Convicted Sex Offender Commits Suicide at Reno Jail

9-1-2010 California:

A convicted sex offender has committed suicide at the Washoe County Jail.

RENO, Nev. (AP) - A convicted sex offender has committed suicide at the Washoe County Jail.

64-year-old Ivan Lynn Bennett of Fernley was found deceased in his cell Sunday night. He was the sole occupant of the cell.

Bennett was booked into the jail Aug. 27 on new federal charges accusing him of possessing child pornography.

Records show he was convicted in Nevada in 2003 of possession of
child pornography and in 1992 of annoyance or molestation of a child.

According to his obituary, Bennett served 22 years in the U.S. Army, and was a married father of three. ..Source.. by KOLOTV.com


Fernley sex offender commits suicide in Washoe Jail

9-9-2010 Nevada:

A 64-year-old Fernley sex offender committed suicide on August 29 while incarcerated in the Washoe County Jail on new federal charges accusing him of possessing child pornography, officials said.

Ivan Lynn Bennett was booked into the jail on Aug. 27 after members of a federal, state and local Internet Crimes Against Children task force executed a search warrant at his home, according to a criminal complaint filed in Reno federal court.

The task force had been tipped by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children that Bennett was allegedly uploading child pornography from the Internet.

Records show Bennett was convicted in 2003 of possession of child pornography, and in 1992 of annoyance of molestation of a child, both in Nevada.

About 8:10 p.m. on August 29, jail staff found Bennett deceased in his cell after apparently committing suicide, said Sgt. Greg Herrera.

He had been the sole occupant in the cell, Herrera said.

According to an obituary printed Wednesday in the Reno Gazette-Journal, Bennett served 22 years in the U.S. Army and was a married father of three.

When detectives went to Bennett's home on Aug. 27, they found an external thumb drive containing video child porn in his pants pocket, the complaint charged.

During an interview, Bennett admitted he had distributed and possessed the images, and maintained a collection of about 1,000 videos, the complaint charged. ..Source.. by Jaclyn O'Malley • Reno Gazette-Journal


Officials: Inmate charged with child porn hangs himself

9-3-2010 Nevada:

The Washoe County Sheriff's Office is investigating the suicide of an inmate who hanged himself in his cell last week.

Sixty-three-year-old Ivan Bennett was arrested last Thursday and charged with possession of child pornography.

For his own protection he was placed in the "special housing unit" in a cell by himself. In that unit, deputies check on inmates every 30 minutes.

Two days after his arrest, they say Bennett killed himself between "bed checks," using his bed sheets to hang himself. ..Source.. by My4News