JONESBORO, Ark. — A Jonesboro man was sentenced Oct. 20 to five years in prison after entering negotiated guilty pleas to three counts of possession or use of child sexual abuse material.
Austin Hunter Deatherage, 26, appeared before Circuit Judge Randy Philhours in Craighead County Circuit Court, according to a sentencing order filed that day.
The order imposes 60 months in the Arkansas Division of Correction on each of the three Class B felony counts and lists the total prison sentence for all offenses as 60 months. Deatherage received credit for 385 days already spent in jail.
The judge also imposed 120 months of suspended imposition of sentence on each count.
Deatherage must register as a sex offender and comply with all sex offender statutes and requirements, according to the order. He was assessed a $300 fine, court costs and additional fees, including a $500 cybercrime fee and a $250 sex offender registration fee.
The case began Sept. 10, 2025, when the Jonesboro Police Department’s Internet Crimes Against Children Division received a tip from Arkansas State Police about child sexual abuse material shared through Snapchat, according to the original probable cause affidavit.
Investigators said the phone number and email address associated with the Snapchat account belonged to Deatherage. Information obtained through a search warrant also connected the IP address used to send the videos to his Jonesboro residence, according to the affidavit.
A search of the Snapchat account revealed videos containing child sexual abuse material, police wrote.
Deatherage initially appeared before Judge David Boling on Oct. 1, 2025. His bond was set at $150,000 cash or surety, with conditions prohibiting internet use and devices capable of connecting to a cellular network.
The sentencing order directs the sheriff’s office to transport Deatherage to the Arkansas Division of Correction.
Graphic details from the probable cause affidavit have been omitted from this report.
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