Joseph Duggar sent groveling letters to family members begging for forgiveness following his arrest for alleged child molestation, the Daily Mail has learned.
A family source said the ’embarrassed and humiliated’ Duggar – formerly of TLC’s 19 Kids and Counting fame – sent letters to individual relatives apologizing for ‘dragging the family name through the mud once again.’
Duggar, 31, was arrested earlier this month over allegations he molested a nine-year-old girl several times during a family trip to Panama City Beach, Florida, in 2020, but was released today after posting $600,000 bond.
‘[In the letters,] he says he has brought shame on everyone and he’s ashamed of himself,’ the source said. ‘He knows that some of us don’t want to talk to him right now.
‘The number of people Joseph has hurt is astronomical. Obviously, no one as much as that little girl, but just everyone is dealing with the fallout of this – [his wife] Kendra, his kids, his entire family. This is horrifying and honestly we did deserve the apology.’
But the source has taken solace in the fact that Duggar, unlike his brother Josh, ‘at least seems to feel bad about this.’
Josh Duggar, 38, was sentenced to 12 years in federal prison in 2022 after being found guilty of receiving and possessing child pornography.
The Daily Mail has learned Duggar and his older brother also exchanged letters from behind bars this past week.
Joseph Duggar has sent groveling letters to family members begging for forgiveness after being arrested for alleged child molestation
At the time he allegedly molested a nine-year-old girl, Duggar and his wife, Kendra, had two children and she was pregnant with their third
‘From what I understand, Joe is needing someone to talk to,’ the insider said.
‘And Josh is definitely the person who has been in his shoes before. Joe always looked up to Josh, so that kind of makes sense to me.
‘I don’t know what’s in those letters, and I don’t really want to know.
‘I can only hope that it’s some sort of acknowledgement of the pain they have caused. Anything else is totally pointless.’
Josh publicly supported Duggar after his March 18 arrest through a statement via his attorney.
‘Josh understands the stigma of being accused,’ his attorney – who, despite Josh’s guilty verdicts, protests his innocence – told the Daily Mail.
‘He lives with the painful reality of how false accusations can destroy a life.’
The attorney added that although ‘Josh and Joe are not in frequent communication,’ their client ‘hopes and prays for his brother’s well-being in this difficult time.’
A warrant for Kendra’s arrest was issued on Friday, but when law enforcement initially went to the Duggar family residence in Washington County, she was not there
Earlier this month, Duggar was arrested in Tontitown, Arkansas, where he lives with his wife and their four children.
He is accused of lewd and lascivious molestation of a child under 12, according to a Bay County, Florida, arrest affidavit.
The alleged victim, now 14, told investigators Duggar touched her inappropriately multiple times during the 2020 family vacation.
She said the abuse started when Duggar would put her on his lap. That escalated to him groping her underneath a blanket on the sofa, touching her thighs and private parts.
The girl’s father confronted Duggar in early March and said the former reality star admitted to it.
Police say Duggar also admitted in a recorded call to ‘touching the victim over her clothing’ and acknowledged his ‘intentions were not pure.’
Duggar was jailed in Arkansas until this week, when he was extradited to Bay County, Florida.
Separately, Duggar is also charged in Arkansas with four counts of false imprisonment and four counts of endangering the welfare of a child, which emerged following a wider investigation into the allegations.
The Duggar family rose to fame on TLC’s 19 Kids and Counting reality show
He made his first appearance before a Florida judge on Tuesday.
While police say he admitted to the incident in a recorded interview, he entered a not guilty plea in court on March 31.
He is due back in court on April 20.
Duggar’s wife, the mother of his four kids, Kendra Duggar, was also arrested in connection with allegations stemming from his case. She, too, has been released on bond.
Kendra faces the same eight misdemeanor charges in Arkansas as her husband, though she is not accused in the Florida molestation case.
In a jail call between the couple, obtained by People, Kendra seemed to express sympathy for her husband’s prison conditions.
‘I’ve been spending a lot of time reading the Bible, they got me a Bible in here,’ Duggar told his wife of eight years in a March 20 recording.
‘I’m in solitary. I’m in the cell 23 hours of the day. It’s like an eight-by-ten area.
‘I’ve been able to read a lot actually and resting some, but I’m not sleeping great through the night.’
Kendra, 27, replied, ‘Aww.’
But there are signs she may be distancing herself from her husband, at least legally.
During that same call, which took place hours after Kendra was released from police custody, she broke the news to Duggar that she had retained her own lawyer.
‘I’ve been talking to Travis [Story],’ she said on the call, per People. ‘I’ve got him as my attorney now.
‘I wasn’t sure if you knew that, I’ve asked him to be my attorney… Well it’s not for you, it’s only for me.’
Family members have since broken silence on his arrest, such as brother Josh – who is currently serving a 12-year prison sentence for possessing child pornography. Josh’s 2021 mugshot seen above
Kendra faces the same eight misdemeanor charges in Arkansas as her husband, though she is not accused in the Florida molestation case
The Duggar family’s TLC reality show, 19 Kids and Counting, followed Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar and their 19 children, showcasing their devout Christian faith, homeschooling lifestyle and conservative family values.
At its peak, the show attracted millions of viewers.
But it was canceled in 2015 after allegations emerged that Josh, the oldest son, had molested several girls years earlier, including some of his sisters.
Although no criminal charges were filed against Josh at the time, the Duggar parents told Fox News that four of the five girls he molested were his sisters.
In 2021, Josh was arrested and charged with downloading 600 photographs of child pornography and seven videos of violent child sexual abuse.
He was convicted of one count of receiving child pornography and one count of possessing child pornography.
The possession charge was later vacated. Josh is scheduled to be released in October 2032, followed by 20 years of supervised release.
For now, Duggar is hoping not to suffer the same fate as his older brother.
During his stay at the Washington County Detention Center in Fayetteville, Arkansas, he had no personal possessions except for a Bible and a pad of paper.
Clad in a black and grey striped prison jumpsuit, Duggar had little contact with other inmates – for his own safety.
While the facility has a large sitting room, Duggar has never been spotted there.
‘He’s famous and rich, which makes him a target – plus what he’s in for,’ Ray Sheilds, a fellow inmate who recently bonded out, told the Daily Mail.
‘He wouldn’t last a day with some people. There was talk about kicking his a**, but no one got the chance. It’s too bad.’
In a statement, the Duggar parents acknowledged their son’s arrest and expressed sadness at what has happened.
‘Jim Bob and Michelle are heartbroken over this entire situation,’ the statement read.
‘Right now, they are focused on loving their family and helping Kendra and her children during this difficult time. They are praying for the victim.
‘They ask for privacy and appreciate the kind words and prayers offered by so many.’
