Bond set for two ex-deputies charged with indecent behavior with juveniles

Published 12:59 pm Friday, March 3, 2023

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VIDALIA, La. — Louisiana Seventh Judicial District Judge John Reeves granted bond this week to two former deputies who have been arrested and charged by the Attorney General’s Office with crimes against juveniles in Concordia Parish.

John William Cowan, 45, bonded out with a $60,000 bond after he surrendered at Concordia Parish Sheriff’s Office on Wednesday.

Cowan is charged with three counts of indecent behavior with juveniles, one count of carnal knowledge of a juvenile and one count of obstructing justice by intimidating a witness.

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Anthony “Tony” Godbold, 35, surrendered to authorities on Tuesday evening and remains in jail with a $65,000 bond for three counts of indecent behavior with juveniles and two counts of felony carnal knowledge of a juvenile.

Godbold also faces charges from his earlier arrest in October for malfeasance in office; introducing contraband into a jail; and possession of schedule I, schedule II and schedule III drugs with intent to distribute.

Cowan, who lives in Vidalia, is a former deputy of Concordia Parish, LaSalle Parish, and was most recently employed as a deputy in Rapides Parish.

Godbold, who was also previously employed by CPSO, was released from those duties last fall after he allegedly brought contraband into the jail.

Concordia Parish Sheriff’s Office began investigating allegations of crimes against minors in December 2022, when investigators discovered evidence of the men having sexual relations with juveniles around the age of 15. CPSO later turned over the investigation to the Attorney General’s Office because both men were formerly employed by CPSO as deputies.