A South Carolina caregiver previously featured in an investigation involving a disputed $5 home transfer has been arrested on criminal charges that police now link to the same man whose property and finances were at the center of that reporting.
Sarah Weaver Smalls, 58, was booked into the J. Reuben Long Detention Center on Sept. 28. Current Horry County court records list three pending cases involving exploitation of a vulnerable adult, perjury involving false information on a document, and obtaining a signature or property by false pretenses involving $10,000 or more.
WMBF reported, citing the arrest warrants, that the allegations involve Robert Rowland, the 75-year-old Conway man Smalls had previously cared for. The warrants allegedly describe conduct from March through July 2024 involving Rowland’s power of attorney, bank accounts, home and financial documents.
Detention records show Smalls was released Sept. 29 after three surety bonds totaling $45,000 were posted. The cases remain pending.
Warrants Tie the New Charges to Robert Rowland
WMBF’s review of the arrest warrants says police allege Smalls exploited Rowland from March through July 2024. During that period, investigators allege she became his power of attorney, took control of his finances, withdrew more than $17,000 in cash and transferred money to her Cash App on multiple occasions.
The warrants also connect the investigation to Rowland’s Conway home. WMBF reported that Smalls obtained the deed on April 17, 2024, and that the warrants say a family member notarized it. A probate complaint reviewed by the station identified that notary as Smalls’ sister.
According to WMBF’s warrant review, one law office declined to provide the deed before Smalls obtained it through another office.
The warrants also allege that in May 2024 Smalls supplied false information on federal documents while seeking money through the Housing Authority of Conway. Investigators allege she stated that she had no assets, real estate or cash and did not expect to have a job during the following 12 months.
A Power of Attorney and Deeds Were Recorded Within Weeks
The county’s Register of Deeds index shows a power of attorney from Robert Irvin Rowland to Sarah Weaver Smalls recorded April 4, 2024. The same index shows a deed involving Robert I. Rowland and Sarah Smalls recorded April 18, followed by a rerecorded deed on April 29.
WMBF’s original investigation reported that the quitclaim deed was dated April 17 and transferred Rowland’s Conway home to Smalls for a stated consideration of $5.
The station also reviewed bank records showing transfers from Rowland’s account to Smalls, including transactions recorded after his death in June 2024. Rowland’s daughter, Nora Rowland, challenged the circumstances surrounding the changes to his property and finances.
When WMBF previously approached Smalls about the deed and power of attorney, Smalls told the station to contact her lawyer and did not provide the attorney’s contact information.
Current Court Records List Three Pending Criminal Cases
Horry County’s Public Index shows three criminal cases filed Sept. 29 under Sarah Weaver Smalls.
Case 2026A2620400685 lists exploitation of a vulnerable adult. The court set a $20,000 bond, and records show a $20,000 surety bond was posted Sept. 29.
Case 2026A2620400686 lists perjury involving false information on a document. That case carried a $5,000 bond, which was also posted as a surety bond Sept. 29.
The third case, 2026A2620400687, is currently listed in the Public Index as obtaining a signature or property by false pretenses involving $10,000 or more. It carries another $20,000 bond.
The public records contain a notable difference in how that third allegation is labeled. The J. Reuben Long Detention Center booking page described it as breach of trust with fraudulent intent involving $5,000 or more. The current Horry County court index instead describes case 2026A2620400687 as obtaining a signature or property by false pretenses involving $10,000 or more.
The available records do not explain the difference in wording. For the current case description, the court index now uses the false-pretenses allegation.
Under South Carolina law, obtaining another person’s signature or property through false pretenses with intent to defraud is a felony when the property is valued at $10,000 or more.
The three bonds total $45,000. The official booking record shows Smalls was booked Sept. 28 at 3:17 p.m. and released Sept. 29 at 4:07 p.m. after the bonds were posted.
Each of the three current Public Index cases lists a bond-returnable court event for Jan. 29, 2027, at 8:30 a.m.
The Property Dispute Was Already in Civil Court
Horry County’s court index shows three pending lis pendens entries from 2024 involving Rowland, his estate or Nora Rowland as plaintiffs and Smalls as defendant. They were filed July 24, Aug. 13 and Sept. 3.
All three entries identify the same tax-map number, 136-21-01-074, associated with the Rosehaven property.
A lis pendens provides notice that litigation may affect title to real property. The current Public Index continues to list those matters as pending.
The Care Company Says Its Referral Had Already Ended
Rowland began receiving care from Smalls through Griswold Care Pairing for Myrtle Beach in March 2024, according to WMBF’s earlier reporting.
Griswold told the station that Smalls was an independent caregiver on its registry and had passed the company’s required background check before being referred to Rowland.
The company said the referral lasted only a brief period and that Rowland was no longer receiving services through Griswold when the power of attorney and property transfer occurred.
Griswold said it learned about the situation later and began an internal review. The company said it does not condone abuse, exploitation or inappropriate financial relationships between caregivers and the people they serve.
South Carolina Law Includes Power of Attorney in Its Exploitation Definition
South Carolina’s Adult Protection law defines exploitation to include improper, unlawful or unauthorized use of a vulnerable adult’s funds, assets, property, power of attorney, guardianship or conservatorship for another person’s profit or advantage.
The same law makes knowing and willful exploitation of a vulnerable adult a felony and allows a court to order restitution upon conviction.
Smalls’ exploitation case remains pending, and the allegations in the arrest warrants have not been proven in court.
Families Can Monitor Financial Authority and Property Records
A power of attorney can give another person substantial authority over financial and property decisions. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau recommends understanding exactly what authority a power of attorney grants and choosing the agent carefully.
A person who accepts responsibility for managing someone else’s money may also become a fiduciary. The CFPB says fiduciaries must act in the other person’s best interest, keep that person’s assets separate and maintain accurate records.
Property owners and families can monitor a separate part of the financial picture through public land records. The Horry County Register of Deeds offers a free Recording Notification Service that sends alerts when a document associated with a registered name is recorded.
The service does not prevent a deed, power of attorney or other document from being recorded, but an alert can provide early notice that a filing has appeared under a person’s name.