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UPDATED: Former MMA sex offender arrested again in Baxter County, faces revocation hearing


HENDERSON, Arkansas – Jonathan Enoch Bricker, a former MMA fighter convicted of possessing child sexual abuse material that featured victims a state investigator determined were as young as three years old, was arrested in Baxter County on September 5, 2024.

Jail records show Bricker, 42, was arrested on charges of third-degree domestic violence, interfering with emergency communications and resisting arrest. He was arrested at 11:16 p.m. on Sept. 5 and released on $2,000 bail at 9:09 a.m. on Sept. 6. In his arrest photo, Bricker is seen sitting in a restraint chair.

Bricker is a level three sex offender in Arkansas. At the time, Bricker was living in Paragould and pleaded guilty on March 25, 2019, to two counts of distributing, possessing or viewing material depicting sexually explicit conduct with a child. He served 149 days in jail and received a suspended sentence of 120 months.

On September 5, 2023, prosecutors filed a motion to revoke his suspended sentence.

An updated motion was filed on September 17, 2024. After several delays, court documents show that the revocation date is currently set for September 24, 2024.

Updated motion to revoke parole filed September 17
Page 2 of the updated motion to revoke parole, filed on September 17

On September 17, a warrant for Bricker's arrest was filed with the court, which had been signed the previous day by Judge Pam Honeycutt.

On July 15, 2024, Bricker pleaded guilty to failure to register as a sex offender. He was sentenced to 68 days in jail. Criminal documents filed by 14th Judicial District Attorney David Ethredge state that Bricker “filed false paperwork or documents for verification, change of information, or requests for removal from the registry, which is contrary to the peace and dignity of the State of Arkansas.”

According to court documents, on August 28, 2023, Bricker stated that he had volunteered at a local church as a bouncer and worked with the sound and lighting system where children were present. The church's pastor confirmed that the defendant had been volunteering for approximately two years.

As a level three sex offender, Bricker must report to law enforcement for routine physicals every six months. As part of the physical, he must fill out a questionnaire about his personal life. One of the questions is whether he does volunteer work or works at an organization, church or social event. For 2021, 2022 and 2023, Bricker checked “no” on each document.

Additionally, on August 29, 2023, authorities learned that Bricker was using a cell phone to contact people. Bricker had stated in the 2022 questionnaire that he no longer used the cell phone, but the prosecutor said that was not true.

On July 31, 2024, Bricker's wife filed for divorce, but the case is still ongoing. In her filing, she said the parties married on March 14, 2022, and separated on August 25, 2023. The lawsuit alleges that Bricker “treated her with indignities that made her living conditions unbearable.”

In an answer filed on August 28, 2024, Bricker said he was married to his wife by his father, Pastor Steven Bricker. He claimed she committed adultery and left him, but he wanted the marriage to work. He also claimed she stole his German Shepherd.

In 2020, Bricker sued the Sex Offender Assessment Committee, alleging that it violated his fair trial rights by declaring him a level three sex offender. In 2022, a judge ruled that his fair trial rights had not been violated and denied his application for judicial review.

All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

Paragould man and former MMA fighter jailed for depicting child abuse

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