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A man training to become a deputy with the Richland County Sheriff’s Department was arrested for having a sexual relationship with a 5-year-old, according to an arrest warrant.
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Kenneth Edmonds, 38, was charged Friday with criminal sexual conduct with a minor following an investigation by the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division, according to a news release.
On Thursday, SLED notified the department that warrants had been secured for Edmonds, spurring the department to fire the 38-year-old, the release said.
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Investigators say between February 2025 and May 2026, Edmonds engaged in sexual relations with the child. Evidence against the former trainee was corroborated by a forensic interview of the child.
“I am disgusted that someone entrusted to wear this uniform could commit such a reprehensible offense,” Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott said in the release.
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Edmonds had been employed with the department since January.