these crimes in 2009.

According to the court, Beasley "started out" by downloading and watching child pornography, before filming his actions with children, and becoming a hands-on offender. Beasley took no responsibility for his action, and showed no remorse in court, even as the children involved took the stand and testified against him.

The boys also had to watch the videos of their own abuse as part of the trial in April, so they could explain to the jury what was going on. When shown the videos, Beasley denied he was in them, even though his face was visible.

Local media reports that Beasley's lack of remorse or apology was noted in the judge's sentencing, as she handed down the 3480-month punishment.

Lt. Chris Mateja, the deputy director of the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force, comments on the sentencing:

I think it sends a strong message to people who try to manufacture child porn, that sort of behavior is not going to be tolerated in the federal system, and that if they get caught, they're going to serve a lot of time.

2 Responses to “Game store owner’s 290 year child porn sentence”

1. Abel says:

   August 16, 2011 at 5:17 am

   I hope he rots in prison. :-(

   Reply
2. Romix says:

   August 16, 2011 at 5:05 pm

   Thank God, justice was served. This guy deserves every year!

   Reply

Article Details

• published: July 6th, 2011
• by: Jessica Citizen
• in: child, child abuse, court, court case, Gamestation Sector 19, Leland Beasley, Missouri, prison, St. Louis
• comments: 2

Author Bio:

I like video games, fishing, Depeche Mode, long walks on the beach, writing discussion papers and cups of tea. Not necessarily in that order.

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