‘Counting On’: Local Arkansas News Station Seems to Confirm Duggar Raid Rumors
Rumors have been swirling about a potential raid at the home of the Duggar family of TLC’s Counting On for around a week. While fans on Reddit and a few media outlets picked up the potential story, it was difficult for both local and national news outlets to pin down exactly what might be happening.
On Nov. 19, 2019, local news stations in Northwest Arkansas confirmed through Homeland Security Investigations that some of the recent Duggar rumors might have been well-founded.
Fans speculated that there might be an ongoing FBI investigation at the Duggar home
In mid-November, fans on Reddit, Facebook, and Twitter speculated that an FBI raid or other form of federal investigation was potentially underway for the Duggar family.
Locals near the Duggars’ home in Tontitown, Arkansas, claimed they saw strange goings-on near the Duggar home, such as an unusual lack of cars, police activity, and reporters at the Duggars’ nearby car dealership. Reddit users who claimed to be from the area said that they had heard through the grapevine that the Duggars were being investigated.
What’s more, Anna Duggar, wife of Josh Duggar, is normally active on social media. Her unusual silence and her suddenly limited Instagram comments helped to spread the rumors, leading some Counting On fans to believe that an investigation was indeed underway.
Rumors centered on Josh Duggar
In what many deemed later to be mere rumors and conjecture, fans offered speculation as to what the reason for the alleged investigation could be. Tax evasion, money laundering, and potential crimes against children were all mentioned, but the FBI confirmed to Radar Online that they were not involved in “any kind of law enforcement action” there.
Josh Duggar was mentioned by many Counting On fans as a potential subject of any alleged or rumored investigation. Duggar is currently entangled in a lawsuit involving alleged real estate fraud and previously admitted to molesting several children as a teen, including several of his own sisters.
Some fans wondered if Derick Dillard was involved
Derick Dillard, the husband of Jill Duggar Dillard (who is no longer on TLC’s Counting On), also recently spoke out on Twitter against TLC and the show in general, leading some fans to speculate that Jim-Bob Duggar might also be involved.
The law student wrote on Twitter on Nov. 14, “TLC has issues. They begged us not to quit filming, but then didn’t want to hear from us about why we quit. If money is all they care about, then it’s going to catch-up with them—you must care about people. All I’ve got to say is, they better lawyer-up b/c a storm is inevitable.”
Some fans took his comments as pointing towards the recent rumors about an investigation, but Dillard never spoke directly about it.
Homeland Security Investigations seemed to confirm certain aspects of the rumor
Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) spoke to KNWA, a media outlet in Northwest Arksansas, on Nov. 19. According to the outlet, an HSI spokesperson gave the following comment about last week’s rumored raid: “[I do not dispute the information that] HSI was present there [Duggar home] pursuant to an on-going federal criminal investigation.”
Although this comment doesn’t give detailed information, it seems to support the idea that a federal investigation is indeed ongoing at the Duggar home. The HSI spokesperson did not give any more information as to any potential charges or arrests. According to the outlet, the U.S. District Attorney for Western Arkansas declined to comment.
Jedidiah Duggar, who recently announced his decision to run for state office with the Republican Party, also gave a comment. “I don’t live there and I am not aware of any investigation,” said the 20-year-old to KNWA-TV.
