A Salt Lake City man pleaded guilty to receipt of child sex abuse material after admitting his Samsung flip phone held 235 images and seven videos of child pornography. Brennan Christopher Bennett’s case traces back to a search warrant executed at his apartment and a 2021 conviction that had already barred him from owning firearms.
In his own words, Bennett admitted the scope of what investigators found. “I received and possessed material that contained child pornography. On my Samsung flip phone, I possessed 235 images of child pornography, and seven videos of child pornography,” he said, according to KSL News. The outlet reports he possessed more than 200 sexually explicit images of children in total.
FBI agents and investigators with the Child Exploitation and Human Task Force served the search warrant at Bennett’s apartment on Oct. 28, 2025, according to the same KSL report. The U.S. Attorney’s Office of Utah has said Bennett received the sexually explicit images of a child before that date.
A Firearms Charge Tied to a Prior Conviction
Bennett was initially indicted in November, and a federal grand jury later returned a superseding indictment in late April charging him with being a felon in possession of a firearm and ammunition in addition to the receipt charge, per the KSL report. That firearms allegation stems from his 2021 conviction on two felony counts of attempted enticement of a minor, which legally barred him from possessing guns.
KSL’s reporting states that Bennett had four firearms in his residence and vehicle, and he said he acquired them opportunistically for his protection. The outlet also notes Bennett was arrested in the earlier case after arranging a meeting with someone he believed was a 13-year-old girl, who was actually an undercover officer.
Plea Deal Points to Nearly 11 Years, but Sentencing Still Months Away
According to the plea agreement cited by KSL, Bennett is likely to be sentenced to almost 11 years in prison followed by lifetime probation, with terms that include a mental health evaluation and treatment. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for Jan. 25, 2027, meaning the final outcome won’t be known for some time.
National sentencing data offers some broader context, though it doesn’t speak directly to Bennett’s specific case. Per the U.S. Sentencing Commission, among individuals convicted of receiving child pornography, 86% were convicted of an offense carrying a five-year mandatory minimum and received an average sentence of 102 months, while 14% had a prior sexual abuse or child pornography conviction, faced a 15-year mandatory minimum, and averaged 194 months.
A separate case out of Weber County also illustrates how these prosecutions can play out elsewhere in Utah. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Utah announced in October that a Weber County man was sentenced to 120 months in prison after manipulating a child into sending him sexually explicit photos and videos over six months. That case involved different circumstances, and it isn’t a direct predictor of what Bennett could receive.
