Josh Duggar is transferred to fifth facility in five years following child porn conviction

Josh Duggar has again been transferred to another federal prison facility, which marks his fifth move in a five-year span.

Duggar, 38, was sent to Elkton Federal Correctional Institution in Lisbon, Ohio, on July 8, a Bureau of Prisons spokesperson told KNWA/FOX24.

The facility is 'a low-security federal correctional institution with an adjacent low-security satellite prison,' with 2,048 total inmates, according to the BOP.

The city of Lisbon, which is in Northeast Ohio, is situated between Cleveland and Pittsburgh.

The latest move comes less than two months after Duggar was last transferred to a medical facility in Texas. 

The Daily Mail has reached out to representatives for Duggar and the Bureau of Prisons for further comment. 

The former reality star is currently serving a prison sentence of about 12 1/2 years in his 2021 conviction for receiving and possessing material depicting minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct. He's slated to be released on February 2, 2033, according to the Federal Bureau of Prisons' website. 

Duggar, after his initial arrest in 2021, had been taken to the Washington County Detention Center in Fayetteville, Arkansas. 

He was then transferred to the Texas-based FCI Seagoville facility, where he spent nearly four years, to Fort Worth FMC, according to records reviewed by the Daily Mail earlier this year.

Fort Worth FMC, which is about 47 miles away from FCI Seagoville, specializes in treating prisoners for physical and mental health needs.

Duggar was subsequently sent to Oklahoma City Federal Transfer Center (FTC) to the Ohio facility.

The BOP previously told the outlet when asked about Duggar's move, 'For privacy, safety, and security reasons, we do not discuss the conditions of confinement for any individual in our custody, including reasons for transfer.'

Federal authorities said Duggar – who is father to seven children with wife Anna, 38 – had amassed 'images and videos depicting the sexual abuse of children, including images of prepubescent children and depictions of sadistic abuse.'

Duggar earlier this year faced another legal setback after a judge denied his motion to vacate his 2021 conviction on the grounds his rights had been violated (after he missed a June 24, 2025 deadline on a motion).

Duggar said in a filing that the missed deadline should be overlooked since he had followed 'a prison mailbox rule.' 

The rule validates items 'deposited in the institution's internal mailing system on or before the last day for filing,' according to legal docs reviewed by 5NewsOnline. 

U.S. District Judge Timothy L. Brooks declined Duggar's request, saying in his ruling that it lacked credibility.

'The Court can grant Mr. Duggar one coincidence,' the judge said. 'Perhaps even two or three odd happenstances. But Mr. Duggar is asking the Court to believe something akin to a magic bullet theory - a sequential chain of events that defies common sense.'

The judge added, 'Collectively, this chain of events – where Murphy's law was lurking at every turn – is simply not credible.'

The Duggar family reality show, which began airing in 2008 as 17 Kids and Counting, was centered on Michelle and Jim Bob, the devout Arkansas couple who named all of their children with the first letter J. 

News about Duggar's past molestation of five young girls in the early 2000s - four of his female siblings and a babysitter - led to the swift cancellation of the family's TLC series in 2015. 

Jim Bob and wife Michelle posted a statement on Facebook at the time the story surfaced, explaining how they dealt with the initial incident.

'Back 12 years ago our family went through one of the most difficult times of our lives,' they said in a May 21, 2015 Facebook post. 'When Josh was a young teenager, he made some very bad mistakes and we were shocked.

'We had tried to teach him right from wrong. That dark and difficult time caused us to seek God like never before.'

Jim Bob and Michelle continued, 'We pray that as people watch our lives they see that we are not a perfect family. We have challenges and struggles every day.'

The latest events surrounding Josh Duggar come on the heels of major legal issues for his younger brother Joseph, 31, who is out on $600,000 bond as he faces child molestation charges. 

The incident involving Joe occurred in 2020 in Panama City Beach, Florida, during a vacation, according to the Bay County Sheriff's Office.

'As the vacation continued, he also asked [the victim] to sit next to him on a couch and covered them with a blanket,' officials said. 'During this time, Duggar manipulated the victim's underwear and grazed her genitals.

'Duggar would also continue to rub his hands on her thighs. The victim stated Duggar eventually apologized for his actions and the incidents stopped after the apology.'

For those who have been impacted by sexual abuse, text 'STRENGTH' to the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 to be connected to a certified crisis counselor.