Police Visit the Duggar Family Home; It Isn’t the First Time
The Washington County Police Department visited the Duggar family’s Springdale, Arkansas home on Sunday, June 25. According to the official police blotter, an officer visited an address owned by Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar shortly before 9 am. The call is listed as a “follow-up investigation.” It is unknown what the call was regarding, but a family tragedy did occur earlier that same day. The most recent visit is far from the first police visit to the Duggar home.
Police have visited Duggar-owned property multiple times in the last few years
The Duggar family first appeared on TLC in the early 2000s with a squeaky-clean image. That image has been tarnished more than once by the eldest Duggar offspring, Joshua Duggar. Since 2019, the Duggars have been visited by police on at least two occasions.
In 2019, federal agents raided a car lot owned by Joshua Duggar. A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson confirmed the existence of an active investigation at the lot shortly after news broke of the raid. Further updates on the investigation were slow to come, but in 2021, Duggar family followers finally learned the nature of the raid. Federal marshals arrested Joshua Duggar away from the Duggar family home in April 2021 for possessing and receiving child pornography. He was tried and convicted of his crimes. Joshua Duggar is currently serving a decade-long prison term at FCI Seagoville.
In September 2021, Jana Duggar, Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar’s oldest daughter, was cited for child endangerment. According to People, Jana was babysitting a child who slipped away and was found by a passerby. The good samaritan notified the police. Jana settled the case in January 2022. She was ordered to pay a fine. The child’s identity has never been revealed, but Duggar family followers suspect Jana was tasked with watching Josh and Anna Duggar’s children.
Jim Bob Duggar’s uncle died just hours before police visited the Duggar family home
The police’s most recent visit to the Duggar family compound has had the rumor mill swirling since it was first reported on Monday. Now, several sources claim the “follow-up investigation” may be linked to the death of Tommy Lester, Jim Bob Duggar’s uncle. According to TMZ, Jim Bob Duggar’s uncle died at his home just hours before police visited the Duggar compound. While many assume the visit was to inform the Duggar family of Lester’s passing, that has not yet been confirmed.
While police sometimes visit a family’s home to inform them of a loved one’s death, it seems unlikely that the police would have visited Jim Bob Duggar directly to inform him of his uncle’s sudden passing. After all, the deceased Duggar family member was not alone at the time of his death. According to his obituary, Lester had several closer, living relatives. They include his husband, who was with him when he fell ill, and several siblings, all of whom would have been notified of his passing before Jim Bob had it been deemed necessary. In fact, Mary Duggar, Jim Bob’s mother, is the only person, aside from his parents, who preceded Lester in death, according to the write-up about his life.
Mary Duggar died suddenly in 2019. The 78-year-old’s death was ruled an accidental drowning. Her death was covered in a special episode of Counting On. Her husband, Jimmy Lee Duggar, died 10 years earlier from brain cancer. He was 73.
