Attorney General Alan Wilson announces caregiver charged with abusing vulnerable adult

(COLUMBIA, S.C.) – South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson announced that his office’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit (SCMFCU) has arrested Keontae O. Gaddist.

Gaddist, 22 years old, of Ladson, SC, was charged with Abuse of a Vulnerable Adult {43-35-0085(B)} and Second Degree Assault and Battery. Gaddist was booked into the Berkeley County Detention Center on September 7, 2022.

A joint investigation by the Berkeley County Sheriff’s Department and the SCMFCU revealed that on or about April 13, 2022, while working as a caregiver in a residential care facility, Gaddist inflicted abuse on an intellectually and physically disabled victim. Specifically, it is alleged that Gaddist struck the victim in the face, which resulted in the victim seeking medical attention for a ‘nasal bone fracture’ and an ‘orbital contusion.’ This incident occurred at Berkeley Citizens in Monks Corner, a residential care facility serving those with intellectual developmental disabilities and autism. The victim, a vulnerable adult under South Carolina law, resided at the facility during the time of the alleged misconduct.

A family member of the victim reported the incident, which will be prosecuted by the Attorney General’s Office.

Abuse of a Vulnerable Adult is a felony and, upon conviction, has a penalty of imprisonment of not more than five years. Second Degree Assault and Battery is a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, has a penalty of a fine of not more than $2,500, or imprisonment of not more than three years, or both.

Pursuant to federal regulations, the SCMFCU has authority over Medicaid provider fraud; abuse and neglect of Medicaid beneficiaries in any setting; and the abuse, neglect, and exploitation of individuals residing in assisted living facilities or nursing homes. 

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

The SCMFCU receives 75 percent of its funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under a grant award totaling $1,927,636 for the 2022 Federal fiscal year. The remaining 25 percent, totaling $642,544 for FY 2022, is funded by South Carolina.