Man convicted of sexually assaulting child

PARAGOULD, Ark. (KAIT) - A judge sentenced a Paragould man to 20 years in prison after he pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting a child.

Judge Pamela Honeycutt sentenced 63-year-old Douglas Puckett to 240 months in the Arkansas Department of Corrections with 326 days of jail time credit.

Paragould police arrested Puckett on April 14, 2022, on suspicion of raping a child.

“During the investigation, other witnesses were interviewed that stated Puckett had performed the same type of sexual acts on them when they were children,” the affidavit stated.

On March 6, 2023, Puckett pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of second-degree sexual assault.

In addition to his prison sentence, the judge ordered Puckett to pay all court costs and fees, and to register as a sex offender upon his release.

According to online court records, Puckett was arrested on suspicion of rape in Craighead County in October of 1994. The charge was nolle prossed two years later.