CLAIBORNE COUNTY, Tenn. — Tennessee Bureau of Investigation special agents arrested a Knoxville man Thursday on multiple counts of statutory rape by an authority figure stemming from when he was a recruiter for the Tennessee Army National Guard.
Authorities began investigating allegations of sexual misconduct involving Matthew Douglas Franklin, 32, in September, according to the TBI.
During the course of the investigation, agents said they learned that while Franklin was employed as a recruiter for the national guard in New Tazewell, he reportedly engaged in sexual contact with three juvenile females.
It happened between March 2018 and September 2019, the TBI said in a release.
"Franklin’s employment was terminated when the allegations surfaced," the release said.
The Claiborne County Grandy Jury returned indictments Wednesday charging him with six counts of statutory rape by an authority figure.
According to the TBI, he turned himself in Thursday and was booked into the Claiborne County Jail on a $25,000 bond.