A former Tennessee resident who used the online video game Call of Duty to befriend an 11-year-old boy before soliciting sexually explicit images and video chats has been sentenced to 30 years in federal prison.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Tennessee announced Thursday that 30-year-old Benjamin Franklin Harden, formerly of Jackson, was sentenced last week by U.S. District Judge S. Thomas Anderson after pleading guilty to enticing a minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct for the purpose of producing a visual depiction of the conduct.
According to information presented in court cited by the Attorney’s Office, Harden befriended the boy, who lived in West Virginia, while playing the online game in early 2025.
The two exchanged phone numbers and continued communicating through text messages, phone calls, and video chats.
Harden asked the boy to take nude photographs and send them to him. The two also engaged in live video chats involving sexual acts, prosecutors said.
Following an investigation by the #FBI Nashville Field Office – Jackson Resident Agency, and our partners at the Tennessee Department of Correction (Parole & Probation Office), and the Martinsburg, West Virginia Police Department, Benjamin Franklin Harden, 30, has been sentenced… pic.twitter.com/Lyl5BzQq0i
— FBI Nashville (@FBI_Nashville) October 22, 2026
While the boy was instructed by Harden to delete evidence of their communications from his cellphone, the child’s mother discovered some of the messages and photographs and contacted police.
Investigators determined Harden was living in Madison County before learning he had moved to Georgia. FBI agents located him at his workplace in Georgia in June 2025.
During an interview, Harden admitted to engaging in an illegal online relationship with the child, according to prosecutors.
The FBI also determined Harden had been convicted of aggravated sexual battery in Hamilton County in 2016 and was required to register as a sex offender.
Harden received a 360-month prison sentence and five years of supervised release. He will also be required to register as a sex offender after his release.
U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant urged parents to monitor children’s online gaming, social media, and cellphone activity, warning that predators use multiple platforms to reach minors.
“Because sexual predators will use any means to gain access to minors, parents should be vigilant in monitoring online gaming, social media, and cellphone activities for threats to their children,” Dunavant said. “Let this sentence serve notice to those who entice, exploit, and victimize minor children: Despite efforts to avoid detection, you cannot hide – we will track you down, and you will be held accountable for such disturbing and predatory criminal conduct.”
Harden’s case comes as the FBI continues warning parents about online predators who use gaming platforms, social media, and messaging applications to befriend children before manipulating or threatening them into producing sexually explicit material.
In an April 22 open letter to parents and caregivers, the agency warned of a concerning increase in online predatory activity. The FBI advised parents to monitor children’s online interactions, use parental controls, and exercise caution around friend requests, video calls, and requests for personal images.
The FBI urged victims or anyone with information about potential exploitation to contact 1-800-CALL-FBI or submit a tip at tips.fbi.gov.
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Kaitlin Housler is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network.
