Palm Coast man charged with sexual battery of a minor

News-Journal - 11/24/2020

A Palm Coast man is facing a felony sexual battery charge after he was accused of forcing a minor to have sex.

Charles Gorden Swindell, 50, was arrested on one charge of sexual battery of a custodial victim between 12 and 18 but younger than 18 years of age, according to a charging affidavit.

The heavily redacted report states a person placed two iPads inside Swindell's white 2008 Chevrolet Silverado on Oct. 15. The voice recorder application was turned on before the devices were hidden in hopes of uncovering any suspicious behavior.

Later that evening, Swindell and the victim went in the car. When they returned, the reporting party retrieved the iPads and listened to the audio. The person believed they heard sexual sounds on the recording and contacted The Flagler County Sheriff’s Office, according to the charging affidavit.

Law enforcement officials listened to the four-hour audio provided by the reporting party and collected the iPads into evidence.

During a fact-finding interview conducted by deputies, the Sheriff's Office requested assitance from the Child Protection Team. The underage victim disclosed to the Child Protection Team that the most recent incident involving Swindell occurred on Oct. 15, according to the charging affidavit. The victim reported that there were a total of seven incidents involving Swindell.

Swindell is being held at Flagler County Jail without bond and is prohibited from having any contact with the victim and the victim's family, as well as any minors.

Swindell was charged with child abuse without great harm, simple assault and battery in May 2015 when he was accused of burning the face of an 11-year-old boy with a hot metal object.

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Palm Coast man charged with sexual battery of a minor

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