2 men arrested in Gordon County on same day on child molestation charges
The Gordon County Sheriff’s Office made arrests in two separate child molestation cases Monday.
Brian Thomas Pierce, 36, and Lloyd Mikel Pelt Jr., 40, were both booked into the county’s jail on multiple felony charges for incidents involving underage girls, the sheriff’s office confirmed.
On Dec. 9, a Gordon County deputy responded to Gordon Hospital after a report of child abuse, according to an incident report obtained by AJC.com. The victim said Pierce had abused her physically and verbally at two addresses in the county.
The deputy was told that Pierce is a veteran with “severe PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder).” He allegedly beat the girl when she was 9 years old with a shoe, covering her in bruises.
He continued to periodically beat her, including several instances this September, October and December, the report said. Those allegations include choking, slaps across the face and grabbing.
In addition, Pierce is accused of calling the girl “ugly and stupid,” several epithets and threatening to shave her head, the report said.
The abuse led the child to cause harm to herself, which was noticed at her school, the report said. A suicide note was found at some point, and the Division of Family and Children Services (DFCS) was notified.
Pierce told the deputy that the girl “plays and acts that she is scared” whenever she gets in trouble, and he said he is “not ashamed” to spank her, the report said.
He also admitted to threatening to shoot the girl’s cellphone with a shotgun on one occasion before she jumped in front of the gun, the report said.
After the deputy contacted DFCS, the girl’s extended family was given temporary custody, the report said.
When deputies followed up the next day with the new legal guardians, they were told that the girl told them that Pierce had inappropriately touched and fondled her when she was 11 on several occasions, another incident report said.
The incidents led to Pierce’s arrest on counts of child molestation, sexual battery against a child and cruelty to children.
On Dec. 4, Gordon County investigators were contacted by the Murray County Sheriff’s Office about Pelt possibly molesting a girl over the previous month, according to an incident report. He’s accused of molesting the girl as she was “getting dressed to go to church” on one incident.
Murray County’s DFCS office was notified about the incidents, which took place at a house off Nickelsville Road, the report said. The location is just across the Gordon-Murray county border. Pelt was arrested on charges of aggravated sexual battery and child molestation.
AJC.com is withholding the suspects’ relationships to the victims in order to protect their identity.
In other news:
About the Author
Zachary Hansen, a Georgia native, covers economic development and commercial real estate for the AJC. He's been with the newspaper since 2018 and enjoys diving into complex stories that affect people's lives.
