Former Louisiana mayor arrested for alleged sex with minor days after resigning

A former Louisiana mayor who resigned from office days ago was arrested Thursday on charges of having sex with a minor, police said.

Misty Roberts, 42, was booked into the Beauregard Parish Detention Center on charges of third-degree rape and contributing to the delinquency of minors, Louisiana State Police said in a news release Thursday.

Police said that on Friday, the Beauregard Parish Sheriff’s Office requested the state police Special Victims Unit to investigate a complaint against Roberts for alleged sexual conduct with a minor.

Investigators interviewed two minors, one of whom was the alleged victim, police said, and both “confirmed that Roberts had sexual intercourse with a minor victim while he was employed as mayor,” police said.

Roberts’ attorney, Robert Johnson, released a statement saying his client is innocent, WAFB-TV reported.

“My client learned late last night of the existence of an arrest warrant, although she was not contacted for questioning prior to investigators obtaining the warrant,” Johnson said. “My client maintains her innocence and, as it stands, she is in fact innocent. She has not been charged with any crime and/or convicted of any crime.”

On Friday, Roberts initially said she would have to be out of the office for two weeks, but she resigned the next day, WAFB-TV reported.

“For nearly 15 years, my love and passion for DeRidder has been a cornerstone of my tenure as mayor,” Roberts wrote. “This role has allowed me to build many wonderful relationships. I am honored to have witnessed the hard work it took for a community to come together and overcome unprecedented times. However, I must adjust my vision and priorities.”

The former mayor surrendered to investigators without incident on Thursday, police said.

Roberts was arrested at 10:13 a.m. and released at 11:30 a.m. on $75,000 bail, according to Beauregard Parish Sheriff’s Office jail records.

With a population of about 10,000, DeRidder is located about 50 miles north of Lake Charles, Louisiana, not far from the Texas border,