BISHOPVILLE, S.C. — On Tuesday, a bond hearing was held at the Lee County Law Enforcement Judicial Center in regards to the three shootings that took place in Lee County, with one of them killing a nine month old baby. Two suspects have been identified and charged.
“Y’all put me in a big mess, regardless if you did it or not, y’all put me in a big mess," Benjamin Griffin II said in the courtroom. "Y’all got me feeling like I need to throw my life away, too,”
Griffin is the father of a nine month baby who deputies say was shot and killed in a house shooting on May 9, one of three incidents that the Lee County Sheriff's department have charged 25 year old Roshad Wilson and 18 year old Rayquan Commander with.
It’s been more than 6 weeks since the Lee County Sheriff's Department responded to a shooting on Herbert Lane. Deputies say six victims were inside the house including nine month year old Benjamin Griffin III, who later died from injuries he received in the shooting. The child's mother was also shot and deputies say the house was riddled with 49 bullets and caught fire.
“We have been able to develop that there was some known relationships between some of the victims and the suspects and we're looking at all the ins and outs of that to determine exactly what the motive was for the shootings,” Lee County Chief Deputy Jonathan Iseman said.
According to the department, Wilson and Commander are behind bars charged with one count of murder, 13 counts of attempted murder, 2 counts of discharging firearms into a dwelling and 3 counts of possession with a weapon during a violent crime.
“It's not very common in our area, just like anywhere else, we're not immune to having crimes and shootings in our area. It is a little uncommon to have so many in a short span of time that were committed by the same subjects. but that's why we worked very diligently to try to get them in custody before anything else happened,” Iseman said.
Wilson and Commander were charged in connection with two other shootings in lee county, one at a home on Raccoon Rd and another at a convenience store on Sumter Highway. No victims were injured from the shootings but one received minor injuries from the debris caused by the shooting.
“Since all these incidents have occurred, we have increased some proactive patrols in this area. We've been assisted by the state law enforcement division with not only investigating the shootings themselves, but apprehending the suspects that are involved. We've also had some saturation, patrols that sled as assessors and try to keep any other crimes down,” Iseman said.
A judge denied Wilson’s bond and he will appear in front of a circuit court judge in July. Commander was arrested on Monday, beyond state lines.
“The subject was arrested yesterday afternoon in Heflin, Alabama. We were able to obtain information that he was in that area working. We contacted authorities in Alabama who were able to track him down and get him into custody for us. He is currently being held at the Claiborne County Jail in Heflin, Alabama and he will be extradited back here Thursday," Iseman said.
Lee County Deputy's told News 19 they are not sure when Commander's bond hearing will be.