Sheriff of the Hamilton County police department in Tennessee expressed his fury over a deputy of his who was arrested last week for allegedly soliciting and ‘sexually exploiting’ a 13-year-old girl.
The pre-teen’s father apparently discovered text messages between the victim and 25-year-old Johnathan Allen, a corrections deputy who graduated from a “basic law enforcement academy” just last month. The messages were ‘sexual in nature.’
Sheriff Austin Garrett said in a Dec. 5 statement: “I am furious over the alleged actions … and the disgusting nature of these charges. The HCSO holds our personnel to the highest of standards and this type of alleged behavior will not be tolerated.”
Deputy Johnathan Allen is now on leave pending a disciplinary hearing
Allen has been placed on Administrative Leave pending a pre-disciplinary hearing, which will be held immediately per Civil Service rules. According to the sheriff’s department, an HCSO internal affairs investigation has also been initiated in addition to the ongoing criminal investigation.
Police charged Allen with three counts of sexual exploitation of a minor and one count of criminal solicitation of a minor.
According to NBC affiliate WRCB, Allen met the girl on Reddit, telling her his name was ‘Josh.’ After a short conversation, he asked for her number and began texting back and forth with her. Police said they aren’t sure if he was planning to meet up with the teen. He did, however, ask for photos and videos of the minor.
The messages showed that they had spoken and at some point the girl questioned Allen’s age, as his ‘voice sounded mature.’ But he told the girl that he had just ‘gone through puberty.’
Police first received the report at the York County Sheriff’s Office, eventually tracing it back to Allen in Tennessee. Officers got an arrest warrant from the Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office and searched Allen’s electronic devices on Thursday, December 5.
Another big case was opened in Pennsylvania last week when a Cumberland County pastor came under investigation for allegedly paying for sex acts after he visited a massage parlor in Pennsylvania that was recently shut down after it was accused of trafficking humans.
Stephen R. Melton was charged with at least two offenses after police claimed that the pastor paid for the sexual acts at least 68 times.
According to the Big Spring Presbyterian Church, Melton has been a priest since October 31, 2022. The investigation began when two massage parlors in Carlisle — Li’s Asian Massage and GL Massage — were shut down as a part of a nationwide crackdown in combatting human trafficking, reported Penn Live.
