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A Leesburg man was booked into the Kosciusko County Jail Thursday afternoon on two charges of child molesting. The charges result from two separate investigations.
Rodney A. Chiddester, 39, of 14 EMS T16B Lane, Leesburg, was released from custody after posting $25,000 bond.
An investigation initiated by the Syracuse Police Department revealed that two juvenile males were possibly victimized by Chiddester. The second case was investigated by the Kosciusko County Sheriff's Department.
In the Syracuse case, it is alleged that Chiddester fondled a 13-year-old boy on April 21 at Centennial Wireless in Syracuse, where Chiddester was employed. He has since been terminated, according to Detective William Van Vactor of the SPD.
After the alleged incident, the teen told his mother, who brought him to the police station to report it. Information garnered from talking to the victim in that case indicated that another juvenile was being subjected to similar abuse.
A caseworker with the Division of Children and Family interviewed the other alleged victim, also 13 years old, and the case was then turned over to the KCSD.
In that case, Chiddester is accused of fondling the teen on numerous occasions at his residence for more than a year. The last incident allegedly occurred in February or March. The alleged acts often were accompanied by viewing pornography on the Internet, a case report said.
Chiddester reportedly admitted to the allegations against him in an April 30 interview with police. He told a KCSD detective that he already enrolled himself in a sexual predator counseling program at Bowen Center.
