A Mountain Home man pleaded innocent Thursday to fourth-degree sexual assault, according to court documents.
Jacob Lathan, 22, also pleaded innocent to one count of contributing to the delinquency of a minor.
A 14-year-old and a 16-year-old told authorities in October they had asked Lathan for a ride about a month earlier, according to a probable cause affidavit.
The 16-year-old told police she didn’t know Lathan well, but he had given her a ride before. She said the two planned to give him gas money, according to the affidavit, but she realized she didn’t have any once they were already in the car.
When she told Lathan, she said he told the teens to each perform sex acts, according to the affidavit. They told police they were “afraid” not to.
The younger teen told police Lathan had asked her age and she told him 14. The age of consent in Arkansas is 16.
Lathan was interviewed by police a few days later, and according to the affidavit, he told police he had given the teens a ride, and they had performed the sex acts they described.