Piedmont man convicted of sexual assault on 4 year old girl

Riley Steven Rowan

A Piedmont man was convicted Thursday of raping, kidnapping and sexually abusing a 4-year-old girl in 2013.  Prosecutors said that 29 year old Raleigh Steven Rowan, kidnapped the victim from her home, raped and sexually abused her for two hours, and then left her alone in a Piedmont trailer park in 40-degree temperatures.  A Calhoun county jury found Rowan guilty of first-degree rape, two charges of first-degree sodomy, first-degree kidnapping and sexual abuse of a child younger than 12.  A grand jury in March 2013 indicted Rowan on three charges of first-degree sodomy, one charge of first-degree rape, one charge of first-degree kidnapping and one charge of sexual deviance with a child under the age of 12.  Rowan admitted to sexually abusing the child, but there was not enough evidence to prove he is guilty of rape.  Rowan told the court that he also abducted the victim, now 5, from her Piedmont home on Feb. 5, 2013.  The girl suffered scrapes, bruises and bite marks all over her body.  Rowan’s sentencing hearing is scheduled for April 21 at 8:30 a.m. Prosecutors say they will ask the judge for the maximum sentence for Rowan, which is life in prison without the possibility of parole.