Jim Bob Duggar is allegedly working overtime to ensure none of the Duggar family members talk about Josh Duggar’s recent arrest.
The disgraced reality TV star was arrested in Arkansas by federal agents and held without bail. He is scheduled to appear in court today, and that is when the charges against him are supposed to be made public.
Josh’s mugshot showed the father of six looking smug as he was booked into the Washington County Detention Center, where he spent the night following his arrest.
Damage control in full swing
It appears that Jim Bob Duggar was tipped off about Josh Duggar and his arrest ahead of when it happened.
According to The Sun, a source told the publication that the patriarch alerted family members that their brother would be arrested and asked them to not speak publicly about what was happening.
The source said, “Jim Bob told all his kids and their spouses on Thursday morning that Josh would be arrested imminently.”
They continued, “He asked them all to pray for Josh and Anna, and trust that God would bring them closer together through the tough time.”
And, in true Jim Bob fashion, the source revealed, “He also asked them to not speak publicly about the arrest or any issues with Josh.”
This is eerily similar to what happened when Josh Duggar’s molestation scandal was revealed. Jim Bob Duggar instructed the daughters, who were the victims, to remain silent. They didn’t speak until they were given a national platform and interviewed by Megyn Kelly in 2015.
What about Anna Duggar?
Currently, Anna Duggar lives on the Duggar property in Arkansas. She and Josh live in what has been dubbed a “warehouse” on the property and do not live with the rest of the siblings in the big house.
Just last week, Anna revealed she and Josh are expecting their seventh child. It is a baby girl, and she will born this fall.
It is expected that she will remain close to Jim Bob and Michelle Duggar as she did in 2015 when her life fell apart the first time. Back then, she was pregnant with Meredith. Now, she is pregnant again, and the similarities are overwhelming.
The Duggar family will likely rally around her and the children as they navigate what is next for their son, brother, husband, and father following his arrest on federal charges.
Counting On is currently on hiatus.
Jill commented, calling the situation “sad.” Jinger and Jeremy expressed being “disturbed” by the charges, condemned child-abuse. and registered support for “authorities and the judicial process.”