A DeLand man was sentenced Aug. 19 to life in prison without parole for repeatedly raping a child and acts of sexual abuse he video recorded, according to the State Attorney's Office.
Trent Prather, 41, pleaded guilty Aug. 19 to 15 counts of sexual battery on a victim less than 12 years of age, two counts of lewd/lascivious molestation on a victim less than 12 years of age, lewd/lascivious exhibition on a victim less than 16 years of age and 18 counts of promoting sexual performance by a child.
Circuit Judge Karen Foxman sentenced Prather to life in prison. Prather was also declared a sexual predator.
Prather was arrested on May 29 when the Volusia Sheriff's Office Child Exploitation Unit and its SWAT team executed a search warrant at his home.
Deputies seized digital devices during the search, including a Samsung cellphone which contained about 42,000 files depicting child sexual abuse material, according to an affidavit.
Detectives found images showing that Prather recorded himself sexually abusing a nine-year-old child between May 2025 and March 2026, according to the State Attorney's Office.
"There are few things in this world that are worse than repeatedly raping a small child," State Attorney R.J. Larizza said in a release. "Especially when the pedophile videos the rapes for future viewing and trade. It defies explanation."
The investigation into Prather began after the Volusia Sheriff's Office received a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
Prather had a prior conviction in Utah, where he was arrested in 2011 for sexual exploitation of a minor after he admitted to viewing child sexual abuse material involving children who were about 6- to 7-years-old, as well as a child as young as two, according to an affidavit. In that case, Prather was sentenced to probation.
During the search in DeLand, the Volusia Sheriff's Office found two pistols and two rifles as well as an assortment of ammunition in the home, even though as a convicted felon, it was illegal for Prather to possess them.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant State Attorney Nicholas Kramperth.
— Frank Fernandez covers courts and criminal justice in Volusia and Flagler counties for The Daytona Beach News-Journal.
This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: DeLand man sentenced to life in prison for repeatedly raping a child