Edgewood man gets 19-year federal prison sentence for child sexual exploitation

An Edgewood man was sentenced Tuesday by U.S. District Judge Matthew Maddox to 19 years in federal prison for sexual exploitation of several children.

Lewis Ismael Blandon, 37, of Edgewood, was sentenced Tuesday to 19 years in federal prison for sexual exploitation of a child, according to a news release from the U.S. Department of Justice.

U.S. District Judge Matthew Maddox also ordered a lifetime of supervised release once Blandon is released from prison and that he registers as a sex offender wherever he lives, studies, or works, under the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act.

Blandon pleaded guilty to sexually abusing a minor, who was 12 years old when the abuse began in 2002. The abuse continued through 2006, according to his plea. In addition, between 2020 and 2021, Blandon used several online accounts with social media companies to exploit other victims and coerce them to produce and send sexually explicit images to him, according to the news release. Blandon also distributed child pornography on a messaging application to another user, according to the news release.

Blandon is a former music teacher at Woodhome Elementary-Middle School in Baltimore. There were no allegations that Blandon abused his role as a teacher.

The case was brought as part of Protect Safe Childhood a nationwide initiative launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice to combat child sexual abuse and exploitation.

For more information about Project Safe Childhood and internet safety education, visit www.justice.gov/psc and click on the Resources tab on the left of the page.