Dowelltown Man Charged with Statutory Rape

An 18 year old Dowelltown man has been charged with the statutory rape of a 14 year old girl.
Paul D. Gilliam is under a $10,000 bond and he will be in court July 26.
Sheriff Patrick Ray said that Gilliam is alleged to have had sexual intercourse on four or five occasions with a 14 year old female at her home on Dale Ridge Road and with her consent. The offense allegedly occurred on May 30.
The case was referred to the sheriff’s department and investigated by criminal detectives. Gilliam was arrested on July 11 and brought to the jail.
34 year old Lavar Kinte Bass of Smithville and 30 year old Halton Wayne Hicks of Smithville are charged with having contraband (a cell phone) in a penal institution. Bond for each is $10,000 and they will be in court July 19.
Sheriff Ray said that on Tuesday July 10, both Bass and Hicks had a cell phone in their possession inside a jail cell, where prisoners were held. An officer spotted Bass with the phone on video surveillance. Bass then passed the phone to Hicks. Officers confronted Hicks about the phone and he retrieved it from his body cavity.
Three people have been charged with trying to steal an air conditioner from a residence on Belk Road.
24 year old Brittney Danielle Barnes of Belk Road; 23 year old Brandon Matthew Byford of Bell Street Smithville; and 25 year old Memory Danielle Staggs of Jennings Lane, Smithville are each charged with theft of property under $500. Bond for each is $1,500 and they will be in court on July 26.
According to Sheriff Ray, Staggs, Byford, and Barnes arrived at the home on Friday, July 13th, the residence of Barnes’ family. Staggs drove and Byford and Barnes were passengers of the vehicle.
Sheriff Ray said that as Barnes went into the house to speak with her relatives in an effort to distract them, Staggs and Byford removed an air conditioner from the home and placed it in their car. But when the residents speaking with Barnes heard noise coming from their garage, they went to investigate and discovered the theft. They reported the incident to the sheriff’s department and the three were arrested.
32 year old Jeremy Edward Woodard of Smithville is charged with criminal impersonation. His bond is $1,500 and he will be in court July 19.
Sheriff Ray said that a drug detective of the sheriff’s department confronted Woodard about a warrant against him on Monday, July 9 at the Tractor Supply store in Smithville. Woodard identified himself as Claude A. Johnson and gave a different social security number than his own. He later admitted that his name was Jeremy E. Woodard. He was placed under arrest and brought to the jail.