By Advertiser Staff – A deputy with the Edgefield County Sheriff’s Office found a naked, white male wandering on Martintown Rd. in the evening hours of Wed., Feb. 6.  According to a report filed by the ECSO, the 31 year old North Augusta man had initially been spotted at a residence on Martintown Rd. where the homeowner reported that when she looked from her home to see at what her dogs were barking, she saw the unclothed man coming into her yard from the creek area carrying a child on his shoulders.

The man approached the home and told the woman that his jeep was sunk and that he needed water because he was dehydrated.  He then located the homeowner’s water hose and proceeded to “hose the child down.”  After soaking the child, the suspect moved to the porch area of the house and began to undress the child.

The man’s odd behavior continued from there as he then found an extension ladder and proceeded to take it apart before finally discarding it.  The suspect then used a log caddy to hit the home’s glass door in an apparent attempt to gain entry into the house.  Being unsuccessful in this attempt, the man’s attention returned to the child where, at this point, the incident report states, the suspect “began to yell at the child while rocking her and rolling around in the driveway with her in his arms.”  From there the man continued down Martintown Rd.

When the ECSO deputy located the man, the deputy instructed him to stop, but the man refused and continued to walk in the direction of North Augusta.

According to the report, at this point the deputy heard crying from a nearby ditch.  He found the two year old standing unclothed in a ditch near the highway.  The deputy immediately attended to the child, wrapping his jacket around her to protect her from the near 45° temperature.  As another deputy arrived on the scene to deal with the naked man, the deputy placed the child in his patrol car for protection.

EMS was called to the scene to assess the toddler who had no apparent injuries.  The child’s mother, who is from Evans, GA, was located, and the child was released into her custody.

The suspect was transported from the scene to a hospital in Augusta, GA.  He is facing charges for child endangerment and indecent exposure.