Attorney General Alan Wilson announces guilty plea and prison sentence for Greenville Co. man for sex crimes against children

(COLUMBIA, S.C.) – South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson announced that, on April 3^rd, Grant Herman, 57, pleaded guilty to Sexual Exploitation of a Minor, Third Degree, and Assault and Battery First Degree in Greenville County before the Honorable Judge William C. McMaster, III.

The investigation of Herman began after an online service provider reported files of child sexual abuse material being placed on its platform. The subscriber information led investigators to Herman’s home in Greenville County. On August 8, 2024, an investigator and other deputies of the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office executed a search warrant on Herman’s home. On-scene forensics located additional files of child sexual abuse material. While being interviewed, Herman admitted to fondling two children. Investigators immediately pivoted the investigation into a sexual assault investigation, locating and interviewing the victims and coordinating with prosecutors. The victims confirmed that at a separate Greenville County address in 2021, Herman had entered their bedroom and sexually touched them. 

Herman was sentenced to the maximum of 10 years in prison on both charges, which will run concurrently. He will have to register as a sex offender upon release, and he forfeited his electronics. The judge also issued a permanent restraining order barring future contact with the victims. 

Assistant Attorney General Stephen Ryan prosecuted the case for the state.