A fundamentalist Christian ministry that "treated" Josh Duggar as a teen after he confessed to molesting several underage girls has been accused of enabling and covering up the sexual abuse and harassment of those involved in its programs.



The Washington Post reports that on Tuesday, five women filed a lawsuit against the Institute in Basic Life Principles (IBLP), once a leader in the Christian home-schooling movement, alleging that the board of directors engaged in a conspiracy to conceal systematic sexual abuse.



The lawsuit charges that employees and directors "frequently received reports" of "sexual abuse, sexual harassment and inappropriate/unauthorized touching." These "serious, potentially criminal allegations [were never reported] to law enforcement authorities or the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services" as required by state law.



David Gibbs III, the attorney representing the women who filed the lawsuit, told the Washington Post that the victims had initially hoped to discuss the issue with the IBLP board of directors; however, they were forced to litigate after the board "rather stubbornly and in my opinion rather arrogantly basically challenged the girls to bring the case".

