Fiance of Ohio social worker who allegedly sexually abused 13-year-old boy had been in jail on child endangerment charges

The Ohio social worker accused of sexually abusing a 13-year-old boy has been revealed to be engaged to a man that previously served time for child endangerment and had faced charges for raping a 14-year-old girl.

Payton Shires, 24, was charged with unlawful sexual conduct with a minor on Oct. 6, and has a child with 27-year-old Nicholas Rafter, who she is engaged to.

Rafter was jailed for four years and 11 months after being convicted of child endangerment and two counts of burglary in 2016, according to the Daily Mail. He was released early in August of 2017.

Rafter was initially charged with rape, sexual battery, and unlawful sexual conduct with a minor, but the more serious charges were dismissed by the court after Rafter pleaded guilty to endangering children.

A then-19-year-old Rafter was accused of attacking a 14-year-old girl in November of 2015, while she was "unaware the act was being committed."

He allegedly gave the girl a "drug, intoxicant, or controlled substance to her surreptitiously or by force, threat of force, or deception."

Rafter was released from jail and was placed for five years under intensive supervision parole. Rafter was released from community supervision in July 2022.

Shires was charged with unlawful sexual conduct with a minor on Oct. 6, but was released after posting bond.

On Oct. 26, she reportedly showed up at the 13-year-old boy’s home with a gun, and officers who responded to the scene came to see Shires pointing a gun at her head, screaming that she was going to kill herself.

The boy’s mother told detectives that Shires called her and said she wanted to kill her and then herself because the boy and his mother had ruined her life. 

Shires was additionally charged with intimidation of a crime victim and intimidation of a crime witness.

On social media, Shires had previously made posts advocating for the death penalty for pedophiles.

Shires had been employed by the National Youth Advocate Program, which works with families in the foster care system, but has since been fired.