KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — A Knoxville postal employee is accused of sex crimes against an underage, teenage boy that included sex in his office at the main Weisgarber Road location, federal records state.
John Dusty Best, 71, faces a federal charge of attempted enticement of a child and aggravated statutory rape, as it's stated in Tennessee law, because the offense allegedly occurred on federal property.
He's due in U.S. District Court in Knoxville on Thursday morning for detention and preliminary hearings, records state.
Best and the teen were in car crash Oct. 30, 2021, in Maryville while the teen was driving Best's car, records state. The boy was 17 at the time. Both lived in Loudon County.
An officer investigating the circumstances that led to the crash became suspicious of the pair.
Further questioning of the boy revealed that Best had had sex with him at various times dating back about five months to when he was 16, federal records show.
Best wanted to keep the relationship secret and gave the boy a phone they could communicate with, records state. Best gave him other gifts, records state, and the boy was tipped for doing "odd jobs" at the Best home.
On the 2021 day of the crash -- a Saturday -- Best had taken the boy to his office at the Weisgarber Road main postal center. According to federal records, the teen told investigators Best penetrated him "in a deserted office."
Federal authorities secured the complaint against Best on Oct. 26.
The teen described details about Best's genitals that match what authorities saw when they confronted Best, records state.