California man who offered ‘My Little Pony’ birthday parties pleads in child porn case

An Orangevale man who once worked as a janitor at a preschool and later offered to entertain children at birthday parties while dressed up as a “My Little Pony” character pleaded guilty to distribution of child pornography Monday in federal court in Sacramento.

Daniel Wayne Benner, 35, pleaded guilty to using his Kik account to send sexually explicit material involving children to someone in Arkansas in 2019 and to receiving child pornography, according to a plea agreement filed in the case.

Benner, who could face up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, used the name “hornylonely2005” to trade images on his Kik account, court records say.

Benner also had an affinity for the My Little Pony character Rainbow Dash, according to court files.

“Rainbow Dash is looking to come to you for your birthday party she brings candy with her and loves to get hugs and loves posing for pictures contact me for quotes,” a February 2019 Facebook post from his account read, according to court files.

When FBI agents visited Benner in 2019 to question him, he said the Facebook post had generated little interest.

“When asked about the My Little Pony costume and proposed party work shown on his Facebook profile, Benner said that he and two friends were going to start a birthday party business,” an affidavit in court files says. “Benner was supposed to be the person in the costume.

“However, they were unable to secure any customers.”

Benner, who faces sentencing Oct. 25, had a 2006 conviction for oral copulation with a person under 18, Sacramento Superior Court records state. He received a six-month sentence and five years of probation and had the conviction dismissed in 2012 after filing a petition with the court.

This story was originally published August 2, 2021 at 2:04 PM.