SLED accuses former university police officer of propositioning teenager

BLUFFTON — A former University of South Carolina Beaufort police officer, who left his post amid an internal investigation, has been accused of making advances toward a 16-year-old girl.

Harvey Mackenzie Bethea, a 35-year-old Bluffton resident, was charged Oct. 2 with criminal solicitation of a minor, according to the arrest warrant filed by the state Law Enforcement Division.

In March, Bethea employed the victim to do something while he left for work, according to an affidavit from SLED Special Agent Rebecca Gregg. The redactions block out why exactly he hired the girl.

The Post and Courier have requested SLED’s investigation file as well as original documentation regarding the incident.

Bethea reportedly came home all day, asking what the girl “would do in exchange for a puppy.”

When the victim said she would pay for the dog, Bethea allegedly asked her if she would have sex with him or perform a sexual act on him. According to the affidavit, Bethea told the victim he “would perform sexual acts on her if she was not comfortable performing them on him.”

Bethea allegedly continued to proposition the girl until she stopped working for him and reported the incident to law enforcement on March 21.

The Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office asked SLED to investigate the incident, according to the state agency’s news release.

Bethea was booked into the Beaufort County Detention Center on Oct. 2 and released about two hours later on a $10,000 personal recognizance bond, according to court and jail records. He has no criminal record.

If convicted, Bethea faces up to 10 years in prison.

Bethea worked for USC Beaufort as an officer before the alleged solicitation took place. He started his studies at the university in October 2021 and resigned on February 26 while under investigation.

A disciplinary action outlined in SC Criminal Justice Academy documents shows two people reported a traffic stop Bethea made to university law enforcement. The description is written in the first person, but the identity of the author is unclear.

Lt. Caleb Watts was instructed to review camera footage from the traffic stop. He was unable to find body camera footage of the incident, but looked at in-car and security camera systems. That investigation revealed multiple violations of state policies and laws, the author said.

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The university’s Critical Incident Review Committee, a group made up of officials from the school’s public safety department, opened an internal investigation and found that Bethea had committed 14 violations of laws and policies.

The investigation revealed that Bethea violated SC law by failing to adequately collect data during a traffic stop and using his blue lights to make an illegal U-turn. It also found that he violated the school police department’s ethics, professionalism and insubordination policies, among others.

Contacted by The Post and Courier, Bethea declined to comment on the criminal charge and the internal investigation. The university did not report Bethea for misconduct.

From October 2017 to April 2018, the county sheriff’s office employed Bethea. The sheriff’s office referred the case to SLED because of Bethea’s association with law enforcement, a spokesperson for the local department said.

The Post and Courier requested Bethea’s personnel file from the county and university. The newspaper also requested internal investigation records, the traffic stop incident report that triggered the investigation and relevant university policies, among other documents.

The Fourteenth Circuit Solicitor’s Office will prosecute the case.