Man Raped, Impregnated Teen Girl In Gwinnett: Prosecutors

GWINNETT COUNTY, GA — A man was sentenced to life in prison in connection with the rape and child molestation of two girls, one of which he had a baby with, in various parts of Gwinnett County.

The Gwinnett County District Attorney's Office on Friday said Carlos Leroy Benson, 55, of Michigan, was found guilty of sexually abusing two girls between 2012 and 2019 in Snellville, Norcross and Lawrenceville.

Benson groomed the girls and inappropriately touched them when they were about aged 9, prosecutors said. They added the grooming escalated to sexual abuse, and Benson threatened both the girls and their families if they told anyone about the abuse.

He raped the oldest girl days before her 18th birthday, impregnating her, prosecutors said.

“These victims displayed true courage for being able to face this defendant in court and call out his wrongdoing,” Gwinnett County District Attorney Patsy Austin-Gatson said in a news release. “We pray that these young women have all the support that they need to move beyond the abuse they suffered and thrive.”

Benson was sentenced to two consecutive life sentences plus 20 years in prison followed by 20 years of probation, prosecutors said. He also must register as a child sex offender during his lifetime, they said.