SLED arrests 3 men in Beaufort County in connection with human trafficking – The Island News – Beaufort, SC

By Mike McCombs

Island news

At least three men were arrested this week in connection with a human trafficking operation that is taking place at least partly in Beaufort County.

According to jail logs, at 4 a.m. on Thursday, June 13, the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) arrested three men who were booked into the Beaufort County Detention Center: Alban Bryan, 63, from the island of Saint Helena; Guy Frank Talley, 27, of Okatie; and William James Youmans, 34, of Beaufort.

All three men were charged with human trafficking, victim under the age of 18, and all three remain incarcerated.

A source said Island news As of Tuesday, SLED had conducted at least one raid on a Beaufort home and made several arrests in connection with a human trafficking operation in Beaufort County.

Another source said Wednesday Island news that several men, from Beaufort County and perhaps other areas, allegedly used the promise of employment to lure underage women to a location where they were instead drugged, drunk, held against their will and forced to have sexual relations with paying customers.

Youmans, 34, was arrested at 12:58 a.m. Tuesday and also charged with contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

Bryan, 63, who was arrested Tuesday at 1:36 p.m., was also charged with simple possession and contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

And Talley, 27, was arrested at 6:06 p.m. Tuesday and charged with sexual exploitation of a minor, 2^sd Degree; and sexual exploitation of a minor, 3^sd Degree.

Those booking times are consistent with Beaufort County Detention Center records, but they didn't appear on the site until Wednesday.

Wednesday afternoon, Evan McKenna of The island package reported that the arrest of Terrance Fields, 49, of Beaufort, Hardeeville, Jasper County, was also connected to this case.

SLED has not yet made an official announcement or released information about these arrests.

This story will be updated.

Mike McCombs is the managing editor of The Island News and can be reached at [email protected].