Judge Rules Lakeville Criminal Sexual Conduct Suspect Was 19, Not 17

A Burnsville man charged with having sex with a 15-year-old girl and then threatening to post explicit photos of her online after she broke up with him was an adult when the sexual contact happened, a judge has ruled.

Samuel Josiah Benda, 19, was charged this summer with third-degree criminal sexual conduct with a Lakeville girl, beginning last year when she was 15. He is also charged with possession of child pornography.  

Benda’s attorneys subsequently filed a motion to dismiss the charge, claiming that Benda – who was adopted from an orphanage in Sierra Leone – was actually 17 when the sexual contact occurred.

A judge ruled this week that Benda is 19, not 17, and that his case can proceed to trial in adult court.

In his order, Dakota County District Court Judge Robert King summarizes every piece of evidence presented by both Benda’s attorneys and the county that deal with his age, and concludes that the motion to dismiss based on Benda’s birthdate was an attempt to avoid prosecution in adult court.

King’s order notes that Benda pleaded guilty in July to felony third-degree assault in Dakota County, signing a petition to enter a guilty plea and listing his birthdate as Oct. 27, 1991.

“This exhibit is highly relevant, as it is a very recent acknowledgement of the [Oct. 27, 1991] birthdate,” King writes. “Also, if the defendant’s true date of birth is [Oct. 27, 1993], then he could have conceivably avoided adult court jurisdiction by asserting that date of birth.

“His failure to do so would tend to indicate that the [Oct. 27, 1991] date is correct.”

Benda also swore under oath in July that his date of birth was Oct. 27, 1991, the judge writes. “This carries great significance, as it would call into question any later attempt by him to deny that date of birth,” the order reads. “Furthermore, he would have been committing perjury if he knew his date of birth was actually a different date.

“The court can see no reason why he would state this date of birth if it were not true.”

Benda remains in the Dakota County Jail. His trial is set to begin Nov. 8 in Dakota County District Court in Hastings.