Deputies: Web Surfer Arrested for Child Porn

A Temple Terrace man is behind bars today after Hillsborough County Sheriff’s deputies say he was caught in public with a laptop computer loaded with child pornography.

According to a sheriff’s office media release, Benjamin Ashauer, 29, was sitting on a sidewalk outside the Terrace Collections strip mall at 4941 E. Busch Blvd., around 9:30 a.m. Oct. 18 when a passing shopper saw pornography on the computer screen. The shopper notified the sheriff’s office.

“Plain clothes detectives with the Internet Predator Unit immediately responded and found Ashauer still viewing images of small children posing erotically,” the release said. “Detectives made contact with Ashauer and obtained permission to examine his computer further. As a result, detectives found a substantial amount of graphic file.”

Receive updates to this story and other breaking news in your inbox or smartphone by signing up for our newsletter. here

Those files, deputies said, included images of infants and children around the age of 12 engaged in sexual activities.

Ashauer, deputies said, was using the plaza’s free Internet connection to surf child porn websites.

Ashauer of 5470 E. Busch Blvd., now faces 50 counts of child pornography. He was booked into the Hillsborough County jail on $350,000 bond. The investigation continues.