A Bentonville man was arrested Wednesday in connection with possessing numerous images of child pornography.
Josh Ivan Howard, 38, was being held Thursday in the Benton County Jail with a $15,000 bond set. He was arrested on 20 counts of distributing, possessing, or viewing matter depicting sexually explicit conduct involving a child, a Class C felony.
Each charge carries from three to 10 years in prison.
Howard’s arrest is the result of an undercover operation by the cyber crimes unit with the Arkansas Attorney General’s Office, according to court documents. A unit member identified a computer in the state that was offering to participate in the distribution of known child pornography, according to a probable cause affidavit.
The computer was traced to Howard and laptop computers, external hard drive devices, and a cell phone were seized in July 2012 during a search of Howard's residence, according to court documents.
According to court documents, a full forensic exam was completed on Jan. 29 and more than 1,300 images of suspected child pornography was found on multiple devices taken from Howard’s bedroom and bathroom. Howard’s cell phone was also examined, and 18 suspected images of child pornography were found on the device, according to court documents.
Howard’s arraignment is slated for 8 a.m. April 15 in Circuit Judge Robin Green’s court.