RUTHERFORD COUNTY, TN - UPDATE: At the request of 16th Judicial District Attorney General Jennings Jones, special agents with the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation launched an investigation on May 1, 2025, into allegations involving Justin Holder, 46, of Murfreesboro. Following the collection of evidence and interviews conducted by investigators, the Rutherford County Grand Jury returned indictments on Wednesday (March 4, 2026), charging Holder with multiple offenses. The suspect was apprehended two days after the indictments were returned. The charges include one count of Aggravated Sexual Exploitation of a Minor, two counts of Disseminating Unlawful Photographs, two counts of Unlawful Exposure with Intent to Cause Emotional Distress, and four counts of Unlawful Photographing in Violation of Privacy.

A little over one month after the investigation began, the Deputy Communications Director of the TBI confirmed with WGNS that agents had executed a search warrant at the 5,200-square-foot home belonging to Holder on Oakleigh Drive in Murfreesboro. The TBI stated the warrant was "...in connection to an ongoing investigation." Court records from a separate incident indicate the TBI reportedly visited Holder's home regarding alleged possession of child pornography and other unlawful nude images and recordings of adult third parties, which were allegedly disseminated to a female acquaintance via Facebook Messenger.

On the same date TBI agents visited Holder's home, Holder had contact with a law enforcement officer and was accused of driving under the influence. A criminal warrant was issued, and an arrest by Murfreesboro Police followed several days later, with Holder being charged with “DUI: First Offense” on June 11, 2025. A hearing for that case is set for April 27, 2026.

Twenty-four days after the warrant was served by the TBI at Holder's home, the property was sold for around $1.5 million before it was publicly listed. Holder was reportedly one of the last agents to sell the home and the last buyer's agent working to sell the home in the past three years. He currently has a real estate license that was activated in October 2025 through a real estate agency with an office based in Atlanta, Georgia. Holder's license was activated with the company in October 2025, but his first license to sell real estate in Tennessee was activated 21 years ago in 2005, according to the Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance, which shows that his license is currently active and expires in August 2027.

This past week, Holder surrendered to authorities at the Rutherford County Jail on Friday afternoon. He was booked into the Rutherford County Adult Detention Center at 2:40 PM on March 6, 2026, and was released about two hours later after posting a $75,000 bond.

Of the charges that the suspect faces, Aggravated Sexual Exploitation of a Minor is the most serious and is classified as a Class B felony. The law states that the state does not have to prove the exact identity or age of the minor depicted in order to bring charges, which carries severe penalties under state law.

Under Tennessee law, a person charged with Aggravated Sexual Exploitation of a Minor is accused of being involved in the creation, production, or facilitation of sexually explicit material involving a minor. Specifically, the statute makes it illegal for someone to knowingly promote, employ, use, assist, transport, or allow a minor to participate in the production or performance of sexually explicit material, including situations where the minor is depicted engaging in sexual activity or simulated sexual activity that would be considered patently offensive. Holder was charged with one count of Aggravated Sexual Exploitation of a Minor.

Tennessee law shows that a person can be charged with Disseminating Unlawful Photographs if they are accused of intentionally sharing or distributing images of another person in a way that violates that person’s privacy. In most cases, the allegation involves someone knowingly distributing photographs or videos that show another person’s intimate parts or nudity without that person’s consent, particularly when the images were originally created or obtained under circumstances where the person expected them to remain private. The suspect faces two counts of Disseminating Unlawful Photography.

The charge of unlawful exposure occurs when a person distributes private, intimate images of another with the intent to cause emotional distress, or distributes AI-generated or modified images of someone, which is a Class A misdemeanor. Holder faces two counts of Unlawful Exposure with Intent to Cause Emotional Distress.

Holder also faces four counts of Unlawful Photographing in Violation of Privacy, a Class A misdemeanor. The law in Tennessee says this occurs when someone knowingly photographs or records an individual without consent in a private setting where a reasonable expectation of privacy exists.

Several years prior to Holder being indicted, and according to reports filed with the Rutherford County Sheriff's Office, deputies responded to complaints from a woman who reported receiving repeated unwanted text messages and phone communications from someone she believed to be Holder. The messages allegedly began around 2018 and continued intermittently into 2020 and 2021. The victim told investigators that the messages referenced a medical procedure she had undergone and asked for photos related to that procedure. Some of the messages appeared to come from web-based or masked phone numbers, and the sender allegedly posed as someone connected to a medical office or practice in order to ask questions about the procedure and request images. The victim stated she believed the sender was Justin Holder, a coworker, and that similar unwanted messages had also been sent to another woman in the same workplace.

Investigators documented multiple interviews and case notes related to the complaint. Officers collected screenshots of the text conversations and attempted to trace the phone numbers used to send the messages. Subpoenas and search warrants were issued to telecommunications and technology companies in an effort to identify the account holder and associated IP addresses connected to the messaging accounts.

Although records showed that Google services and certain IP addresses were linked to accounts bearing Justin Holder’s name, one being “Justin@JustinHolder.com,” and IP addresses corresponding to the dates and times that the offending text messages were sent, investigators ultimately reported that key records had been purged due to retention limits, preventing them from conclusively proving that Holder sent the messages at the specific times they were transmitted. As a result, the case notes indicate prosecutors were advised that the available evidence would likely be insufficient to pursue charges in that particular investigation.

Case notes showed the detective followed up with one of the alleged victims in June of 2021 to find out if the woman was interested in pursuing charges; however, phone calls from the detective went unanswered. The detective wrote in his case notes that several weeks prior to calling the female, she told the detective that she wasn't sure if she wanted to pursue the case. The same detective noted that his request for an outline of Holder's transgressions was met with the answer of, “...she would think about it and get back with me.” According to the notes, the detective did not hear back from the woman, so he left her a voicemail stating, “I would take no further action absent her request.”

The last note filed in the detective's case was on March 22, 2022, and stated, “As of this date, I've obtained no further evidence tying suspect Justin Holder to the text messages sent,” and that the statute of limitations expired on January 22, 2022, highlighting the closure of the case.

• Original News Article can be found HERE. 

DISCLAIMER: All suspects are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. The arrest records or information about an arrest that are published or reported on NewsRadio WGNS and www.WGNSradio.com are not an indication of guilt or evidence that an actual crime has been committed.

Sources:
Tennessee Bureau of Investigation
2021 Case Number: 21031802358
Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance