Deputies arrested for inmate assault; Roundtree sets press conference

Gerardo Sanchez Jr., 28, left, and Joshua Jackson, 21, right.

Date: February 28, 2023

Two Richmond County deputies have been arrested for allegedly assaulting an inmate, a trend that has led Sheriff Richard Roundtree to schedule a Wednesday press conference.

Gerardo Sanchez Jr., 28, and Joshua Jackson, 21, were both charged Tuesday with simple battery and violation of oath of office.

An inmate filed an officer grievance for unnecessary force on Friday with video backing up the claim of assault, which occurred last Thursday. Details on the assault or the identity of the suspect were not released.

But the announcement of yet more arrests of RCSO deputies led the sheriff to announce a press conference for 10:30 a.m. Wednesday. A news release said the news conference is being done to “in the air of transparency at the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office.”

“Sheriff Roundtree will discuss this incident and the recent arrests of employees that have occurred within the past year,” the media release says.

Press release:

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The Author

Greg Rickabaugh is an award-winning crime reporter in the Augusta-Aiken area with experience writing for The Augusta Chronicle and serving as publisher of The Jail Report. He also owns AugustaCrime.com. Rickabaugh is a 1994 graduate of the University of South Carolina and has appeared on several crime documentaries on the Investigation Discovery channel. He is married with two daughters.

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