Image Credit: York County Sheriff’s Office & Canva.
Article by Paula Gomes, Tennessee Conservative News –
A Hamilton County Sheriff’s Deputy who was terminated following charges of sexual exploitation of a minor in 2024, has been sentenced.
After pleading guilty to the production of child sexual abuse material (CSAM), 27-year-old Johnathan Nathaniel Allen of Chattanooga was sentenced to federal prison for 25 years.
According to a press release from the United States Attorney’s Office in South Carolina, Allen was also sentenced to 15 years of court-ordered supervision following his release and has been ordered to pay $3,000 in restitution to the victim and another $4,000 to a fund for victim services as well as being required to register as a sex offender.
The initial charges out of South Carolina related to Allen preying on a young girl who was 13-years-old at the time. The child’s father reported concerning text messages on his daughter’s cell phone to local police which began an investigation between the York County Sheriff’s Office and the FBI.
As a result of the investigation, it was determined that Allen had been posing as a 14-year-old boy using the alias “Josh” using a variety of social media platforms, TextMe – a messaging platform – and the gaming platform Roblox. Allen used these platforms to target children, recruiting them and exploiting them into producing CSAM. Some of Allen’s victims were as young as sixth grade.
After Allen and the 13-year-old victim began talking online via Reddit, he obtained her phone number and then requested she send him nude photos and videos of a sexual nature.
Upon being arrested, Allen was placed on paid leave pending an investigation due to having completed his probationary period with the Sheriff’s Department. Sheriff Austin Garrett was required to follow Civil Service guidelines which granted Allen the right to due process and a pre-disciplinary hearing.
Allen was given a 10-day notice of the hearing while he was being held in custody by the York County Sheriff’s Office in South Carolina and he opted to attend virtually from that location.
Following the hearing, Allen was fired effective immediately and paperwork was submitted to the Tennessee Peace Officer Standards and Training Commission requesting that he be decertified as a peace officer in Tennessee. The agency decertified Allen in March 2025 after a unanimous vote.
During his time as a deputy, Allen posed as a child online, exploiting eight minors across the United States.
Allen’s defense attorney argued for a lesser sentence of 17 and a half years behind bars because he did not redistribute the CSAM and because Allen had suffered a traumatic childhood.
The former deputy has said that he intends to pursue all treatment programs available to him while he is in federal prison.
While Allen may be remorseful, the innocence of his victims can never be restored.
According to the press release, Allen manipulated the children by praising them and telling them that he loved them. He threatened to share intimate images of one of his victims if she ceased communications with him.
Sources:
TennesseeConservativeNews.com.
About the Author: Paula Gomes is a Tennessee resident and reporter for The Tennessee Conservative. You can reach Paula at paula@tennesseeconservativenews.com.
