Johnny Baker (Photo courtesy of Stone County Sheriff’s Office)
A Stone County man booked in late September on sex charges involving two minors is facing additional charges after law enforcement reportedly extracted inappropriate data from his cellphone. Fifty-five-year-old Johnny Baker of Timbo is now charged with 11 felony counts of pandering or possessing visual or print medium depicting sexually-explicit conduct involving a child, and his bond has been raised to $400,000.
Baker was already facing felony charges of rape, sexual assault and sexual indecency with a child. A probable cause affidavit indicates when he was originally arrested, his cellphone was seized. After a search warrant was obtained, the phone was sent to an investigator with the Cleburne County Sheriff’s Office in Heber Springs. The detective reportedly extracted the data and sent it back to the Stone County Sheriff’s Office, and 11 photos of an under-age female were identified. Some photos allegedly showed inappropriate contact with the victim.
Baker’s original charges were the results of an incident reported in early June to the Arkansas Child Abuse Hotline and investigated by the Arkansas State Police Crimes Against Children Division and the Stone County Sheriff’s Office.
The incident allegedly involving Baker and a six-year-old girl happened in late May. The girl was spending the night with her female friend at Baker’s house. The girl told investigators she and her friend fell asleep in bed with Baker. She says she woke up to Baker inappropriately touching her.
The other girl, who is seven-years-old, told investigators Baker, who is her mother’s boyfriend, has touched her inappropriately and engaged in sexual activities with her. She says Baker told her not to tell her mom.
The rape charge Baker is facing is a Class Y felony, the most serious crime in Arkansas not punishable by the death penalty. Online records show his next court date is Feb. 14, and a jury trial is currently set to begin March 27.
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