A convicted sex offender was sentenced to six years in prison Monday after pleading guilty to felony charges involving exposing himself to an 8-year-old boy last year and failing to register with authorities.
Timothy Neal Watts, 37, who has remained in custody in lieu of $10,000 bond since his last arrest Sept. 13, 2017, pleaded guilty in Garland County Circuit Court to failure to comply with sex offender registration and reporting requirements and was sentenced to six years, and sexual indecency with a child and was sentenced to four years, with the sentences to run concurrently.
Court costs for Watts, who was set to stand trial on both charges Tuesday, were expunged for time served.
According to the probable cause affidavit on the sexual indecency charge, on Aug. 16, 2017, Hot Springs police Detective Kenny May was notified of a report called into the Child Abuse Hotline in regard to a sexual offense involving an 8-year-old male.
On Aug. 18, the victim was interviewed at the Cooper Anthony Mercy Child Advocacy Center, and on Aug. 28 May interviewed Watts, who was in custody for failure to comply with sex offender registration requirements. Watts was previously convicted in Caddo, La., on June 20, 2016, for molesting a juvenile younger than 13 years old.
The victim said the incident occurred a few months before August, and it was listed as May 15 on the arrest report, as the exact date of the incident was unknown. The victim's relative confirmed Watts had stayed at the residence from April to August 2017.
According to the affidavit on the failure to register charge, on Feb. 9, 2017, Watts registered with the Garland County Sheriff's Department and listed an address on Hidden Hills Lane in Lonsdale. On Aug. 9, 2017, he again listed his address as Hidden Hills. Watts is listed as a Level 3 sex offender, meaning he is a high risk for reoffending.
On Aug. 9, sheriff's Investigator Jennifer Tonseth, who oversees the registered sex offenders in the county, received information Watts was not residing at Hidden Hills and was living inside the city limits of Hot Springs. She contacted his landlord and was told Watts had been evicted in March 2017 and the landlord did not know where he was living.
Under Arkansas law, a sex offender must report any change of address within 10 days of moving and verify his residence every six months. A warrant was issued for Watts and he was arrested Aug. 24, 2017.
Local on 03/14/2018