Richland County, SC (WLTX) — A 58-year-old man recently shot and killed on Beatty Road was an 'innocent victim' who simply got caught in gang crossfire while taking his trash out, says Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott.
The shooting incident occurred at Petan Apartments on Beatty Road around 8 p.m. on Friday, October 26, according to Richland County deputies.
Ronald A. Bonnette, 58, was later identified as the victim by the Richland County Coroner's Office. The cause of death was a gunshot wound to the torso.
On Monday, Lott disclosed that Bonnette, a painter, had come home from work and went to throw out the trash when he was 'caught the crossfire of two rival gangs shooting each other." At least 25 rounds were fired in the incident, said Lott. Of the four guns recovered, two were stolen.
"Not only was Mr. Bonnette killed, but we had three cars and two occupied apartments that bullets went into, too," Lott said, noting that the end result could have been even worse "because the people shooting just do not care where those bullets went and who was injured."
We're weeping with Mr. Bonnette's family today because he was an innocent person, just like all of us in this room, who could've just went out and threw their trash away and had their lives taken because of people who just don't care."
Lott announced the arrest of three, ages 17-18, in the shooting:
- Dyquan King is charged with murder, possession of a weapon during a violent crime, two counts of discharging firearms into a dwelling, and unlawful carrying of a pistol.
"I think it's so ironic that two of these men's names came from the Bible," Lott said. I don't think there was a whole lot of Christianity going on that night when they were out there shooting in that apartment complex, and not caring about what their bullets did."
"Not only did Mr. Bonnette lose his life, but these three young people -- one 17, two 18-year-olds -- have basically lost their lives, too," said Lott. "Four lives are gone -- three in prison and one in the cemetery -- and their families are going to cry for all four of them."
The announcement followed the funeral for the victim, Ronald Bonnette. "Not many people probably pay attention to this funeral except for the family and friends of Mr. Bonnette," Lott said. "But, I think it's a very significant funeral because it indicates the problem we've got in our community."
Not only is [Bonnette's] family going to be said, but I think all of us should be sad because this is the second time this year that we've had someone shot and killed like this," said Lott.
In August, Nakya Scott getting ready for bed when a bullet came through the bedroom wall of her Farrway Drive home, killing the 33-year-old mother of two.
In both cases, Lott said those involved in the shootings did not live in the community where the shootings took place.
We've got too many young people out here with guns who just do not care, do not care about anybody's life," said Lott. "They don't care what happens when they start shooting these guns."
Lott said he hopes the deaths of Mr. Bonnette and Ms. Scott will be a wakeup call for the community. "Get sad and get mad," is Lott's message to the community. "Don't think it can't happen to you."
"We've got a community problem," Lott said. "It's not a law enforcement problem. We're locking people up. We're getting guns off the street. This is a community problem that exists within the Midlands."
Lott said the Richland County Sheriff's Department has seized 553 guns since April 24, 2018. Of those, 113 have been stolen. "That's not hunting guns that people are out here using, Lott said. "These are illegal guns out here on our streets."
"People are still not securing their weapons," Lott said. "And they end up in the hands of these punks who go out here and take people's lives."
In April, Sheriff Leon Lott and Columbia Police Chief Skip Holbrook announced the formation of a 60-day special task force between the agencies to crack down on violent crime, an effort they said would be "precise" to target the criminals who are the main ones causing the problems in the community.
Lott and Holbrook said then the data shows a small number of people commit most of the crimes in the community, and were also wanted on gun crimes. They also found that the same guns are being used in multiple crimes. "It's all connected," Holbrook said.
"It scares the devil out of me that this is what we've got in our community, that young people are using [guns] against each other," Lott said at the time.
Later, in July, Lott and Holbrook reported on the results of the 60-day task force.
Lott said his officers alone confiscated 202 guns during the effort that began in late April, and combined with CPD, there were almost 300 weapons seizures. A total of 40 arrests were made in that time frame, including 17 on the county's "top offenders" list.
"They're real people, it's real people, there are families that are hurting," Lott said in August. "It's not a number."
Lott said the City of Columbia and his department are going to continue to operate the task force, but that's not enough. "We need the help of the commiunity."
"We've got to do something about young kids with guns, and we've got to do it as a community," said Lott. "Schools need to be involved, churches need to be involved, everyone needs to be involved ... but it starts in the home. It's a team effort."
