Town officer arrested in eastern NC, charged with statutory rape
Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly reported which police agency the officer worked for.
A Gaston town police officer accused of abusing a child under 13 was charged with statutory rape in Halifax County, according to court records.
Roderick Lamar Howard, 34, was arrested on Jan. 21 and charged with one count of statutory rape, the N.C. State Bureau of Investigation said in a press release.
The SBI said it was asked by the Halifax County Sheriff’s Office to investigation the allegations against Howard.
Howard was being held under a $750,000 bond at the Halifax County Detention Center, the press release said.
The town of Gaston is in Northampton County in eastern North Carolina.
This story was originally published January 22, 2026 at 2:16 PM.
