NOV 14, 2019

Greenville County man gets 8 years in prison for soliciting minor, child pornography

(COLUMBIA, S.C.) - Nov. 14, 2019 – South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson announced that a Greenville County man has been sentenced to eight years in prison for soliciting a minor and for creating and possessing child pornography. Bunky Balcombe, represented by Randy Chambers and Rachel Kepley, pleaded guilty on November 12, 2019, to one count of Criminal Solicitation of a Minor; one count of Sexual Exploitation of a Minor, 3rd degree; and one count of Sexual Exploitation of a Minor, 1st degree, in front of Judge Letitia Verdin in Greenville County.

“Child pornography is not only a menace to society, it is a horror inflicted upon our children. Every day we can take a child pornographer off the streets is a good day,” Attorney General Wilson said.

On June 12, 2017, the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office conducted a proactive investigation into the use of the internet for the solicitation and sexual exploitation of children in Greenville County. During this investigation, an investigator with the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office posed online as a minor girl. While online, Balcombe reached out to what he believed to be a child, solicited sexual activity and traveled to meet the girl at a pre-determined location in Greenville County. A search warrant was obtained for Balcombe’s cell phone and multiple images of child pornography were found. Investigators discovered that he had previously corresponded with a 15-year-old minor who resided in Spartanburg County. Evidence regarding this interaction was turned over to the Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Office. Balcombe was found to have over 200 clothed and unclothed images of the minor. Investigators found Balcombe had requested numerous nude pictures and met the minor for sexual activity.

 Balcombe received a sentence of 8 years: 3 years on the SEM 1st to run consecutively to a 5 year sentence on the other two charges. He consented to the forfeiture of the computers and will have to register as a sex offender.

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