By Ron Barnett
PICKENS, SC — A Pickens city
police officer has been arrested on child neglect charges, after
methamphetamine was found in his home, according to warrants.
Christopher Aaron Gilbert, 35,
of 385 Duncan Road, Travelers Rest, was charged by the Greenville County
Sheriff’s Office with three counts of unlawful neglect of a child or helpless
person, according to arrest warrants.
The warrants say
methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia were found in the room where Gilbert and
his 14-month-old child sleep. They also say a loaded handgun was in the floor
of the same room.
Investigators with the
sheriff’s vice and narcotics unit went to Gilbert’s home, along with agents
from the state Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services, after an
anonymous tip about drug use involving children, according to Deputy Drew
Pinciaro.
“Vice and narcotics
investigators observed methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia in plain view,”
he said. “At that point, a search warrant was obtained for the residence.”
Gilbert was in a bedroom
asleep, Pinciaro said.
Two women who live there,
Meghan Leaghia Tesner, 22, and Maranda Jeanette Dickerson, 26, were charged
with possession of less than one gram of meth and three counts of neglect of a
child.
Tesner is the mother of
Gilbert’s 14-month-old child, and Gilbert also and two other children, ages 11
and 13, who live there, according to Pinciaro.
Investigators with the
Greenville County Crimes Against Children unit assisted in the case, and the
children were placed with an alternative caregiver by the state Department of
Social Services, Pinciaro said.
Gilbert was terminated from the
Pickens Police Department for violation of city policy, Police Chief Rodney D.
Gregory said in a statement.
“It was determined that Officer
Gilbert was in violation for lack of good judgment pertaining to his personal
life which reasonably could create concern and affect the reputation of the
city, employees and the community,” Gregory said.
According to Greenville County
Detention Center records, Gilbert was being held Friday on a $10,000 bond.
