Former Arkansas football coach who was ‘into some taboos’ and his wife sentenced for enticing minor

FAYETTEVILLE (TCN) — A 30-year-old former minor league football coach and his 26-year-old wife will spend over 30 years in federal prison combined for trying to arrange to meet with a minor to engage in sexual activities.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Arkansas announced that on Jan. 15, Benjamin Coney received a sentence of 210 months, or 17 1/2 years in prison, followed by 25 years of supervision, and Emily Brinley was sentenced to 168 months, or 14 years in prison, followed by 15 years of supervision. Coney and Brinley were indicted in May 2024 and pleaded guilty to online enticement of a minor months later.

According to federal prosecutors, the FBI worked with the Benton County Sheriff’s Office and went undercover to find online predators in November 2023. Coney and Brinley reportedly messaged an undercover FBI officer posing as a mother of two young girls and arranged to drive from Conway to Bentonville to meet with them to participate in sexual acts. The U.S. Attorney’s office said the couple “detailed their intended abuse of the two young girls.”

Court documents reviewed by KFSM-TV say Coney told the undercover officer that he was “into some taboos.”

Coney and Brinley went to a pre-arranged meeting location, where law enforcement officers took them into custody. Authorities found sexual aids and lubricant in their vehicle.

Court records show Coney also faces charges out of the state of Arkansas for rape, internet stalking of a child, and 30 counts of distributing, possessing, or viewing child sex abuse material. Brinley faces charges of rape and internet stalking of a child.

Coney reportedly worked as a coach for a minor league football team, the Arkansas Punishers. According to KFSM, the Punishers said in a statement on Dec. 1, 2023, that Coney was no longer with the organization.

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