Ex Christian school employee charged with 22 new sex crimes involving minors, SC cops say

A former employee at a Christian school in South Carolina faces more than 20 new charges for committing sex crimes involving minors, the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office said.

Andre Girard Johnson, who used to be a coach at Sumter Christian School, was charged Wednesday with 11 counts of first-degree sexual exploitation of a minor, 10 counts of second-degree sexual exploitation of a minor, in addition to single counts of disseminating obscene material to a person under 18, third-degree assault and battery, and incest, the sheriff’s office said in a news release.

In April, Johnson was charged with criminal solicitation of a minor after he sent texts with sexual messages and pornographic images to a juvenile student, according to the sheriff’s office.

That charge prompted a weeks-long investigation by the sheriff’s office, which uncovered more crimes and led to the new charges.

Two juveniles were the victims of the crimes that spurred the new charges, according to the release.

“Currently, investigators are not aware of additional victims,” the sheriff’s office said.

How it started

On March 15, the school’s administration contacted law enforcement and reported that Johnson was sending inappropriate text messages to the victim, who is a juvenile enrolled at the school, according to the sheriff’s office. The victim’s age was not available.

School officials told a deputy that the victim said she reported the text messages because they made her feel uneasy. The deputy also learned that the messages included Johnson expressing that he wished to have sex with the individual, as well as pornographic images, the sheriff’s office said.

Johnson surrendered to deputies and was released from the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office Detention Center after posting a $5,000 surety bond, according to the sheriff’s office.

Once the initial charge was filed, Johnson was terminated by the school, a Sumter Christian spokesman told The State.

Recent developments

When faced with the new charges Tuesday, Johnson again surrendered to deputies and was taken to the county jail, according to the release.

That same day, Johnson posted a $28,500 surety bond on the combined charges and was released, the sheriff’s office said. He’s scheduled to appear in court again on June 21, Sumter County judicial records show.

“Of the many cases our investigators work, the crimes against the most vulnerable in our society, like children, are always the hardest,” Sheriff Anthony Dennis said in the release.

Johnson is not listed on the South Carolina sex offender registry.

More arrests

This is at least the third time an employee of a Sumter County school has been charged with sex crimes involving minors since mid March.

On April 6, Crestwood High School girls basketball coach Tony Wilson, 54, was charged with third-degree assault and battery, criminal sexual conduct with a minor, two counts of unlawful dissemination of obscene material to a person under 18, and two counts of criminal solicitation of a minor, the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office said.

Wilson was taken to the county jail and was later released on a $75,000 bond, the sheriff’s office said. A Sumter County School District spokeswoman said that Wilson resigned on April 6.

On May 12, Lakewood High School teacher and coach Peter Roderick Calhoun Jr. was arrested on a sex crime charge that involved a student, the Sumter Police Department said.

The 57-year-old Simpsonville resident, who police said was involved an “inappropriate, sexual relationship” with a student, was charged with sexual battery with a student 18 years of age or older where there is direct supervisory authority (no aggravated force or coercion), Sumter County court records show.

An investigation began in early May after officers responded to an indecent exposure call in Sumter that involved Calhoun and a female, later identified as a student, police said. During their investigation, officers learned there were multiple encounters between Calhoun and the student, according to police.

Calhoun, who began working at the school in August 2022, was placed on administrative leave, school district spokesperson Shelly Galloway previously told The State.