Beaufort man charged with sexual exploitation of a minor

A Beaufort man has been charged with 11 counts of sexual exploitation of a minor, according to a news release from the SC Attorney General's Office.

William Benton, 64, was arrested Tuesday by the Beaufort County Sheriff's Office after an investigation uncovered Benton was allegedly involved in downloading child pornography via file sharing, the news release said.

Benton was charged with 10 counts of second-degree sexual exploitation of a minor and one count of third-degree sexual exploitation of a minor.

All of the charges are felonies punishable by up to 10 years in prison, the release said.

The case will be prosecuted by the Attorney General's Office.

This story was originally published January 26, 2016 at 3:57 PM with the headline "Beaufort man charged with sexual exploitation of a minor."