Hernando County jury convicts Andrew Paul Johnson on five child sex counts

A Hernando County jury found 45-year-old Andrew Paul Johnson guilty on five criminal counts alleging sexual abuse of two juvenile victims, a verdict announced in the courtroom of Judge Stephen E. Toner. The Office of the State Attorney for the Fifth Judicial Circuit issued a release saying Johnson “will be sentenced at a later date but faces a 25-year minimum-mandatory sentence, with exposure of up to Life in prison.”

Prosecutors say the convictions include lewd or lascivious molestation of a victim less than 12 years of age, lewd or lascivious molestation of a victim 12 years of age or older but less than 16 years of age, two counts of lewd or lascivious exhibition, and a count described in the local release as transmission of material harmful to a minor by electronic device. National reporting and court filings, however, conflict with the local release on that electronic-transmission count; some reports say a jury acquitted Johnson on a charge of sending sexual material to a child. A chief assistant state attorney for the Fifth Judicial Circuit warned of severe penalties, saying, “He is exposed to the possibility of life in prison.”

The charges stem from a July 2025 complaint that brought Hernando County deputies to a Brooksville residence, where a complainant told deputies two juveniles reported being inappropriately touched by Johnson. Deputies recovered a cell phone that was in the possession of one victim and which investigators say shows Johnson provided the device. Law enforcement and You Thrive Child Advocacy Center personnel interviewed both children as part of the multidisciplinary investigation.

Probable cause filings recounted more detailed allegations: one victim said the abuse began at age 11 and described being molested three times between April 1, 2024 and October 2024; another victim corroborated multiple incidents. The affidavit cited screenshots and Discord messages that a family member said she found, and alleged Johnson used gifts, food and promises to keep the children from disclosing the abuse. Court filings referenced statements the defendant allegedly made to a child, including claims he had been pardoned for participation in the January 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol and that he would receive substantial money and include the child in his will.

Johnson was arrested in Tennessee and extradited to Florida after the 2025 probe; he pleaded not guilty at arraignment and later faced trial in Hernando County. The defense has not provided public comment in the materials made available so far.

For Hernando County residents, the case underscores the role of local investigators, child advocacy services and the courtroom in protecting young people and bringing complex abuse cases to trial. Officials say sentencing will be set at a later date; community members and anyone with information should expect the county clerk and the State Attorney’s office to publish formal docket entries that will clarify outstanding questions, including the final disposition of the electronic-transmission count and the exact date and statutory basis for any mandatory minimum sentence.