UPDATE: The Duggar family, including Josh, released a statement Thursday afternoon exclusively to PEOPLE magazine, conforming the validity of the police report.
“Twelve years ago, as a young teenager, I acted inexcusably for which I am extremely sorry and deeply regret. I hurt others, including my family and close friends,” Josh told PEOPLE in a statement. “I confessed this to my parents who took several steps to help me address the situation.”
Jim Bob and Michelle said through a joint statement:
Back 12 years ago our family went through one of the most difficult times of our lives… When Josh was a young teenager, he made some very bad mistakes, and we were shocked. We had tried to teach him right from wrong. That dark and difficult time caused us to seek God like never before.
Josh also announced he has resigned from his position at the Family Research Council as a result of the accusations becoming public.
You can read the family’s full statements here.
According to a 2006 police report obtained by In Touch Weekly, the eldest sibling of the Duggar family from the hit series 19 Kids and Counting was accused of sexually assaulting five young girls in 2002, four of them being younger siblings.
Now 27-years-old, Joshua “Josh” Duggar was the first child born to Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar in 1988. The couple would go on to have 18 more, for a total of nine girls and ten boys, not including miscarriages.
The family was given a reality TV series by TLC in 2008, which follows the lives of the couple, plus their large family.
In Touch reports prior the family’s climb to fame, Josh allegedly assaulted his sisters, plus an additional victim back to 2002, when he was around 14-years-old. He was accused of “forcible fondling,” but was not immediately reported to Springdale, AR police by the Duggar patriarch.
A 33-page police report, which can be viewed here, does not specifically name Josh, or any other involved minors, as parts have been blacked out, but states that Jim Bob Duggar first knew of the accusations against his son in March 2002, when one of his daughters informed him that Josh had been touching her genitals and breasts while she was sleeping, according to the full documents, which were obtained by Fox News.
Additionally, the report states that both Duggar parents had knowledge similar incidents had occurred, but instead of going to police, they opted to send Josh to a Christian training program at the advice of their church elders. Michelle would later state the program was “not really a training center,” and Josh instead performed manual labor with an acquaintance while he was away.
Jim Bob allegedly told police for the report he spoke with personal friend and Arkansas State Trooper Jim Hutchens upon Josh’s return, and Hutchens did not launch an official investigation into the alleged incidents, but instead gave the boy a “very stern talk.”
In Touch also reports Hutchens is now serving 56-years in prison for child pornography, which is unrelated to the accusations against Josh Duggar.
After a conversation with the officer, Josh reportedly “apologized” to the young girls and was forgiven.
A friend of the family initiated the report after they became aware of the accusations, upon finding a letter that detailed the incidents in a book loaned to the friend by the Duggars. That person reportedly called the Child Abuse Hotline, which led to the Crimes Against Children and the Springdale Police Department investigating the case in 2006, per Fox News.
Josh Duggar is now married with three children. He and his wife Anna live in Washington, D.C. with their children, where Josh works as a lobbyist for the Family Research Council, according to Fox. He and Anna are currently expecting their fourth child.
TLC has not yet commented on the report, and the Duggar family has also remained silent on the allegations.
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