Herndon Sex Offender with Ten Child‑Porn Convictions Faces New Federal Charge

Benjamin Scott Heyman, 49, a registered sex offender living in Herndon, was arrested on Tuesday in Fairfax on a federal charge that he conspired to transport a child from Kansas to Virginia for illegal sexual activity. The indictment, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, alleges a conspiracy to move a minor across state lines with the intent to commit sexual assault.

The case traces back to June 2025, when Heyman was first stopped by Fairfax County police after allegedly arranging to meet a 14‑year‑old boy he thought he was chatting with online. An undercover FBI officer posed as the teenager, and the conversation continued for weeks, during which Heyman discussed explicit sexual acts and a possible meeting.

When the meeting was set, Heyman showed up at the designated spot and was promptly arrested. A subsequent search of his home and cell phone turned up a large stash of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) and messages linking him to an individual in Kansas. FBI investigators say Heyman had been in contact with the Kansas contact since April 2025, exchanging CSAM and probing whether the children in that state would be willing to travel to Virginia in August.

The federal complaint states that between early April and mid‑June 2025, Heyman and his Kansas associate conspired to bring at least one minor into interstate commerce for sexual activity, specifically citing forcible sodomy of a child under 13 under Virginia law. The charge is conspiracy to transport a minor in interstate commerce for illegal sexual conduct.

Just a day before the federal arrest, Fairfax County prosecutors dropped a bundle of state‑level felony charges that had been filed against Heyman after his 2025 arrest. Those charges included attempted indecent liberties, solicitation of prostitution of a minor, and multiple counts of child‑porn possession. While the court records do not explain why the state cases were dismissed, the timing aligns closely with the federal investigation.

Heyman’s criminal history is extensive. Virginia State Police records list ten felony convictions for possession of obscene material involving a minor, all dated July 12, 2019. He was classified as a Tier 1 registered sex offender, first entered into the registry on July 13, 2019, and released from prison around October 2022, after which he remained on probation.

At this point, Heyman has only been charged in the federal case; no conviction has been entered. The next steps will involve a federal arraignment where he will enter a plea and the court will set a schedule for further proceedings.