Kentucky state lawmaker accused of molesting a teenager committed suicide Wednesday after denying the allegation and refusing calls by leaders of both parties to resign, according to local media reports.
Kentucky state Rep. Dan Johnson is seen in a photo posted to his website.
State Rep. Dan Johnson, also a pastor who called himself “pope,” was the subject of an extensive report published Monday by the Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting. It accused the Republican lawmaker of molesting a 17-year-old girl in his church’s basement in 2012.
Bullitt County Sheriff Donnie Tinnell told WDRB-TV that Johnson killed himself on a bridge in Mount Washington, Ky.
“Saddened to hear of tonight’s death of KY Representative Dan Johnson,” Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin, a fellow Republican, tweeted Wednesday night. “My heart breaks for his wife and children…These are heavy days in Frankfort and in America…May God shed His grace on us all…We sure need it…”
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