A suspected pedophile child molester in Columbia County, Edgardo Coscia, who evaded capture for the past 15 years, has been apprehended. 12 On Your Side commenced an investigation into this issue two years ago, prompting authorities to reopen the matter.
Edgardo Coscia hails from Argentina, the global epicentre of polo. His expertise with horses secured him employment inside Aiken’s polo community.
We analysed the city’s crime database and are examining the actual crime situation in downtown Augusta.
In 2010, a grand jury indicted him on accusations of child molestation; however, he was never apprehended. The victim, now an adult, reached out to 12 On Your Side two years ago upon discovering that a local judge had closed the case.
Following our investigation, the Columbia County District Attorney presented the old case to a new grand jury, resulting in Edgardo Coscia’s re-indictment on two charges of child molestation.
Aspen LeBlanc, the victim, stated, “His son forwarded me a news article featuring his face obscured, indicating that they apprehended him.”
The item originated from an Argentine news agency and was composed in Spanish.
“I sat out of bed, and I’m like, there’s no way. I’m sitting here translating this article. The context clues were all there. It was a 2007-2008 case in Georgia,” said LeBlanc.
The article didn’t specifically mention Edgardo Coscia’s name, but it gave her enough. She then googled his name and found a second article.
“There were your WRDW posts, and then right under that, there is a post naming him as the person getting extradited.”
There he was – Edgardo Coscia, right next to links from when LaBlanc first contacted 12 On Your Side Investigates when she learned the man, wanted for years for allegedly abusing her as a child, had been totally let off the hook.
Her case file led us to thousands of other cases that were also dismissed around the same time, many for the same reason – they were old and no one had been arrested.
When we first investigated Edgardo Coscia, we found more than the Columbia County case. We also found a detailed rape allegation from Florida.
Edgardo Coscia was never arrested for this crime, either.
Even though Edgardo Coscia denies his guilt, LeBlanc says it was satisfying to read about him being taken into custody.
“You had to think about me while they were handcuffing you, and that alone makes me feel powerful because you know why they’re there,” said LeBlanc.
LaBlanc says the abuse started when she was just nine years old. Now, at age 28, she’ll finally get to face him again – in court.
LaBlanc tells us that it wouldn’t have been right to give up.
“They would have never done that had I not gone on the news, or it wasn’t made a spectacle because a judge dismissed thousands of cases,” said LeBlanc.
Natalie Paine with the Columbia County District Attorney’s office gave the following statement to News 12 on Monday:
“His return is in the process of being coordinated with the appropriate authorities.”
No word yet when that will happen, but of course, we’ll be watching and let you know when he’s back in Columbia County to answer to his charges.
If you or anyone you know have been affected by the people highlighted in this article, then please report those individuals to the Police on 101 (999 if an emergency) or visit their online resources for further details of the options for reporting a crime. You can also make a report at Crimestoppers should you wish to be completely anonymous. There is help available on our support links page.