Former Fayette County Sheriff’s deputy sentenced to at least 42 years in prison
A former Fayette County Sheriff’s deputy was sentenced Thursday to at least 42 years in prison after previously being found guilty of 124 counts of pandering sexually oriented matter involving a minor.
As previously announced by Prosecuting Attorney Jess Weade’s office, “Justin Bennett, [now 36], of Washington Court House was found guilty, at a jury trial, of 12 counts of pandering sexually oriented matter involving a minor, felonies of the second degree, and an additional 112 counts of pandering sexually oriented matter involving a minor, felonies of the fourth degree” in June.
The case involved two different indictments, one from 2025 and one from 2026.
During a hearing July 23, Fayette County Common Pleas Court Judge David Bender sentenced Bennett to a minimum term of 42 years and three months in prison. That included a sentence of six years each for counts one through six in the 2026 indictment, consecutive to 15 months on each of counts one through five of the 2025 indictment and concurrent to 15 months on counts six through 100 of the 2025 indictment.
No sentence was imposed on counts 11-20, 22 or 24 of the 2026 case, which “merged into each of the felonies of the second degree,” according to the sentencing entry.
Under the Reagan Tokes Law, Bennett could serve up to 45 years and three months in prison. He had 38 days of jail credit in the 2026 case.
Bennett will also be classified as a tier II sex offender, requiring registration every 180 days for 25 years.
As previously reported, Bennett was serving as a Fayette County Sheriff’s deputy at the time of his initial arrest in March 2025 and resigned “effective immediately.”
“The offender in this case was a law enforcement officer at the time of the offense,” Weade wrote in the sentencing memorandum. “It is a position of honor, and the defendant has disgraced that honor.
“The offender has shown no genuine remorse during this case. He has not apologized for his actions. His testimony at trial was to continue to deny that he was involved, that all of the evidence that pointed to him was trumped up. He even denied that the pictures which were found in his stored photos on his phone, which were right next to photos that he remembered taking, were his.”
The Fayette County Sheriff’s Office said last March that the charges stemmed from a February 2025 alert by the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force of alleged criminal activity taking place at a residence in Fayette County, which was identified as Bennett’s residence.
“Sheriff Vernon Stanforth alerted Fayette County Prosecutor Jess Weade and also requested the assistance of the Madison County Sheriff’s Office to conduct the criminal investigation,” the FCSO reported last year. “Upon learning of the allegations, Bennett was relieved of duty and placed on administrative leave by Sheriff Stanforth during the pendency of the criminal investigation by detectives from the Madison County Sheriff’s Office.”
Following that investigation, Bennett was indicted on 100 counts in May 2025, then later indicted on the other 24 counts in February 2026, according to court records.