BROOKSVILLE, Fla. – A Hernando County jury has delivered a guilty verdict against 45-year-old Andrew Paul Johnson, concluding a legal process that began with his arrest in the summer of 2025.
Following a trial in front of Judge Stephen E. Toner, Johnson was convicted on several severe counts, including lewd or lascivious molestation of victims under the age of 12 and between the ages of 12 and 16. The jury also found him guilty of two counts of lewd or lascivious exhibition and the transmission of harmful material to a minor via an electronic device.
The case originated in July 2025 when deputies from the Hernando County Sheriff’s Office were called to a Brooksville home. Upon arrival, a complainant informed officers that two children had come forward with allegations of inappropriate physical contact by Johnson.
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During the initial investigation, deputies were handed a cell phone that Johnson had reportedly given to one of the victims to facilitate private communication.
Evidence presented during the trial highlighted a digital trail on the messaging platform Discord. Authorities testified that they discovered sexually explicit messages and images exchanged between Johnson and one of the minors.
Investigators noted that Johnson had instructed the victim to move their conversations to a different app for increased privacy and urged the child to delete the message history to avoid detection.
Testimony from the victims, supported by interviews conducted by the You Thrive Child Advocacy Center, provided specific details regarding the locations and nature of the incidents.
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One victim testified that Johnson used gifts and food as incentives to ensure their silence, allegedly telling the child that he would “get into trouble” if the truth ever came out. The second victim corroborated these accounts, describing similar instances of inappropriate contact.
The prosecution was led by Assistant State Attorneys Kasey Whitson and Rob Lewis. While a specific sentencing date has not yet been finalized, the nature of the convictions carries heavy legal weight. Johnson faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 25 years in state prison, though the court has the discretion to sentence him to life.
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