Pastor and wife arrested for alleged s3xual abuse of foster child in their care

A South Carolina pastor, Rodney Gibson, was arrested after being accused of s3xually assaulting a foster child in his care. 

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His wife, Kawiana Young, is also facing charges in the case.

The couple, both 50, were arrested April 1 and charged with unlawful conduct with a minor. 

Gibson is also charged with criminal s3xual conduct, criminal s3xual conduct with a minor and contributing to the delinquency of a minor.

Investigation into the couple began in March after the Richland County Sheriff’s Department said a victim reported alleged s3xual abuse they endured in Gibson and Young’s home, beginning when they were 15 and continuing until they aged out of the foster care system.

According to the South Carolina Department of Social Services (DSS), Young was licensed as a foster parent from June 2021 until June 2025, having voluntarily relinquished her foster parent license. 

However, DSS said there was no mention of Gibson living in the home, and he was not licensed as a foster parent. 

Young also reportedly never told the agency she was married and actually disclosed that she was not in a relationship.

As the sheriff’s department investigated, they discovered another child, who Young had reportedly adopted through the foster care system in 2024, was living with the couple in the home. 

Young was accused of physically abusing that child, who was then placed in protective custody in March, but returned to the home just days later. 

The child returned to protective custody after Gibson and Young’s arrests, and DSS said it will continue cooperating in that investigation.

Gibson and Young are out of jail on bond. 

According to WIS, Gibson was identified as a pastor at Pathway 2 Hope Ministries in Columbia, while Young owns and operates DreamCatcher Child Development Center in Columbia.