A Simpsonville, South Carolina, woman named Abbygale El-Dier, 26, received a 40-year prison sentence for sexually abusing her three-year-old daughter, an act prosecutors described as profoundly evil. Her boyfriend, Jacob Lance, 29, an inmate already serving 30 years for a 2015 manslaughter conviction, got an additional 40 years for being an accessory to the abuse, plus concurrent terms. The case surfaced during South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson’s crackdown on prison contraband, revealing videos and messages El-Dier sent to Lance via illegal cellphones.
Case Background
El-Dier and Lance exchanged messages from August 2022 to 2023 discussing and planning the abuse, including ideas of drugging the child; a tip to Simpsonville Police led to her arrest and seizure of Lance’s phone. Assistant Solicitor Cortney Rea called it the worst case of her career, noting the toddler’s severe trauma and the pervasiveness of the acts. El-Dier pled guilty in July 2025, Lance in November; she also got five years for sexual exploitation, while he received three concurrent years.​
Defendant Claims
El-Dier’s family and attorney Will Hellams blamed Lance for manipulating her psychologically, reporting him multiple times to corrections without success due to his multiple phones. Lance countered that El-Dier initiated the abuse talks and blackmailed him by threatening to expose his contraband phones. Prosecutors, including David Fernandez, emphasized the acts were real-time, with El-Dier performing them for Lance’s benefit via photos, videos, and live streams.​
Broader Context
This stems from “Operation Clean Sweep,” a State Grand Jury probe into Lee Correctional Institution contraband enabling child abuse material and corruption. Lance and his brother Ernest were previously convicted in 2018 for beating Todd Cantlay to death and arson in Pendleton.[query] Judge Patrick Fant III handed down sentences in Greenville County Circuit Court.​
