A math teacher at Aiken High School was arrested Friday for allegedly soliciting sex from a 16-year-old girl he was tutoring.

The girl claims William Warden gave her alcohol, solicited oral sex and asked her for revealing pictures of herself, according to authorities.

William Warden – known at school as Bill Warden – was charged Friday with sexual exploitation of a minor, two counts of solicitation of a minor and three counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor. He is free on bond and did not respond to requests for comment.

The victim was not a student at Aiken High School; she attends another school in Aiken County. He met her while working as a math tutor at Mathnasium, a business on Whiskey Road.

Within a month of tutoring the girl at Mathnasium, things started to turn inappropriate, according to ADPS Capt. Maryann Burgess. Warden asked her to meet him at pre-arranged locations, such as the library parking lot, where he would sit in his car, give her alcohol and put his hands on her in an inappropriate way.

Warden, 45, also asked the girl to take sexually provocative pictures of herself, Capt. Burgess said.

“You can’t do that to a minor. You can’t ask for pictures that are revealing in nature,” Capt. Burgess said. “We did not find that she had given him any.”

The tutor also asked the victim for oral sex, the captain said.

Finally, the girl told her mother what was happening at a time when she was supposed to be meeting Warden for tutoring. The girl’s mother contacted the public safety department about three weeks ago, and an investigation led to warrants.

Investigators went to Warden’s home on Friday, but his wife said he was out of town. Once the wife contacted her husband, Warden returned to Aiken and surrendered to police. Warden’s wife was unaware of the warrants or the allegations, Capt. Burgess said.

It appears Warden was tutoring other young girls through the Whiskey Road business, and police are investigating to make sure nothing inappropriate happened with those girls. Officials at Mathnasium have been cooperative, Capt. Burgess said.

While none one the allegations involve Aiken High School, school officials are aware of his arrest, the captain said. His status was not immediately clear.

News of his arrest spread quickly Friday once AugustaCrime.com posted his mugshot on our Facebook page. Many of those sharing his mugshot wrote about having Warden as a teacher and watching him chase students down the hallway for their badge or for wearing headphones.

“Math is hard enough without having a d*** as a teacher,” said one Facebook post. “Karma got this one honey. Sit back and enjoy.”

The suspect is still listed as a teacher on the AHS website, and it includes this biography written by Warden:

“I have my BS in Ceramic Engineering from Clemson University (GO TIGERS), and my MBA from the University of Utah (GO UTES).  After many years working as an engineer and operations manager in industry, I continually found myself having to teach operators basic math skills to be able to perform their job effectively.  I got tired of having to help after the fact, so I decided to start teaching High School Math and correct the issues of students not knowing math before they became problems.

A lot of students HATE math – mainly because it was taught in a way that they don’t understand the information.  My philosophy is that MATH IS EASY — if it wasn’t easy, I couldn’t do it.  I want to help all students learn how to love and embrace math, and how to navigate through any problems thrown their way.”

For more crime news, pick up this week’s copy of The Jail Report, sold in local gas stations.

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Talk about tricky. This man and woman used a banana produce code to get a case of crab legs at the self-checkout line of the Martinez Kroger.

The incident occurred in May, and authorities say they used an EBT card registered to this woman, Pamela Johnson (pictured).  But Columbia County authorities have checked all addresses for her and haven’t been able to find her.

Can you help? Do you know where Pamela Johnson’s is living? Do you recognize this man?

If you can help, please call the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office at 706-541-2800.

The post They Used a Cheap Banana Code to Pay for Crab Legs! appeared first on AugustaCrime.com - Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken County Jail - Reports & Mugshots.

Columbia County authorities had no problem finding a Harlem man who ran from a traffic stop Friday night in Grovetown.

Jack Woodrow Myers was found in the swimming pool at the Holiday Inn Express on Jimmy Dyess Parkway.

   This is one of the many crime stories in this week’s edition of The Jail Report, sold at local gas stations for $1.50.

Myers, 36, told deputies that he ran from the traffic stop because he didn’t have a license. When he bolted from the car, he left behind his fiancé, who quickly informed deputies who the man was.

Myers had been stopped at the Dairy Queen for a suspended registration and no valid insurance. Before deputies could step to his car, he had bolted out the driver’s door and ran toward Cracker Barrel.

Soon enough, officers found him “in the swimming pool,” where he confessed to being the driver. The wet suspect was charged with driving while unlicensed, no insurance and obstruction.

Myers also had an active warrant for Burke County.

The post Man Runs from Grovetown Traffic Stop, Found in Hotel Pool appeared first on AugustaCrime.com - Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken County Jail - Reports & Mugshots.

   A shirtless, tattooed man drove off in a man’s car at the Graniteville Road Quick Mart last Tuesday morning as the owner paid for gas.

Chester Parker, 31, of Aiken, was arrested a day later and charged with grand larceny, receiving stolen goods and driving under suspension, an Aiken County Sheriff’s report said.

   This is one of many stories in this week’s issue of The Jail Report. Pick up your copy today at local gas stations.

Parker drove the Ford Fusion to his cousin’s house on Connector Road. A woman at the house said Parker came over in a panic and demanded a change of clothes and her truck, the report said.

The woman told Parker that she couldn’t have the truck but her boyfriend would give him a ride. The two men left and then she saw her boyfriend walking back. He told her that he didn’t want to ride with Parker and gave him her truck, the report said.

Last Wednesday, a man spotted Parker driving the Fusion on Firewood Lane and knew he wasn’t supposed to have the car. The man followed Parker who ditched the vehicle. He was arrested shortly after, the report said.

The post Half-Naked Aiken Man Steals Car at Gas Pump appeared first on AugustaCrime.com - Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken County Jail - Reports & Mugshots.

 This man is known to purchase cartons of cigarettes using counterfeit credit cards.

The subject has been seen in a white Dodge Charger, a silver Chrysler 200 and a dark colored Lincoln Navigator.

The Columbia County Sheriff’s Office needs assistance in identifying this subject in reference to credit card fraud.

Please contact Investigator Randy Chambers with any information on his identity at 706-541-2800.

For more crime news, pick up this week’s edition of The Jail Report, sold in local gas stations for $1.50. The paper also features entertainment, such as jokes, word find puzzle, 6-differences puzzle, cartoon and more. 

The post CCSO: Man Buys Cigarettes with Fake Credit Cards appeared first on AugustaCrime.com - Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken County Jail - Reports & Mugshots.

The Richmond County School District is refusing to release any information on an apparent violent episode at Murphey Middle School this week.

Their silence comes despite reports that a large 11-year-old girl was pepper-sprayed at the Augusta school this week after attacking a teacher and a school resource officer. WGAC’s Austin Rhodes is quoting sources in his report that the girl went crazy at school and attacked a teacher who was smaller than she was and then attacked a school resource officer who tried to help.

The SRO then used pepper-spray on the girl to stop the pupil’s attack, Rhodes reported.

In response to the reports of violence, spokeswoman Kaden Jacobs refused to tell The Augusta Chronicle anything about the incident or provide any details. Jacobs reportedly claims that the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act prevents him from saying anything because the district must protect “the privacy of education information and records,” the newspaper reported.

The Jail Report believes that the school district cannot be barred from releasing details on the incident as long as they redact the name of the juvenile. Parents and the community have a right to know if violence is occurring at their school.

What do you think?

The post Augusta Girl, 11 Attacks Murphey Teacher & Officer; School Officials Stay Silent appeared first on AugustaCrime.com - Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken County Jail - Reports & Mugshots.

A 10-year-old autistic girl was sexually assaulted in the woods by a stranger Wednesday while walking near Ridge Crossing Apartments, authorities said.

A vehicle of interest has been identified as a Grey 4-door Saturn Ion (shown here) driven by a light skinned black male, approximately 5’09”, in his 20’s, with shoulder length twisted hair, with red or orange tips, authorities said.

According to a report, the girl returned home acting hysterical and upset. She told her mother that “a stranger did something bad to her.” The girl said the man grabbed her hands and led her into the woods near her friend’s house. She told her mother that she ran away from him and came straight home.

Authorities say they have no reason to believe the autistic girl was not telling the truth.

The post Autistic Girl, 10, Sexually Assaulted by Stranger in Martinez Woods appeared first on AugustaCrime.com - Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken County Jail - Reports & Mugshots.

A Richmond County deputy was arrested for misdemeanor battery and trespassing Saturday morning after a domestic dispute, authorities said.

Deputy Danafrey Alvin Clanton, 28, was immediately placed on administrative leave pending an internal affairs investigation, sheriff’s Lt. Allan Rollins said in a press release.

Just after 3 a.m. Saturday, deputies responded to a residence on the 3500 block of Crawfordville Drive in reference to a domestic disturbance. They found off-duty Deputy Danafrey Clanton had been the primary aggressor in the dispute and left the residence prior to deputies arriving.

“Deputy Clanton was discovered in a neighbor’s back yard, was taken into custody and committed to the Charles B. Webster Detention Center,” Lt. Rollins said in the press release. “Deputy Clanton is charged with Misdemeanor Battery under the Family Violence Act and Misdemeanor criminal trespass.”

The Jail Report has asked the sheriff’s office for the full incident report in the case and the officer’s history with the agency.

There are Facebook videos of Clanton at the police academy undergoing training in pepper spray and tasers. View them by clicking here.

Check back here for more…

The post RCSO Deputy Arrested for Battery, Placed on Leave appeared first on AugustaCrime.com - Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken County Jail - Reports & Mugshots.

An Augusta mother left her 6-month-old baby in a running car Saturday evening while she went shopping at Walmart, authorities said.

Ebone Monique Madison, 22, left the baby girl alone in a car seat in the back of a 2013 Chevrolet Impala with the keys in the ignition and the car running. A 59-year-0ld Martinez woman spotted the child in the car around 8:50 p.m. Saturday and calls 911.

Deputies responded to the Wrightsboro Road store and found the baby crying very loudly. According to a sheriff’s report, the air conditioning was set on low while the temperature outside was 88 degrees with a heat index of 97.

Soon, Madison returned and claimed she had gone in the store for a few minutes to get medicine for her 2 year old and razors for herself. But the witness said she was out there at least five minutes before the officers even arrived on scene.

Deputies notified the Department of Family and Children Services while paramedics came and checked the victim, who “appeared to be OK,” a report says.

The child was turned over to her father and Madison was arrested and charged with deprivation of a minor.

The post Augusta Mom Leaves Baby in Car to Shop at Walmart appeared first on AugustaCrime.com - Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken County Jail - Reports & Mugshots.

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Two students at Evans High School are in serious trouble after a classmate overheard them talking about “shooting up the school,” authorities said.

Nathan Harding, 18, and Kaleb Smith, 18, were identified as the two students. Both students are in a special needs class at Evans High School. They have not been charged because the case is ongoing.

For more crime news, pick up this week’s edition of The Jail Report, sold in local gas stations for $1.50.

“While in school Tuesday, Harding made a comment to Smith that the lunch line would be a perfect opportunity for a school shooting,” sheriff’s Capt. Steve Morris said.

A classmate told his mother about the comment. The mother works as a dispatcher for the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office and filed a report.

Homes of both students were searched, Capt. Morris said.

“No weapons or any evidence whatsoever to support a threat was discovered. Both have been suspended from school,” he said.

Deputies are currently at Evans High School and will remain there throughout the day.

Charges are pending, Capt. Morris said.

The post Evans High School Students Investigated for Shooting Comment appeared first on AugustaCrime.com - Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken County Jail - Reports & Mugshots.

A convicted thief serving time at the Augusta State Medical Prison was caught trying to escape the Grovetown facility, authorities said.

Mario Ernesto Rodriquez-Ramirez, 31, was charged last week with felony escape.

According to a warrant, the inmate tried to scale an inner security fence at 10:45 in the morning. He didn’t make it.

   The inmate has only been in the prison since October and has an estimated release date in 2018 for theft-related crimes in Cobb County. That release date is likely to change with the new charge.

For more crime news, pick up this week’s edition of The Jail Report, sold in local gas stations for $1.50.

The post Escape Fail – Inmate Tries to Scale Fence at Augusta State Medical Prison appeared first on AugustaCrime.com - Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken County Jail - Reports & Mugshots.

A North Augusta man was charged Tuesday with distributing child pornography, authorities said.

Derrick Jonathon Donchez, 33, is facing 12 charges connected to sexual exploitation of minors. The Aiken County Sheriff’s Department, a member of the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force, made the arrest. The Aiken Department of Public Safety, also a member of the ICAC Task Force, assisted in the arrest.

For more crime news, pick up this week’s copy of The Jail Report, sold in local gas stations for $1.50.

• 3 counts of Sexual Exploitation of a Minor, Second Degree (§16-15-405), a felony offense punishable by up to 10 years imprisonment on each count
• 9 counts of Sexual Exploitation of a Minor, Third Degree (§16-15-410), a felony offense punishable by up to ten (10) years imprisonment on each count.

The post North Augusta Man Arrested on Child Pornography Charges  appeared first on AugustaCrime.com - Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken County Jail - Reports & Mugshots.

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COLUMBIA COUNTY, GA. – A Harlem man died early Sunday after climbing on the roof of a fast-moving SUV being driven by a drunk friend and then falling off, authorities said.

Tyler Crawford, 25 (pictured at right and sitting on truck above), climbed out the window and onto the roof of the 1994 Jeep Cherokee while his drunk friend was driving on Poplar Springs Church Road approximately 40-50 mph down the dirt road, sheriff’s Maj. Steve Morris said.

“The vehicle began to negotiate a curve to enter the private driveway of Poplar Springs Church when Tyler Crawford fell from the vehicle onto the dirt roadway striking his head,” Maj. Morris said in a press release.

Crawford later died.

The driver, 18-year-old Jackson Pentecost of Thomson (pictured at right), stopped to check on Crawford and then left to take the vehicle back to his residence in McDuffie County. The passenger, 19-year-old William Myers of Thomson, stayed with Crawford until the driver returned. Crawford was transported to Doctors Hospital and later transferred to Augusta University Medical Center where he died.

Alcohol is a factor in the accident and the Pentecost has been taken into custody for DUI, vehicular homicide, giving false statements, reckless driving, and multiple other equipment offenses.

Myers (pictured at right) was taken into custody and charged with giving false statements and minor in possession of alcohol.

According to Maj. Morris, there was another vehicle following the Jeep Cherokee at the time of the accident that witnessed the accident. The driver of that vehicle is 17-year-old Kollin Houston and a juvenile passenger who was charged with minor in possession of alcohol.

Crawford’s Facebook page says he works as a teaching assistant at Augusta University and studies organic chemistry.

His family were remembering him on Facebook Sunday.

“Today was the worst day of my life.” wrote his brother, Cooper Crawford. “I lost my buddy, my best friend, my brother. Rip Tyler Crawford. I love you more than you know.”

Note: If you have a better photo of Tyler or a memory to share, please text it to 803-487-3224.

The post Harlem Man Dies in Horseplay Accident; Friend Charged with DUI appeared first on AugustaCrime.com - Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken County Jail - Reports & Mugshots.

Here are some easy answers to help explain the meaning of Tuesday’s federal indictment against North Augusta’s Irish Travelers.

Q: WHAT ARE THEY ACCUSED OF DOING?

A. The indictment says they:

• Got food stamps by putting phony income and work information on the applications.
• Received Medicaid assistance by lying about their income and employment on health insurance applications.
• Rolled back the odometers on their vehicles before trading or selling them to minimize mileage under lease agreements.
• Signed up for life insurance using bad information about their health and the financial status.
• Laundered money to hide the source of it.

For more crime news, pick up this week’s issue of The Jail Report, sold in local gas stations for $1.50. This week’s issue features arrest information from all local counties and crime stories from each area. The issue also includes jokes, fun with captions, a word find puzzle and a question-and-answer column with Richmond County Sheriff Richard Roundtree.

Q: WHO HAS BEEN INDICTED?

A. The names of the defendants are: Hannah Carroll, Rose Mulholland, Kim Mulholland, Caroline Sherlock, Catherine Carroll, Anthony Carroll, Johnny M. Sherlock, Mary Rita Sherlock, Leslie Ann Sherlock, Jimmy J. Carroll, Mary Costello, Mary Gorman Carroll, Jimmy Gorman, Leslie C. Gorman, Renee Carroll, Rose S. Mulholland, Susan Sherlock, Tommy Sherlock, William Caroll, Johnny Mack, Leonard New and Angela Askew.

Q: ARE THESE THE ONES WITH THE FANCY HOUSES IN NORTH AUGUSTA?

The post Indictment of The Irish Travelers – The Accusations, History & Names appeared first on AugustaCrime.com - Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken County Jail - Reports & Mugshots.

A Grovetown public safety officer has been fired after a sergeant found him drunk on the job, according to Chief Scott Wheatley.

Officer Kevin McDonald was fired last week after working at the agency for just a few months.

For more crime news, pick up this week’s edition of The Jail Report, sold in local gas stations for $1.50.

McDonald’s firing comes after a sergeant smelled alcohol on the officer’s breath as he worked on paperwork at 6:30 a.m. on Friday, Aug. 5. The sergeant called in Chief Wheatley. Officer McDonald then took a breathalyzer, which registered .087 BAC.

“We don’t tolerate that kind of behavior at our agency,” Chief Wheatley said.

Ironically, McDonald was finishing up paperwork from a DUI arrest he had made that morning, and that is when the sergeant smelled alcohol on his breath. It wasn’t clear whether the officer had driven drunk, but he had operated his patrol vehicle during his shift, which began at 6 p.m. on Aug. 4.

McDonald was immediately placed on administrative leave that Friday and then fired the next Monday. The officer had previously worked at the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office and the Richmond County Marshal’s Office.

The post Grovetown Officer is Found Drunk on the Job! appeared first on AugustaCrime.com - Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken County Jail - Reports & Mugshots.

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A woman who locked herself out of Evans Rehabilitation Services last week took a secret dump on the sidewalk outside the facility, according to a Columbia County sheriff’s report.

The woman had apparently left the building without her purse and locked herself out at 4 a.m. Tuesday, the report says. She began banging and kicking on the door without success. A deputy arrived and tried to make contact with a facility employee, but another patron eventually showed up and let the woman back inside. While there, the deputy and the other patron noticed human feces on the sidewalk outside the business, located at 415 Town Park Boulevard.

Later, a facility employee was reviewing surveillance footage and watched as the locked-out woman pulled down her pants and defecated on the sidewalk. The guilty woman was present when the deputy noticed the human poop.

“(She) never mentioned to them that it was her that defecated,” the deputy said in his report. “I made contact with (the woman) at her residence who stated she was so nervous she could not help herself.”

The woman was not arrested, but the facility supervisor asked deputies to order the woman to stay away from the rehabilitation service, the report says.

The narrative from the actual CCSO report:

For more crazy news from the CSRA, pick up this week’s edition of The Jail Report, sold in local gas stations for $1.50

The post Caught on Camera – Woman Poops on Sidewalk in Evans appeared first on AugustaCrime.com - Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken County Jail - Reports & Mugshots.

   Veteran law enforcement officer Michael Raffield is challenging Edgefield County Sheriff Adell Dobey in the November election, telling residents that the current sheriff has failed to lead and lied to residents about what he would accomplish.

In an open letter to residents published on EdgefieldDaily.com, Raffield says he will be challenging Dobey in three debates between now and Nov. 8. He is not sure if the sheriff will agree to appear.

But the Republican challenger’s lengthy letter contains many attacks on Democrat Sheriff Dobey, especially concerning the current sheriff’s handling of the case of missing woman Tammy Kingery.

From his letter: “It will be my objective to revamp our Reserve Deputy Program by increasing the number of ready reserves, and adding another level of reserve that can aid in situations that do not involve potential violence, i.e. missing person’s cases. Additionally, I would solicit volunteers to start a Reserve Horse Patrol Program because of our county’s rich supply of equestrian activity and due to the geography of the county, which makes a program feasible and necessary. As your sheriff, I would task the members of the newly formed programs with assisting in locating missing persons and like incidents that require covering areas best suited by horseback, four-wheelers and foot.

   “Nothing could be more relevant to this discussion than the missing lady from the Merriweather area that occurred in July of this year. In this incident there was no communication or cooperation from law enforcement with the local Fire Department, or local community members. In this incident, citizens and the Fire Department found the lady after the Sheriff’s Office failed to notify the Fire Department or continue an adequate search until the lady was located. 

   “This incident is similar to other missing person cases that were not properly supervised by the Sheriff. In times of missing persons, it is the responsibility of law enforcement’s top law enforcement official to do everything within their power to safely return the missing person to their family, or in cases of tragedy, locate the victim so the family can experience closure in time. 

   “The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division, SLED, was not called in to assist with the missing lady, Tammy Kingery, until late into the investigation and because outside influences forced Sheriff Dobey to (accept) help due to his inability to solve the case. However, with any serious investigation time is of the essence and failing to use all resources and the state agency, SLED, is a complete failure in leadership. SLED continually advises Police Chiefs and Sheriffs to call them immediately when dealing with missing person so they can aid in the investigation during the initial hours of the investigation and bring in specialized equipment such as their aviation team.” 

His letter also attacks Sheriff Dobey for lying about the formation of a community advistory board.

From the letter: “It is important that the community has a true voice regarding their law enforcement’s culture, therefore, I will immediately form a community advisory board. I know that Sheriff Dobey previously stated in an interview that he would form a community advisory board but he did not, but I am a man of my word and will solicit membership within the first week of office. This concept is more important today than ever with the current crisis we are seeing across the nation.”

Raffield has most recently  served as police chief of Ridge Spring Police Department and has previous experience working with as an officer with the North Augusta Department of Public Safety, a federal air marshal, shift supervisor at the Edgefield County Sheriff’s Office and a few positions at the Saluda County Sheriff’s Office.

He is married with two children who attend public school within Edgefield County.

Visit Raffield’s Facebook page by CLICKING HERE.

For more crime news, pick up this week’s edition of The Jail Report.

The post Edgefield County Sheriff’s Candidate Says Dobey Has Failed to Lead appeared first on AugustaCrime.com - Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken County Jail - Reports & Mugshots.