A grand jury has indicted a member of the Johnston County Board of Education on charges of extortion, obstruction of justice, and failure to discharge his duties.
According to the indictment, Ronald Johnson is accused of trying to blackmail former congressional candidate DeVan Barbour. Johnson allegedly threatened to release a defamatory recording of Barbour related to an extramarital affair.
“Defendant threatened to release the recording if DeVan Barbour IV did not pressure Angela McLeod Barbour into recanting her statements that she had an affair with the Defendant. Such a recantation would constitute an advantage to the Defendant,” the indictment said.
Johnson is also accused of illegally recording school board meetings and attempting to have two special needs students at Clayton High School transferred to another school “as an act of personal retaliation” in violation of his duties as a board member.
Johnson was first elected to the board in 2016 and re-elected in 2020. Last year, the board voted to censure him after his board recordings came to light. He also lost his job as a Smithfield police officer after he admitted sending inappropriate texts to a school system employee.
Johnson appeared in Johnston County Superior Court Tuesday morning and posted a $50,000 bond. The next hearing in the case is scheduled for June 5.
