SC’s child welfare agency involved after photographer arrested again for sex crimes
A fourth set of charges have been filed against a Blythewood photographer who is accused of child sex crimes.
With the latest charges, court records confirm that the state Department of Social Services has become involved in the case.
Wednesday, the Richland County Sheriff’s Department charged 54-year-old Gregg Adam Martin with second- and third-degree exploitation of a minor, according to court records. Both charges are felonies. The charges involve a new victim, the department said.
“This victim saw news coverage of Martin and came forward,” Deputy Sara Blann said. “The investigation into Martin is ongoing and we continue to ask that other victims come forward.”
Deputies jailed him at Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center, where he was released on $20,000 bond and given stipulation to stay out of jail.
His bond stipulations also include that he must not have any contact with the victim, stay away from the victim, have no contact with minors without supervision and “follow all DSS guidelines.”
“The agency is aware of the individual in question (Martin) and is currently working alongside local law enforcement,” a spokesperson for DSS said. “Due to confidentiality laws and the pending criminal charges, we are unable to provide any additional information.”
During a criminal investigation involving children, DSS can open a simultaneous investigation and put a “safety plan” into place to protect children.
Martin’s lawyer, Alex Postic, said his client is abiding by a safety plan put in place by the DSS.
Postic has said that Martin “remains an innocent man with a successful business and a strong and supportive family.”
“We are confident that in time this matter will be resolved favorably and with much less fanfare than his arrest brought,” Postic has told The State. “We would ask the community to respect the privacy of Mr. Martin and his family.”
Earlier in May, The State reported how Martin used his camera to mingle with South Carolina teenagers, politicians and athletes.
The incidents that led to the charges occurred between August and December 2019 and February and March 2022, according to investigators.
Postic said the latest charges were “concurrent” with the allegations from 2019.
The sheriff’s department first charged Martin in April.
That month, deputies charged him with engaging a child under 18 for sexual performance and unlawful conduct toward a child after they received a “report of him taking inappropriate photographs of a young girl under his care,” the department said.
“The investigation revealed that Martin groomed the child and gave her illegal substances,” according to the department.
On May 6, the department charged Martin with 10 more offenses, including criminal sexual conduct, exploitation of minors, kidnapping and promoting prostitution. Later in the month, he was charged with voyeurism.
The South Carolina code of laws defines second-degree exploitation of a minor as recording or photographing a child “engaged in sexual activity or appearing in a state of sexually explicit nudity.” Third-degree exploitation is defined as possession child pornography.
Martin faces the possibly of being sentenced to nearly 200 years in prison if found guilty on all the charges.
Deputy Solicitor April Sampson of the Fifth Circuit Solicitor’s Office is prosecuting the case.
This story was originally published May 26, 2022 at 12:31 PM.