Lexington County Men Arrested on Child Pornography Charges

(COLUMBIA, S.C.) - Oct. 25, 2019 - South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson announced the arrest of Henry Richard Leeder, Jr., age 55, of Gilbert, SC, and Randy Carroll Rawl, age 54, of Gilbert, SC, on 13 total charges connected to the sexual exploitation of minors. Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force investigators with the Lexington County Sheriff's Office made the arrests.  

Investigators state both men encouraged a minor to produce and send sexually explicit images, solicited sex from a minor and engaged in criminal sexual conduct with a minor.

Leeder was arrested on October 23, 2019. He is charged with one count of criminal sexual conduct with a minor, second degree (§16-3-655(b)); four counts of criminal solicitation of a minor (§16-15-342), a felony offense punishable by up to 10 years imprisonment on each count; one count of sexual exploitation of a minor, first degree (§16-15-395), a felony offense punishable by up to 20 years imprisonment; and one count of disseminating obscene material to a person under age twelve (§16-15-355), a felony offense punishable by up to 15 years imprisonment.

Rawl was arrested on October 23 , 2019. He is charged with one count of criminal sexual conduct with a minor, second degree (§16-3-655(b)); two counts of criminal solicitation of a minor (§16-15-342), a felony offense punishable by up to 10 years imprisonment on each count; one count of sexual exploitation of a minor, first degree (§16-15-395), a felony offense punishable by up to 20 years imprisonment; and two 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.

These cases will be prosecuted by the Attorney General's Office.

Attorney General Wilson stressed all defendants are presumed innocent unless and until they are proven guilty in a court of law.