need to know
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John Paul Miller indicted for molesting wife Mica Miller, leading to her suicide in 2024
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Authorities say John Paul once contacted Mica as many as 50 times a day
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According to authorities, John Paul purchased a tire-cutting device and shared information about Myka’s car before her tires were discovered slashed
Disgraced South Carolina pastor John Paul Miller, who has been thrust into the spotlight following the death of his wife, Mica Miller, in 2024, was indicted on charges that he stalked and harassed her before her death.
The Robeson County Sheriff’s Office said at the time that Mica, 30, was found dead on April 27, 2024, in Lumber River State Park in Orem, North Carolina. Her death was ruled a suicide, although her relatives expressed suspicion that there was something more to the case.
“This has to at least be looked into deeper. There has to be some responsibility here,” Miller’s friend Kenn Young told WDPE days after Miller’s death. “Yes, because we lost a tragic life and it’s not just a mental health issue.”
Much of the attention has been on her estranged husband, John Paul Miller, 46, a prominent pastor in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. He insisted that Mika died by suicide.
Now, nearly two years after Micah’s death, federal prosecutors in South Carolina have filed cyberstalking charges against John Paul, accusing him of harassing Micah in various ways between November 2022 and Micah’s death.
In a press release announcing the indictment on Thursday, Dec. 18, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of South Carolina said John Paul “sent unwanted and harassing communications” to Mika during this period and allegedly posted nude photos of her online without her consent.
He also allegedly installed a tracking device on her car and at one point contacted her more than 50 times in one day, authorities said in a statement. John Paul is also accused of damaging her tires and interfering with her finances and daily activities.
Authorities further charged John Paul with lying to police about damaging Micah’s tires, although investigators found evidence that he purchased the tire deflation device and introduced Micah’s vehicle to others.
Authorities discovered Myka’s body after she called 911 and told dispatchers she was about to commit suicide.
After her death, John Paul faced intense scrutiny. A petition launched after Mika’s death claims that Mika “lost her life because no one helped her from the harassment and excessive stalking of John Paul,” whom she “desperately tried to escape.”
“She filed report after report, received no contact order, and received no assistance, not even from law enforcement,” the petition states.
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John Paul came under further scrutiny in February when an Indiana woman accused him of raping her when she was 15 and he was a 19-year-old youth church leader.
John Paul’s father, Reginald Wayne Miller, was also named in the lawsuit, which People magazine reviewed.
“Behind their religious facade, John Paul Miller and Reginald Wayne Miller engaged in sexually abusive and predatory behavior – often against minors,” the complaint reads. “They use their positions of power to manipulate and exploit vulnerable victims while concealing their actions from the public.”
John Paul faces up to five years in prison for cyberstalking and up to two years in prison for making false statements to federal investigators, according to a release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in South Carolina. He also faces a fine of up to $250,000 and is due to be arraigned on January 12, 2026.
PEOPLE reached out to his attorney, but he declined to comment on the case.
If you or someone you know is a victim of sexual abuse, call the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 and text “STRENGTH” to be connected with a certified crisis counselor.
If you are experiencing domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 or visit thehotline.org. All calls are free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.
Read the original article on People
