A senior administrator in the Department of Defense (DOD) under President Joe Biden, Stephen Hovanic, was arrested on human trafficking charges during a sting operation in Coweta County, Georgia, on November 15. Hovanic, 64, resides in Sharpsburg, Georgia, and works for the DOD in Peachtree City, where the Department of Defense Education Activity’s Americas division is located. The arrest occurred during a human trafficking sting, and Hovanic faces charges of pandering, as stated in a press release from the Coweta County Sheriff’s Office. Eva Tedder, administrator for the sheriff’s office, confirmed Hovanic’s connection to the DOD.
The Pentagon’s website indicates that Peachtree City, Georgia, is the location of the Department of Defense Education Activity’s (DODEA) Americas division under the Biden administration. A booking photo of Stephen Hovanic from the Coweta County sheriff’s office matches the image displayed on the DODEA Americas Chief of Staff Stephen Hovanic’s biography on the agency’s website. Notably, both men share a distinctive scar across the chin.
Hovanic resides in Sharpsburg, Georgia, according to the biography. The Newnan Times-Herald reported that Hovanic was one of over two dozen arrests during a two-day operation targeting human trafficking victims. Six women were rescued, and the operation resulted in arrests related to pandering, drug possession, prostitution, and pimping, as detailed in the press release.
Humphreys Central Elementary School students enjoyed shopping at the school's fall book fair. Look at all those great books! #DoDEAinAction pic.twitter.com/BEgX1U6jKs
— DoDEA (@DoDEA) November 20, 2023
Hovanic, an honorably discharged veteran and U.S. Military Academy at West Point attendee, as per his DODEA biography, initiated his academic journey in 1982 as a high school vocational teacher, coach, and school administrator in Virginia public schools. Joining DODEA in 1996, he began as an assistant principal at Quantico Middle-High School and subsequently served as the principal of Dahlgren Unit School.
Transitioning to Peachtree City in 2008, Hovanic took on the role of an instructional systems specialist. Two years later, he ascended to the position of chief of staff, as outlined in his biography.