KERSHAW COUNTY, S.C. — A man considered a potential suspect for allegedly stealing 10 Glock firearms from a Kershaw County gun store is in police custody in North Carolina. And his arrest may tie the local crime to gang activity, a shooting and other crimes.
The Kershaw County Sheriff's Office said on Saturday that 18-year-old Joshua Adam King had been arrested in Morganton, North Carolina, on multiple charges. The sheriff's office said King was arrested earlier in the week on charges related to a shooting there. At the time, authorities said he had one of the stolen handguns from Freedom First Outfitters that were stolen on July 14.
Kershaw County investigators tracked a stolen vehicle tied to the burglary to an apartment complex in Camden, where two suspects parked it afterward. The sheriff's office said investigators determined the car was stolen from North Carolina and involved in a shooting.
Due to the North Carolina shooting investigation, King was charged with the discharge of a weapon into an occupied dwelling or moving vehicle, breaking and entering into a building that is a place of worship, breaking and entering auto trailers, boats, aircraft or watercraft and two counts of possession of a weapon of mass destruction. Sheriff Lee Boan said that the latter charge was due to one of the Glocks stolen from Kershaw County being modified with a "switch" that made it a fully-automatic weapon.
King's bond was set at $200,000.
Sheriff Boan said he was proud of his investigative team for their part in an investigation that authorities now believe involves multiple other crimes and an unspecified North Carolina gang.
"They began working closely with multiple law enforcement agencies in South Carolina and North Carolina since our burglary," Boan said. "The progress made in this investigation is a testament to how cooperation between law enforcement agencies solves crime across jurisdictional lines."
The sheriff said it's still unclear if King is a suspect in another gun theft from a Kershaw County pawn shop. Authorities also want to identify another suspect involved in the gun store burglary.
Anyone with information about the crime can contact the Kershaw County Sheriff's Office at 803-425-1512 or 803-424-4000. Tips can also be emailed to investigations@kershaw.sc.gov.