Laura Fanelli remains jailed in Georgia as Beaufort County places her on unpaid administrative leave pending investigation
By Delayna Earley
The Island News
Beaufort County Communications Manager Laura Fanelli is facing two felony charges in Georgia after being arrested June 22 on a fugitive warrant, according to court and jail records.
According to Beaufort County Detention Center records, Fanelli was arrested by the Beaufort Police Department at approximately 3:55 p.m. June 22, 2026, on a fugitive from justice warrant issued from Georgia. She was booked into the Beaufort County Detention Center, where she remained until June 27.
Records from the Newton County Sheriff’s Office in Georgia show Fanelli was booked into the Newton County Detention Center at approximately 12:19 p.m. June 27. As of Tuesday morning, June 30, she remained in custody. Jail records did not list a bond as of Tuesday morning.
Court records filed in Newton County Superior Court show the State of Georgia initiated an unindicted felony case against Fanelli on June 29. She is charged with one count of felony theft by deception and one count of computer theft. Both charges stem from an alleged offense date of April 1.
The court records indicate felony warrants were received by the Superior Court on June 29. The case has been assigned to Judge W. Kendall Wynne Jr. and remains pending. Because the case has not yet been presented to a grand jury, it is currently listed as unindicted.
Beaufort County Public Information Officer Hannah Nichols confirmed Tuesday that, effective Monday, June 22, Fanelli was placed on administrative leave without pay pending the results of an investigation.
Nichols said the county’s employment action is administrative and noted that individuals charged with crimes are presumed innocent until proven guilty.
Fanelli joined Beaufort County in September 2020 after previously serving as communications manager for Newton County, Georgia. As Beaufort County’s communications manager, she oversees the county’s public information office, serves as the county’s primary spokesperson and manages communications with residents, elected officials, county departments and news organizations.
Just weeks after joining Beaufort County, Fanelli was placed on paid administrative leave after thousands of tweets from an account attributed to her surfaced publicly. The posts, many of which predated her county employment, included profanity and commentary on politics, race, religion and the COVID-19 pandemic, prompting public criticism and an internal investigation.
County officials ultimately concluded the posts did not violate county policy because they were made before Fanelli’s employment with Beaufort County. She returned to work following the investigation and remained the county’s communications manager.
The Island News submitted multiple requests to the Beaufort Police Department seeking the incident report, arrest warrant and additional information regarding Fanelli’s June 22 arrest, including the circumstances surrounding the fugitive warrant. Those requests had not been acknowledged as of Tuesday morning.
Requests for comment were also submitted to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division. Neither agency had responded as of Tuesday morning.
The publicly available court records identify the charges against Fanelli but do not describe the facts investigators allege support them. The Island News has requested copies of the warrants and related court documents and will update this story as additional information becomes available.
Delayna Earley, who joined The Island News in 2022, formerly worked as a photojournalist for The Island Packet/The Beaufort Gazette, as well as newspapers in Indiana and Virginia. She can be reached at delayna.theislandnews@gmail.com.