WASHINGTON COUNTY – A joint investigation by special agents with TBI’s Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Squad and the Newport Police Department in New Hampshire has resulted in the arrest of a Johnson City man.
Last month, detectives in Newport, New Hampshire, received information that a minor was sending child sexual abuse material (CSAM) to an adult male online via the social media platform Discord. During the course of the investigation, Jacob Isaiah Haun (DOB: 3/9/05), who resides in Johnson City, was identified as the Discord account user. TBI agents in the ICAC Squad were notified and began working alongside New Hampshire detectives as part of the investigation. Upon further review of Haun’s Discord account, agents discovered that he received numerous CSAM images and videos from victims across the country.
This week, agents obtained a warrant for Haun, charging him with Especially Aggravated Sexual Exploitation of a Minor and Solicitation of a Minor via Electronic Means. Today, with the assistance of the Johnson City Police Department, he was arrested and booked into the Washington County Detention Center.
At this time, the investigation remains active and ongoing as agents work to identify the children targeted by Haun. The TBI is asking anyone who may have had communication with the Discord username of @IMPERATED and the display name of “biti” to call 1-800-TBI-FIND or email [email protected].
The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation is an ICAC affiliate of the Tennessee ICAC Task Force. Anyone with information about cases of online child exploitation should contact the TBI Tipline at 1-800-TBI-FIND or report via the NCMEC CyberTipline at CyberTipline.org.
The TBI has information about online dangers, sextortion, and common-sense tips for the public on its website, www.tn.gov/tbi. Parents and caregivers looking for resources aimed at helping children develop online safety skills should visit the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children’s website at www.netsmartz.org.
The charges and allegations referenced in this release are merely accusations of criminal conduct, not evidence. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt and convicted through due process of law.
Multiple media outlets reporting that Josh Sullivan, the pastor from Maryville that was abducted in South Africa is now safe.
According to a statement from the “Hawks,” a specialized police unit that investigates crimes, several police agencies went to a house and found Sullivan in a car.
The suspects in the car reportedly tried to flee and opened fire on the police. The officers shot and killed three of the suspects and were able to rescue Sullivan.
The Hawks say he is “miraculously unharmed” and in excellent condition.
The Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (HAWKS) released a statement announcing that an operation led by the agency “resulted in the successful rescue” of an American pastor who was kidnapped.
Though the news release did not name the pastor, 34-year-old Josh Sullivan, of Tennessee, was kidnapped by several armed, masked men last week at his church in the Eastern Cape, Fellowship Baptist Church Motherwell.
American pastor Josh Sullivan, who was kidnapped from his church in the Eastern Cape Province last week, has been rescued by police following a “high-intensity shootout.” (Fellowship Baptist Church/Facebook)
Police said they received tips that Sullivan was inside a safe house in KwaMagxaki, Gqeberha.
A “high-intensity shootout” took place and three unidentified suspects were killed.
Sullivan was found inside the same car that the suspects were in, but he was “miraculously unharmed,” police said, adding that he is “currently in an excellent condition.”
Josh Sullivan is from Maryville, Tennessee, and spent years observing the leadership of Fellowship Baptist Church Pastor Tom Hatley, according to congregation members on Facebook. (Facebook)
Tom Hatley, pastor of Fellowship Baptist Church in Maryville, Tennessee, confirmed Sullivan’s rescue early Wednesday morning in a Facebook post.
“Josh has been released. I just got ‘the go ahead to let it be known’. SA media has started broadcasting. American media will follow. Thank you for your support and prayers. Please do not stop praying for The Sullivans. Praise The Lord Jesus Christ!” he wrote.
Sullivan is from Maryville and spent years learning how to be a pastor under Hatley’s leadership, according to congregation members on Facebook.
Sullivan went to South Africa with his wife and two children in 2018 after the couple participated in a six-month internship there in 2015 as part of their Bible training to become missionaries.
Josh Sullivan, an American pastor from Tennessee, has been working as a missionary in South Africa with his wife and their children since 2018. (Fellowship Baptist Church Motherwell/Facebook)
“It was during this time that the Lord began to stir their hearts specifically for the Xhosa people,” fellow Missionary Mark Coffey said. “They returned in 2018 as full-time church-planting missionaries, determined to share the Gospel and see lives changed. Josh committed himself to two years of language school and became fluent in Xhosa so he could preach, disciple, and minister more effectively.”
Knoxville, TN (WOKI) The Internal Revenue Service announces tax relief for the entire state of Tennessee affected by severe storms, tornadoes, flooding and more that began in early April.
The IRS says that Tennessee taxpayers will now have until November 3rd to file federal individual and business tax returns and make tax payments.
The IRS is offering relief to any area designated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency which means that individuals and households that reside or have a business in Tennessee’s 95 counties qualify for tax relief.
April 14, 2025 WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service announced today tax relief for individuals and businesses in the entire state of Tennessee affected by severe storms, straight-line winds, tornadoes and flooding that began on April 2, 2025.
These taxpayers now have until Nov. 3, 2025, to file various federal individual and business tax returns and make tax payments.
The IRS is offering relief to any area designated by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). This means that individuals and households that reside or have a business in Tennessee’s 95 counties qualify for tax relief. The current list of eligible localities is always available on the Tax relief in disaster situations page on IRS.gov.
Filing and payment relief
The tax relief postpones various tax filing and payment deadlines that occurred from April 2, 2025, through Nov. 3, 2025 (postponement period). As a result, affected individuals and businesses will have until Nov. 3, 2025, to file returns and pay any taxes that were originally due during this period.
This means, for example, that the Nov. 3, 2025, deadline will now apply to:
Individual income tax returns and payments normally due on April 15, 2025.
2024 contributions to IRAs and health savings accounts for eligible taxpayers.
Quarterly estimated tax payments normally due on April 15, June 16 and Sept. 15, 2025.
Quarterly payroll and excise tax returns normally due on April 30, July 31 and Oct. 31, 2025.
Calendar year corporation and fiduciary returns and payments normally due on April 15, 2025.
Calendar year tax-exempt organization returns normally due on May 15, 2025.
In addition, penalties for failing to make payroll and excise tax deposits due on or after April 2, 2025, and before April 17, 2025, will be abated if the deposits are made by April 17, 2025.
The IRS automatically provides filing and penalty relief to any taxpayer with an IRS address of record located in the disaster area. These taxpayers do not need to contact the agency to get this relief.
It is possible an affected taxpayer may not have an IRS address of record located in the disaster area, for example, because they moved to the disaster area after filing their return. In these kinds of unique circumstances, the affected taxpayer could receive a late filing or late payment penalty notice from the IRS for the postponement period. The taxpayer should call the IRS Special Services toll-free number at 866-562-5227 to update their address and request disaster tax relief.
In addition, the IRS will work with any taxpayer who lives outside the disaster area but whose records necessary to meet a deadline occurring during the postponement period are located in the affected area. Taxpayers qualifying for relief who live outside the disaster area need to contact the IRS Special Services toll-free number at 866-562-5227. This also includes workers assisting the relief activities who are affiliated with a recognized government or philanthropic organization. Disaster area tax preparers with clients located outside the disaster area can choose to use the bulk requests from practitioners for disaster relief option, described on IRS.gov.
Additional tax relief
Individuals and businesses in a federally declared disaster area who suffered uninsured or unreimbursed disaster-related losses can choose to claim them on either the return for the year the loss occurred (in this instance, the 2025 return normally filed next year), or the return for the prior year (2024). Taxpayers have extra time – up to six months after the due date of the taxpayer’s federal income tax return for the disaster year (without regard to any extension of time to file) – to make the election. For individual taxpayers, this means Oct. 15, 2026. Be sure to write the FEMA declaration number – 3625-EM − on any return claiming a loss. See Publication 547, Casualties, Disasters, and Thefts, for details.
Qualified disaster relief payments are generally excluded from gross income. In general, this means that affected taxpayers can exclude from their gross income amounts received from a government agency for reasonable and necessary personal, family, living or funeral expenses, as well as for the repair or rehabilitation of their home, or for the repair or replacement of its contents. See Publication 525, Taxable and Nontaxable Income, for details.
Additional relief may be available to affected taxpayers who participate in a retirement plan or individual retirement arrangement (IRA). For example, a taxpayer may be eligible to take a special disaster distribution that would not be subject to the additional 10% early distribution tax and allows the taxpayer to spread the income over three years. Taxpayers may also be eligible to make a hardship withdrawal. Each plan or IRA has specific rules and guidance for their participants to follow.
The IRS may provide additional disaster relief in the future.
Taxpayers who do not qualify for disaster tax relief may qualify for reasonable cause penalty abatement. See Penalty Relief for Reasonable Cause for additional information.
The tax relief is part of a coordinated federal response to the damage caused by these storms and is based on local damage assessments by FEMA. For information on disaster recovery, visit DisasterAssistance.gov.
Any individual or family whose adjusted gross income (AGI) was $84,000 or less in 2024 can use IRS Free File’s Guided Tax Software at no cost. There are products in English and Spanish.
Another Free File option is Free File Fillable Forms. These are electronic federal tax forms, equivalent to a paper 1040, and are designed for taxpayers who are comfortable filling out IRS tax forms. Anyone, regardless of income, can use this option.
MilTax, a Department of Defense program, offers free return preparation software and electronic filing for federal tax returns and up to three state income tax returns. It’s available for all military members and some veterans, with no income limit.
The Knox County Board of Education voted unanimously in favor on an agreement that would consist of building a new elementary school costing nearly $44 million.
The proposed design plans are for the new K-5 Farragut-area elementary school located at 202 Village Commons Boulevard. The entire property will encompass more than 144,000 square feet.
Last year, the school board approved plans to build a new school in Farragut. Assistant Superintendent of Operations Garfield Adams said the next step is approving a design.
According to an agreement form, it would cost $43.7 million for Merit Construction, Inc. to build the school. Adams said the funding was approved through the five-year capital plan.
“Very excited for a school that will ensure students have necessary space,” Adams said. “When you have adequate space and state of the art facilities, that is something that certainly enhances that student learning.”
The proposed design plan would build a one-story structure with three classroom wings that can serve up to 1,400 students. Adams said it would be one of the largest elementary schools in the district’s history. He said it will address the need for more space as Farragut continues to grow.
“We work closely with Knox County government. We look at projected numbers,” Adams said. “This additional elementary school will alleviate a lot of those concerns for parents and ensure that our students have the necessary capacity to enhance student learning.”
In addition to the school itself, the cost also includes “limited public street improvements parking, courtyard fences, fencing and playground/playfield.”
The school board discussed the proposed design at a meeting on Monday before voting on Thursday.
Adams said the next step is construction. It is expected to take two years to build before opening.
This school is part of the district’s plans to have three elementary schools in Farragut. Adams said once this one opens, Farragut Primary and Farragut Intermediate will be converted into K-5 schools.
A search in Loudon County for two missing teens has now become a recovery mission.
Sheriff Jimmy Davis making the announcement yesterday (Thursday). It’s the latest update in a rescue effort that was started by a call from Blake Moore who says early Wednesday morning, he got an odd request from a neighbor.
His neighbor told him a young man was on their porch needing an Uber ride to Chattanooga.
That young man turned out to be one of three teens Loudon County Sheriff’s Office officials say led deputies on a chase down I-75 in a stolen car, which was later found near the bridge.
Further investigation indicates that the three boys somehow jumped from the bridge. After more than a day of searching, Davis said the search has turned into a rescue mission after a search of the bank and in nearby woods were unsuccessful, rescuers began searching in the water.
One teen who was detained told police he jumped into the Tennessee River from the bridge on I-75 in Loudon County. (Courtesy: LCSO)
The Tennessee Department of Education has released a checklist for families interested in getting state money to send their children to private school.
The checklist centers on the controversial Education Freedom Scholarship Program, also known as the school voucher bill which uses state dollars to families interested in private school. That bill passed at the start of this year during a special session.
Those picked to receive a scholarship will get $7,295 to go towards enrolling in private school. The Tennessee Department of Education will award 20,000 scholarships with two types of eligibility, Universal Scholarships Open to any eligible student Quali ed Scholarships Reserved for eligible students based on income, IEA eligibility, or ESA eligibility .
The Tennessee Department of Education has released a checklist for families interested in getting state money to send their children to private school.
The checklist centers on the controversial Education Freedom Scholarship Program, also known as the school voucher bill which uses state dollars to families interested in private school. That bill passed at the start of this year during a special session.
Those picked to receive a scholarship will get $7,295 to go towards enrolling in private school. The Tennessee Department of Education will award 20,000 scholarships with two types of eligibility, Universal Scholarships Open to any eligible student Quali ed Scholarships Reserved for eligible students based on income, IEA eligibility, or ESA eligibility .
An investigation is underway following an early morning (Thursday) hit and run accident in Halls.
Rural Metro Fire crews called to Maynardville Highway near East Emory Road and found one damaged car in the road while the other vehicle had fled the scene.
The driver of the vehicle at the scene was taken to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
If you have any information, please contact authorities.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – For the second consecutive season, the University of Tennessee men’s basketball team placed fifth in the year-end national polls.
Tennessee (30-8, 12-6) finished fifth in the country in both the Associated Press Top 25 Poll and the USA TODAY Coaches Poll, as announced Tuesday afternoon.
The Volunteers ascended one position on each list, as they started the NCAA Tournament sixth overall. Tennessee beat Wofford, UCLA and then-No. 18/21 Kentucky to advance to the Elite Eight for the second year in a row. Once there, it fell to Houston, an eventual NCAA finalist.
Tennessee’s fifth-place finish in the AP Poll matches a program previously record in 2023-24, 2021-22 and 2007-08. This is the second time the Associated Press has released a year-end poll after the NCAA Tournament, as the final poll from 1948-49 through 2022-23 came beforehand. The Volunteers have finished fifth in both iterations of the post-NCAA Tournament AP Poll.
Meanwhile, the Volunteers’ fifth-place spot in the Coaches Poll—the outlet has traditionally released a ranking after the NCAA Tournament—ties the program record set just last season, in 2023-24. Before this two-year stretch, their top mark was seventh in 2007-08.
The Volunteers were one of only four teams to rank in the top 12 of the AP Poll and/or Coaches Poll the entire season, alongside Alabama, Auburn and Duke. One of five teams to hold the AP No. 1 position this year, Tennessee spent five weeks atop the list, tied with Kansas for the second-most of any team.
Tennessee notched 11 AP top-10 placements in 2024-25, passing the nine it had last season for its second-most ever in a single campaign. That figure trails only the 14 it posted in 2018-19.
This is the 18th consecutive AP top-10 ranking for the Volunteers—all were in the top eight—dating to Nov. 25, 2024. That is the second-longest streak in program history, behind only the 20-week ledger in 2018-19. All three marks in program of 15-plus weeks are over the last seven years under the direction of head coach Rick Barnes.
In total, Tennessee is in the AP top 10 for the 76th time in Barnes’ 10 seasons, all since 2017-18, after it earned 28 AP top-10 nods in the 14 years (2001-15) before his hiring. The Volunteers have garnered an AP top-10 ranking in 37 of the 42 AP Poll releases over the past two seasons, including a top-eight spot in 33 of the past 36.
Over the last 58 AP Poll announcements—that extends back to Nov. 28, 2022—Tennessee has collected a top-15 spot in 55 of them, all but three.
The Volunteers are in the AP top 25 for the 80th straight week, a tally that spans four full campaigns, since the 2021-22 preseason poll. That figure is 43 above the previous program record of 37 weeks, set March 1999 to Feb. 2001. Tennessee’s 80-week streak is the second-best active mark in the nation, behind only Houston (106). No other school is at even 60-plus, while the closest SEC team is fifth-place Kentucky with a 42-week count that is 38 behind the Volunteers.
Tennessee concluded the year with 1,220 points in the AP Poll balloting and 621 in the Coaches Poll voting.
The Volunteers are one of eight SEC teams in the year-end rankings, four of which are in the top six. They are joined by top-ranked Florida, fourth-ranked Auburn, sixth-ranked Alabama, No. 12/14 Kentucky, No. 18 Ole Miss, No. 19 Texas A&M and No. 20/25 Arkansas.
In addition to coming in at fifth in the AP Poll and Coaches Poll, the Volunteers finished fifth on KenPom.com to tie the program-best mark set in 2023-24. Tennessee also ranked fifth on Haslametrics.com, fifth on ESPN BPI, sixth on BartTorvik.com, sixth on ESPN SOR and seventh on EvanMiya.com. This is the second season in a row Tennessee placed top-seven on all those lists.
To keep up with the University of Tennessee men’s basketball team on social media, follow @Vol_Hoops on Instagram and X/Twitter, as well as /tennesseebasketball on Facebook.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – No. 1/1 Tennessee dropped both games of a doubleheader against Texas A&M on Saturday at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.
It was a day to forget for the Volunteers (28-4, 9-3 SEC), as the Aggies (16-15, 3-9 SEC) launched an offensive barrage, combining for 26 runs while hitting 11 homers over the two games, just one day after being no-hit in a 10-0 loss to open the series.
For Tennessee, Saturday’s losses snapped a program-record streak of 12 consecutive SEC series wins. The Vols’ last series loss prior to this weekend came on the road at Alabama in the first conference series of last season.
Game 1: Texas A&M 9, Tennessee 3
Texas A&M pulled ahead in the middle innings and continued to add to its lead with a three-run eighth inning to essentially put the game away and win the first game of Saturday’s doubleheader, 9-3.
Starting with a run in the fourth to tie the game at two, the Aggies scored in five consecutive innings and finished with four home runs for the game.
Marcus Phillips was stuck with his first loss of the year after giving up four runs on five hits in 4.2 innings.
Chris Newstrom got the start in left field and was the lone Vol to have multiple hits in the game, finishing 2-for-3 with a run scored.
Leadoff man Terrence Kiel II and catcher Bear Harrison both had three-hit performances for Texas A&M while Jace LaViolette and Caden Sorrell had two RBIs apiece.
Game 2: Texas A&M 17, Tennessee 6 (8 Inn.)
Texas A&M carried its momentum over from game one with a three-run top of the first in game two of Saturday’s twin bill. Bear Harrison hit the first of seven Aggies’ home runs for the game as they clinched the series with a 17-6 victory in eight innings.
After falling behind 4-0, Tennessee looked to gain some momentum with two runs in the bottom of the third to cut its deficit in half, however, Texas A&M squashed that immediately with a six-run top of the fourth, followed by four more runs in the fifth to build a commanding 14-2 lead.
Wyatt Henseler led the way for the Aggies with three hits and five RBIs, including a pair of long balls. Second baseman Ben Royo also homered twice for A&M.
Four Vols finished with multiple hits in the game in Dean Curley, Dalton Bargo, Chris Newstrom and Cannon Peebles. Newstrom was a bright spot for the Big Orange throughout the doubleheader, finishing with a pair of multi-hit games and four total hits for the day.
Hunter Ensley also drove in three runs with a home run into the porches in the bottom of the seventh inning.
Tegan Kuhns suffered his first loss of the year after allowing four runs on four hits and three walks in just 2.2 innings. Fellow freshman Brayden Krenzel also had a rough outing, surrendering five runs in just one inning of relief.
Junior lefthander Myles Patton earned the win for the Aggies after striking out seven batters over six innings of work.
Up Next
Tennessee will look to regroup against Alabama State on Tuesday night at Lindsey Nelson Stadium before heading to Oxford for a big series at Ole Miss next weekend.
