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‘Thank you Jesus’ sign founder Lucas Hunt sexually exploited minors, police say
Lucas Hunt co-created the sign as a teenager which is mounted on thousands of front yards across the U.S.
The founder of the ubiquitous “Thank You Jesus” sign has been accused of sexually exploiting a minor.
Lucas Hunt, 25, from Asheboro,
North Carolina, was arrested Tuesday and charged with one count of sexual exploitation of a minor in the second degree, the Randolph County Sheriff’s office has said.
He was transported to the
Randolph County jail before being released after posting a $75,000 bond, jail records show.
Hunt made his first court appearance on Wednesday, where the defendant told the judge he understood the charges and plans to hire an attorney, according to CBS17. He is expected back in court on March 19 with the
investigation ongoing.
The defendant willingly received a video of two underage girls engaged in an explicit act, according to his arrest warrant.
The Invictus Task Force, a unit of local county and federal lawmakers that examines internet crimes against children, began its investigation into Hunt last month after he was identified as a suspect following a cyber tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, the sheriff’s office said.
Connie Frazier, the president of the Thank You Jesus Mission who co-created the original design for the signs, refused to comment on Hunt’s charges but said he “blessed”
Christians with his message.