PARAGOULD, Ark. – A Paragould man is facing heinous allegations of multiple sex crimes against a juvenile victim.
Authorities took Maurice James Lincoln Cooper, 25, of Paragould into custody on December 1 following allegations of multiple child rapes.
Cooper faces three counts of rape after Greene County District Court Judge Daniel Stidham found probable cause and set a $100,000 cash-only bond, according to the probable cause affidavit provided by Greene County Sheriff Brad Snyder. A no contact order with the victim and any potential witnesses was also issued.
The charges surfaced subsequent to a Nov. 29 report made to the Arkansas Child Abuse Hotline concerning a suspected child sexual assault.
An investigation by an Arkansas State Police Crimes Against Children Division investigator revealed that the victim detailed at least three distinct instances amounting to rape under the statute. The child was under the age of 14 at the time of the alleged crimes, the affidavit says.
Court documents highlight the victim’s description of the abuse, explicitly naming Maurice Cooper as the alleged perpetrator.
Captain Rhonda Thomas confirmed that during a Mirandized interview at the sheriff’s office on Dec. 1, Cooper provided a self-incriminating statement.
Cooper faces three felony charges of rape, a Class Y felony that includes a mandatory prison term of 25 years, minimum, if the victim is under the age of 14.
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