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Kendra Duggar pleaded with husband Joseph Duggar not to trust anyone during a tearful jail call, as the former reality star disclosed she no longer has custody of their four children following their arrests.
Kendra, 27, could be heard sobbing in a March 23 phone call obtained by TMZ. In another call, Kendra informed Joseph she had hired her own attorney – not to be shared.
“I think Friday has probably been my hardest day, but that’s crazy to say because Wednesday was crazy hard,” she told Joseph on a March 24 call.
“But it’s just like, when you then take my babies from me, they were who I was just going to pour my life into,” she added, according to People.
AMY DUGGAR KING SAYS JOSEPH DUGGAR’S ARREST EXPOSES FAMILY’S ‘TOXIC SYSTEM’ THAT ‘BREEDS SECRECY’
Kendra Duggar was heard crying on jailhouse calls. (Courtesy Washington County Sheriff’s Department)
In another jailhouse call, Kendra emphasized her focus on their children.
“I’m fighting for the kids, and they’re my number one priority right now,” Kendra told her husband.
Joseph said he was “100% behind” Kendra’s decision and agreed she “should be fighting for them the most.”
“I just want you to know, through all of this, whatever happens, that’s who’s coming first,” Kendra added. “Then we’ll just see where the rest of it leads us and try to put the pieces together.”
Kendra was arrested March 20 in Arkansas on four counts each of second-degree endangering the welfare of a minor and second-degree false imprisonment. Her husband also faces the same eight charges.
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Joseph Duggar was charged with the same eight counts of child endangerment and false imprisonment as Kendra, in addition to the charges of child molestation. (Instagram)
“I can tell you the arrest was a result of a home inspection, and the door locks being on the exterior of the doors,” a source close to the family told People.
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A spokesperson for the family told the outlet that the charges against the two in Arkansas are “totally unrelated” to Joseph’s sex abuse case in Florida.
“She’s not suspected or accused of participating in his alleged crime,” the spokesperson added.
Joseph Duggar demanded a jury trial after pleading not guilty to child molestation charges. (Courtesy: Bay County Court)
Joseph, 31, also faces charges of lewd and lascivious molestation of a child under 12 and lewd and lascivious contact. Florida Judge Brantley Clark ordered the reality TV star held on $600,000 bond during his first appearance in Bay County Court Tuesday. He posted bail later that day.
Clark instructed Joseph to have no contact with the alleged victim, which included any contact through a third party or social media. Additionally, he was told not to have unsupervised contact with any minors under the age of 18.
Joseph Duggar gained fame on TLC’s “19 Kids and Counting.” (Ida Mae Astute/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images)
Joseph, who starred with his parents and siblings in TLC’s “19 Kids and Counting,” was arrested March 18 in Arkansas. His arrest came after authorities interviewed a 14-year-old girl who claimed he had inappropriately touched her several times on a family vacation when she was nine years old.
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An arrest affidavit, obtained by Digital, claimed Joseph confessed to the sexual abuse to the girl’s father after being confronted. Police officers in Arkansas had the father call Joseph with a detective on the line, and he reportedly admitted to the actions again.
