A former Knoxville Post Office employee was arrested last week on charges he raped a teenager in the Knoxville Processing and Distribution Center on Weisgarber Road, federal court documents show.

John Dusty Best has been charged with attempted enticement of a child and aggravated statutory rape. Federal authorities say Best, 71, had a five-month sexual relationship in 2021 that began when the teenager was 16. The teen is only identified in the complaint by his initials.

Best worked as the supervisor for transportation operations at the distribution center. He began at the Post Office in 2006 and retired in August, according to a spokesperson for the Post Office.

Best's attorney could not be reached for comment.

Best has a preliminary hearing Thursday at the federal courthouse.

Court documents detail allegations

The investigation began in the fall of 2021 after police responded to a car crash in Blount County where the teen was driving Best’s car. The teen did not have a license and Best was in the passenger seat, according to the complaint.

When a Maryville police officer asked the two about their relationship, Best told officers he was the boy’s godfather. But his story didn’t match that of the teen, and they couldn’t agree on why they were out together after 8:30 p.m.

Police separated the two and called the boy’s father, who did not know the man and had no knowledge of them being out together.

“Best then told the MPD officer he had never met (the boy’s) father and admitted that it raises ‘a lot of questions’ for him to be out with a minor without authority and allowing him to drive his vehicle without a license,” the complaint reads.

While they were separated, according to the complaint, the teen told police he and Best were in a sexual relationship that began when he was 16. Best had been tipping the teen for jobs done at his home and gave him a smart phone, jewelry and promised to buy him a sports car.

The two were released, separately, and police began investigating.

Roughly 10 days later, the teen had an interview with police where he described personal physical characteristics of Best and detailed their sexual activity, including sex inside an empty office at the Post Office facility on Weisgarber Road on the day of the car crash. The teen gave police a detailed description of Best’s office, including a poster on the wall and a “cabinet full of keys.”

In January 2022, the teen was given a forensic medical exam, the results of which were consistent with the reported sexual abuse.

Authorities including the FBI, the United States Postal Inspection Service and the United States Postal Service Office of Inspector General obtained security camera footage of the building, which confirmed the two were inside wearing the same clothes they were seen in later that night.

In future interviews with investigators, the teen said Best told him to keep their relationship a secret, going as far as to purchase a “secret phone” for them to communicate. The phone was used to send sexually explicit text messages and arrange meetings, according to the complaint.

Last week, Best was notified that police had a warrant to search him. Instead of coming home, he turned off his cell phone and did not respond to officers. He was eventually found, pulled over and officers followed him home. Once there, they confirmed the physical description given by the teen. Best was arrested Friday after an initial appearance.

Tyler Whetstone is an investigative reporter focused on accountability journalism. Connect with Tyler by emailing him at tyler.whetstone@knoxnews.com. Follow him on Twitter @tyler_whetstone. Make our community, our society and our republic stronger by supporting robust local journalism. Subscribe online at knoxnews.com/subscribe.

This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Post Office worker charged with rape inside Knoxville mail facility