A jailer in South Carolina is being held at the same facility where he once worked and now finds himself facing a facing a first degree felony charge for engaging in criminal sexual conduct with an 8-year-old minor.
Pickens County correctional officer 50-year-old Raymond Wade Whitmire has been charged with Criminal Sexual Conduct with a Minor in the First Degree for assaulting the child, according to WLTX.
The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division said Whitmire committed the crimes in February, arrested him on Friday and charged him for sexual conduct with a minor under 11-years-old.
Statements given by a witness support the sexual abuse claim by the victim, according the Whitmire’s arrest warrant.
A medical examination also showed evidence supporting the abuse, the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division said.
The 8-year-old victim also gave a statement to authorities, detailing the abuse.
In South Carolina, criminal sexual conduct with a minor under 11 years of age is punishable by a minimum of 25 years in prison with no possibility for probation or a suspended sentence.
A judge can also sentence the offender to life in prison for the crime, according to the Charlotte Observer.
In South Carolina, aperson commits a first degree felony for engaging in sexual conduct with a minor under 11 years old if:
(A) A person is guilty of criminal sexual conduct with a minor in the first degree if:
(1) the actor engages in sexual battery with a victim who is less than eleven years of age; or
(2) the actor engages in sexual battery with a victim who is less than sixteen years of age and the actor has previously been convicted of, pled guilty or nolo contendere to, or adjudicated delinquent for an offense listed in Section 23-3-430(C) or has been ordered to be included in the sex offender registry pursuant to Section 23-3-430(D).
