Richland Resident Arrested for Child Desertion

JACKSON, Miss. (Press Release) — A Rankin County man has been arrested for child desertion, announced Attorney General Jim Hood today.

36-year-old Joe Glen Tharp, Sr., of Richland, has been arrested and booked in the Rankin County Detention Center today on one count of felony child desertion. Tharp is alleged to owe approximately $35,000 in back child support. If convicted, he faces up to five years in prison and a $500 fine. No court dates have been set at this time. As with all cases, the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

The arrest was made by Investigators Larry Ware and Keith Denson of the Attorney General’s Public Integrity Division. The case will be prosecuted by Special Assistant Attorney General Elliott Flaggs, Director of the Attorney General’s Child Desertion Unit.