Joshua Logan Thornton, Sexual Exploitation of a Minor, Arkansas 2015

Wynne Man Sentenced to 30 Years for Sexually Exploiting Minor

LITTLE ROCK—Joshua Logan Thornton, a 32-year-old man from Wynne, Arkansas, was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison for Sexual Exploitation of a Minor.

On Thursday, United States District Judge Billy Roy Wilson handed down the sentence, which comes after Thornton's guilty plea on November 24, 2015. Thornton was indicted on October 7, 2015, in a three-count Indictment charging him with sexual exploitation of a minor, distribution of child pornography, and possession of child pornography.

According to the investigation, Thornton used the internet to share child pornography with an individual, who was later identified as Joseph Thornton, a resident of Wynne, Arkansas. The videos, which depicted Thornton performing sexually explicit acts on a minor female, were recovered through forensic analysis of a computer seized from Thornton's home.

The minor female admitted that Thornton performed sex acts on her and instructed her not to tell anyone about it. Thornton provided a full confession, admitting that he touched the minor sexually with his hands and his penis and that he would do this on live streaming internet. He also admitted that the abuse of the minor began eight months prior and stopped the month he learned news that Jared Fogle, the Subway pitchman, was arrested on child pornography charges.

Thornton shared the images of him and the minor with at least two people on the internet and had approximately 5,000 images of child pornography on his computer, including multiple images and videos of the minor. HSI agents led the investigation, and Assistant United States Attorney Kristin H. Bryant prosecuted the case for the United States.

Thornton will serve no parole in the federal system and will be required to serve five years of supervised release upon completion of his sentence. Conditions of his supervised release include registering as a sex offender and no contact with minors.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-edar/pr/wynne-man-sentenced-30-years-sexual-exploitation-minor