Military recruiter charged with sexually abusing young girl at his home on Joint Base Lewis-McChord

(Joshua Carl Harrod, Image credit: Facebook, per Stars and Stripes)

Joshua Carl Harrod, 42, of Spanaway, Washington, a former Air Force Special Agent, was arrested on July 22 on a grand jury indictment charging him with five counts of sexual abuse of a child under the age of 12. At his initial hearing held on July 22 in federal court, Harrod pleaded not guilty to those charges.  He will remain in custody pending an upcoming detention hearing, according to The Army Times.

According to the indictment, between October 2017 and April 2018, Harrod sexually molested a young girl left in his care.  The instances of child sexual abuse allegedly occurred at his home while he was stationed on Joint Base Lewis-McChord, an area of exclusive federal jurisdiction.  Harrod separated from the Air Force in 2018 and currently serves as a recruiter for the Army National Guard in Lakewood, Washington.

The case against Harrod is being investigated by the FBI with assistance from the U.S. Air Force Office of Special Investigations (OSI), Joint Base Lewis-McChord Military Police Investigations, the Lakewood Police Department, and the Washington State Patrol.

Sexual abuse of a child under the age of 12 is punishable by a mandatory minimum 30 years in prison and up to life in prison. Harrod has a detention hearing scheduled for July 27 and has a trial date scheduled for August 24.

(Source: U.S. Attorney’s Office, Western District of Washington)

Posted by Richard Webster, Ace News Today   /   Follow Richard on Facebook and Twitter