Former Tennessee Sheriff’s Deputy Pleads Guilty to Production of Child Sexual Abuse Material

COLUMBIA, S.C. - Johnathan Nathaniel Allen, 27, of Chattanooga Tenn., has pleaded guilty to production of child sexual abuse material.*

Evidence obtained in the investigation revealed that in September 2024 Allen used accounts on Reddit and Text Me to contact a 13-year-old girl in South Carolina.

Allen posed as a 14-year-old boy named "Josh" on the applications and pressured the minor to produce sexually explicit material at his request. At the time, Allen was 25 years old and had been a deputy with a county sheriff's office in Tennessee since 2021.

On Reddit, Allen navigated to a forum that referenced teenagers in the title. He started a conversation with one of the minors and then directed the conversation to text messages. There, Allen used a virtual phone number he obtained through the TextMe platform. The minor showed Allen pictures of her stuffed animals and he "begged," according to evidence, for pictures of the minor. He told the minor she could trust him and that he would not share the files. Allen caused the production of sexually explicit content depicting the minor. Allen told the victim that he was proud of her, and that she learned something new she could do. He requested additional sex acts, and he told her to delete the messages so no one else would see them.

When agents searched Allen's home, they found a phone with Reddit, Text Me, and the fake "Josh" identity. Agents also found 19 communications on Allens' phone with the minor, including numerous calls to the minor after law enforcement had seized the minor's phone. Data from the Reddit and Text Me account, including pictures shared by the user, all resolved to Allen. Agents also found clothes in Allen's bedroom that "Josh" was wearing when it shared sexually explicit images on the platform. One of the pictures shared by the Reddit user when posing as a teenager was a picture of Allen when he was younger.

"This outrageous criminal conduct, especially from someone sworn to protect society's most vulnerable, its children, will be met with the full force of the federal government," said U.S. Attorney Bryan Stirling for the District of South Carolina. "We're grateful to the FBI, Homeland Security Investigations, the York County Sheriff's Office and the Hamilton County, Tennessee Sheriff's Office for their work to bring this defendant to justice."

Allen faces a mandatory minimum of 15 years and up to 30 years in federal prison. He will also be required to register as a sex offender, he faces a fine of up to $250,000, restitution, and a term of up to lifetime supervision to follow the term of imprisonment. United States District Judge Sherri A. Lydon accepted the guilty plea and will sentence Allen after receiving and reviewing a sentencing report prepared by the U.S. Probation Office.

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. Led by U.S. Attorneys' Offices and CEOS, Project Safe Childhood 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 Justice.gov/PSC.

The case was investigated by the FBI Columbia Field Office and the York County Sheriff's Office with assistance from Homeland Security Investigations and the Hamilton County, TN Sheriff's Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Elliott B. Daniels is prosecuting the case.

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* The term "child pornography" is currently used in federal statutes and is defined as any visual depiction of sexually explicit conduct involving a person less than 18 years old. While this phrase still appears in federal law, "child sexual abuse material" is preferred, as it better reflects the abuse that is depicted in the images and videos and the resulting trauma to the child.