BELLA VISTA (KFSM) — A Bella Vista man is accused using a mobile texting application to share nude photos of a teenager in exchange for child pornography.
Kenneth Matthew Deason, 18, was arrested Wednesday (Feb. 28) in connection with voyeurism and distributing, possessing or viewing child pornography — both felonies.
The Benton County Sheriff’s Office seized Deason’s phone, saying he used Kik Messenger to exchange the nude photos with a man in Washington.
In return, the man sent Deason several illicit photos of underage girls, according to a probable cause affidavit.
Deputies said it appeared Deason had taken photos of the teenager without their knowledge and used Kik to share them in a group called “Pedo.”
Deputies also found several pornographic videos and pictures involving girls between 3 and 12 years old on Deason’s phone, according to the affidavit.
Kik is popular in part because of the anonymity it provides users, and roughly 40 percent of American teens used it in 2016, according to the New York Times.
Deason was being held Friday (March 2) at the Benton County Jail on a $2,500 bond. He has a hearing set for April 9 in Benton County Circuit Court.
