Joseph Duggar, a former star of the TLC reality show '19 Kids and Counting', was arrested on Wednesday on charges of sexually abusing a 9-year-old girl. The 31-year-old was taken into custody by the Tontitown Police Department in Arkansas and is awaiting extradition to Bay County, Florida.
According to the Bay County Sheriff's Office, the alleged incidents occurred during a family vacation in Panama City Beach, Florida, in 2020. The victim, now 14, reported that Duggar repeatedly asked her to sit on his lap, and on a couch under a blanket, where he manipulated her underwear and grazed her genitals. He also rubbed her thighs.
The victim stated that Duggar eventually apologised for his actions, after which the abuse stopped. Police said the victim's father confronted Duggar a day before his arrest, and he admitted his actions to both the father and investigators.
Duggar's arrest follows that of his older brother, Josh Duggar, who was convicted in 2021 on charges of receiving and possessing child sexual abuse material and sentenced to 12 years in prison. Josh had previously been accused of molesting five underage girls, including four of his sisters.
'19 Kids and Counting' aired from 2008 to 2015 and was cancelled after the accusations against Josh Duggar came to light. A spin-off, 'Counting On', was pulled in 2021 after Josh's arrest.
