Lloyd Aiello, 51, was arrested July 16 on multiple counts of incest, aggravated child molestation, aggravated sexual battery and enticing a child for indecent purposes, among other charges, the GBI confirmed to AJC.com on Friday. The abuse allegedly took place between 2011 and 2017.
Cleveland police reported the abuse to the Grady County Sheriff's Office, which then contacted the GBI on June 6. The GBI said it knew of at least two victims, but there could be more. The agency is still looking through evidence, including several of Aiello's digital devices.
Whigham Police Chief Tony Black told the Thomasville Times-Enterprise that Aiello, who went by the name Lloyd Clark at the time, resigned from his department in 2002 after he took actions as an officer that were unsafe, mostly to himself. He was given the choice to resign or be fired.
The GBI said it’s unsure whether any of Aiello’s alleged offenses occurred while he was an officer. Black told the Times-Enterprise that there was no chance that he committed the alleged crimes while he was with his department.
Aiello was arrested in Barrow County before being transferred to the Grady County Jail on July 18, the newspaper reported. He remains held without bond.
AJC.com has reached out to the Grady County Sheriff’s Office for more information on his custody.
Cairo, the county seat of Grady County, is about 60 miles west of Valdosta and about 230 miles south of downtown Atlanta. Whigham is also in Grady County and is within 10 miles of Cairo.
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