The winner of the first season of the Netflix survival competition series Outlast He is facing serious charges in Tennessee.
Paul Preece Jr.51, a resident of Seymour, is accused of raping a child.
Preece has been charged with statutory rape of a child, indecent assault and attempted rape of a child, according to WVLT, WBIR, and WATE.
Preece was arrested by Knox County Sheriff’s deputies on Friday, March 6, and remains in the Knox County Jail on a $150,000 bond.
Investigators have not released additional details about the sexual assault, including the victim’s age.
Preece was a contestant on the 2023 season premiere of the reality series, which was produced by Jason Bateman. Outlast pitted 16 contestants in three teams against the wilds of Alaska to survive the land.
There have been three seasons of the show, with a fourth greenlit. Preece and his fellow competitors Nick Radner again Seth Luker took home the $1 million prize.
In Season 1, players were described as “lone wolf survivors,” and were challenged to work together in teams, not complete any part of the competition alone.
The second season consisted of a variety of people working a number of jobs. Players were only allowed to exit by firing a flare gun, which is automatically triggered for emergency rescue or medical evacuation.
New details are emerging about the open murder case against Chad Ollinger, one of the stars of the Discovery Channel’s Mystery at the Blind Frog Ranch. Ollinger, 41, is accused of killing his cellmate, Christopher Kelly, at the Clark County Detention Center in Las Vegas on Friday, December 26. The television star has been arrested on charges of murder. […]
The last remaining team of two or more wins the grand prize. When a certain number of days have passed and only two teams are left in the game, a race of navigation and endurance is initiated to determine the winner.
All eight episodes of season 1 were released on Netflix on March 10, 2023.
The first season was filmed in the fall of 2021 in Alaska, near the Neka River, Chichagof Island, west of Juneau.
According to the Outlast advertising materials, “Paul hunted small game for the needs of his family’s table” as a child.
“Today, he hunts large game to provide more food for his family,” the promo description says. “He considers himself a professional hunter and angler and shares his passion for the outdoors by teaching skills to youth and budding hunters each season, as well as guiding veterans on whitetail bowhunting trips.”
“I had a unique life, growing up in eastern Kentucky, that most people outside of rural areas couldn’t deal with, from being homeless as a child to living in an old coal camp,” he said. “Many nights, I went to bed hungry and cold growing up. I’ve been blessed to have those days left in my childhood but equally blessed to have them forever embedded in my DNA. I believe Alaska will throw everything she has at me, but I’ve been unconsciously preparing for this my whole life.”
If you know of a young person being bullied or a victim of crime, you are urged to report it to your local FBI office by calling 1-800-CALL-FBI. Tips can also be left tips.fbi.gov
