4 people in Chatham County arrested for child sex crimes in 8-day span

CHATHAM COUNTY, Ga. (WTOC) - Within the last two weeks, four people in Chatham County have been arrested in relation to sex crimes, some involving children.

The World Health Organization reports that roughly one in five women and one in seven men worldwide say they were sexually abused as children, highlighting the widespread nature of the issue beyond any single community.

One of those arrests is 22-year-old Ryan Baldwin. Baldwin was arrested on Halloween by Chatham County Police on charges of rape, child molestation, and 1st degree cruelty to children.

We have reached out to Chatham PD for the report on his arrest, as well as the sheriff’s office for a mugshot. We are still waiting to hear back.

Baldwin is being held on no bond in the meantime.

Another recent arrest happened in Garden City. 20-year-old Jabria Malaysia Black was arrested also on Halloween on several charges, including sexual exploitation of children, false imprisonment, and battery-family violence.

Black is being held on no bond. We’ve also reached out for a detailed police report in her case through Garden City PD, and to the jail for a mugshot-- we are still waiting to hear back.

Another Chatham County man was arrested for incest just over a week ago.

45-year-old Jose Castro Argueta was arrested on October 23rd by Chatham County Police for incest, which is a felony.

In Castro Argueta’s case, the initial police report only says officers responded to a Savannah home, where they met with a 24-year-old woman and a 1-year-old boy.

The report says the crimes were happening sometime between the dates of May 29th, 2019, and June 1st, 2023.

Castro Argueta also has an ICE hold. He’s due back in court on November 19th at 2 p.m.

Also in Garden City this week, 25-year-old Alexander Brian Hernandez was arrested on charges of rape and sexual exploitation of children, both felonies.

Hernandez was arrested on October 29th and is being held on no bond.

We also reached out to Garden City PD in this case for more details, and to the jail for a mug shot. We are still waiting for those reports.

According to the Positive Childhood Alliance of Georgia, nearly 100,000 reports of child abuse and neglect were made across the state in 2023, and more than 11,000 children were confirmed as victims.

Law enforcement continues to send the reminder: ‘If you see something, say something’.

All are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.