2 TEACHERS FROM LEAVELLE MCCAMPBELL CHARGED IN AS MANY WEEKS

Just two weeks after a teacher at the Leavelle McCampbell Middle School in Graniteville was arrested for sex crimes involving a minor, a former teacher from the school faces similar charges.

The Aiken County Sheriff’s Department arrested 28-year-old Joseph Jay Magni Jr. Monday and charged him with five counts of criminal sexual conduct and five counts of a lewd act on a minor.

The crimes took place at Aiken Mall Cinemas during May and June, according to the incident reports. The investigation also found that Mr. Magni sexually assaulted the 14-year-old female at his then work place, Leavelle McCampbell Middle School in Graniteville, Sgt. Myers said.

The victim was a student in Aiken County before she moved to Columbia to live with her father in April, said Richland County Sheriff’s Department Lt. Chris Cowan. The sheriff’s department began their investigation on Sept. 23 when the victim’s father told investigators he believed that Mr. Magni was traveling to Columbia to have a relationship with his daughter, Lt. Cowan said. Investigators turned the case over to Aiken County this week, Lt. Cowan said.

Mr. Magni now faces a charge of criminal sexual conduct with a minor in the second degree in Richland County. [Augusta Chronicle]

On Oct. 20, a 38-year-old Leavelle McCampbell math teacher was arrested for allegedly having sex with a 14-year-old former student. Tammy Joy Key was charged with four counts of lewd act and four counts of criminal sexual conduct.

While the arrests came within two weeks of each other, police said the two incidents occurred a few years apart.