The first wave of grand jury arrests have begun and include a number of sex abuse and drug-related cases.

The arrests follow the December convening of the Covington County grand jury, when during the week of Dec. 12, more than 500 cases were presented to jurors, with an additional 218 disposed of prior to the beginning of court.

Included was the case against Christopher Dave Hughes, 32, of Florala, who was initially arrested in May on allegations he sexually abused an intellectually disabled female family member. Hughes was again arrested Tuesday on the indictment, While jurors decreased his initial charges to second-degree rape and second-degree sexual abuse, his bond was increased to $500,000. He currently remains incarcerated in the Covington County Jail.

Case agent Sgt. Chris Jackson of the Florala Police Department said Hughes, a resident of Creech Road, was convicted in 2003 of the second-degree rape of a 15-year-old female.

He was sent to prison and released Jan. 6, 2009, and he is currently compliant with the state’s mandated sex offender registration law.

“It took a while to get the case in front of the grand jury, but I think it will be worth the wait to see (Hughes) convicted,” Jackson said.

Also arrested Tuesday was Bradley Rodgers, 31, on charges of sexual abuse of a child and enticing, as was Richard Wells, 44, for second-degree assault. Wells was held on a $75,000 bond.

Chief Deputy David Anderson said charges were brought against Rodgers by the Covington County Sheriff’s Office, but case information was not immediately available. Anderson said Rodgers is currently being held in the county jail under a $2 million bond.

Over the weekend, another Florala resident was arrested on an indictment – Charlie L. Chavis, 51, who now faces charges of possession of a controlled substance, driving while under the influence, open container and possession of drug paraphernalia. He was later released on a $40,000 bond.

Arrested just before Christmas on indictments were:

• Juanita Cane, 45, on five counts of third-degree theft of property and held on a $175,000 bond.

• Monica Gorum, 22, for second-degree possession of marijuana, possession of drug paraphernalia and possession of a controlled substance. She was released on a $40,000 bond.

• Denise Peacock, 28, and Tracey Siler, 31, each on separate cases but charged with two counts of distribution of a controlled substance. Each was held on a $300,000 bond.