Heber Springs Man Sentenced to 15 Years in Federal Prison for Attempted Distribution of Child Pornography

LITTLE ROCK—Charles David Agnew, who has two previous convictions for crimes involving children, will spend 15 years in federal prison for attempted distribution of child pornography. Jonathan D. Ross, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Arkansas, announced the sentence, which was handed down today by United States District Judge D.P. Marshall, Jr.

On April 5, 2023, Agnew, 42, of Heber Springs, was indicted by a federal grand jury on one count of attempted enticement of a minor, one count of attempted distribution of child pornography, and one count of possession of child pornography. On August 19, 2025, Agnew pleaded guilty to attempted distribution of child pornography. Judge Marshall also sentenced Agnew to 10 years’ supervised release. There is no parole in the federal system.

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An investigation revealed that on September 15, 2022, Agnew asked an online an undercover law enforcement officer (UC) what the UC’s minor daughters looked like and asked for a photograph. When asked by the officer if he traded photographs, Agnew stated no but that he “…[has] nudes of myself.” The officer then asked Agnew if he watched “teen incest” online to which Agnew replied, “Oh yes.” Agnew then inquired of the ages of the minor daughters, and when told they were 7 and 9 years old, he replied that they were the “perfect age.” The UC asked Agnew if that was too young and Agnew stated, “Nope,” and asked the officer to send the photographs to him through the online platform.

Agnew continued the conversation with the UC stating his favorite video was that of “A dad daughter. She was 11.” Agnew then attempted to send the UC a link and commented that it contained “Good incest videos.” Agnew asked the UC again if the UC wanted a nude photograph of Agnew’s private parts and sent a photograph to the UC. Agnew also told the UC that he was serious about being physically touching the minor daughters and that he would travel across the country to see them.

Agnew has two previous state convictions for internet stalking of a child and pandering or possessing medium depicting sexual conduct involving a child. He received a sentence of 72 months’ imprisonment for each of those convictions.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse. Launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice and led by the U.S. Attorney’s Offices and the Criminal Divisions Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section (CEOS), it marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit [www.projectsafechildhood.gov]www.projectsafechildhood.gov. Parents are encouraged to always monitor your children’s online activity.

The investigation was conducted by the FBI. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Kristin Bryant.