BOISE — This is an official press release from the U.S. Department of Justice (Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)), published as received.

BOISE – U.S. Attorney Bart M. Davis announced that Terry Benjamin Ellinger, 31, of Boise, was sentenced to 162 months in federal prison for Distributing Child Pornography.

According to court records, between September 27, 2023, and December 12, 2023, Ellinger used a social media application to communicate with an individual he believed to be the father of a seven-year-old boy. In the communications, Ellinger made sexually explicit statements regarding the sexual abuse of children and sent videos of child pornography.

The individual Ellinger was communicating with was an undercover law enforcement officer. Law enforcement identified Ellinger and arrested him on April 24, 2024. During a consensual interview with law enforcement, Ellinger admitted that he was “slightly into the idea of sex with a seven-year-old boy” and further admitted receiving and distributing child pornography using social media.

Chief U.S. District Judge Amanda K. Brailsford also ordered Ellinger to lifetime supervised release following his prison sentence.  Ellinger pleaded guilty to the charge on September 16, 2025. As a result of his conviction, Ellinger will be required to register as a sex offender.

U.S. Attorney Davis made the announcement and commended the work of Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Boise Police Department, which led to the charges. Assistant U.S. Attorney David G. Robins prosecuted the case.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice.  Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS) of the Department of Justice, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit www.justice.gov/psc.

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