Man dies after standoff with Newberry County Sheriff’s Deputies

COLUMBIA (WOLO): A man is dead Sunday after a standoff with Newberry County Police.

Deputies say around 4:30am they received a call about a silver SUV on I-26 Westbound, riding on a wheel rim, causing sparks.

Dispatch then received a call from a Citgo gas station at the intersection of I-26 and SC 121, exit 72, about a suspicious man in the store acting intoxicated. According to police, the store clerk stated the man left as she was calling 911.

Deputies arrived shortly after and found a silver Kia Sorento with temporary Georgia tags and one wheel on its rim. A tow truck was called, and deputies searched the area.

Around 6:30am, a Newberry County Sheriff’s Deputy saw the suspect sitting on the edge of the woods just off the store’s property. When the two deputies approached the man to ask him to come out of the woods, the suspect stood up and drew a handgun from a jacket pocket.

Deputies took cover and continued to challenge the suspect to drop the gun, but the suspect retreated back into the woods, hiding in a ravine.

Officials say a tactical team and K-9 units were called to the scene. Shortly after, a shot was fired. That’s when deputies approached the suspect and found him with a semi-automatic pistol and a gunshot wound.

Newberry County EMS and Newberry County Rescue responded to the scene, and found no vital signs.

Sheriff Lee Foster says no Deputy Sheriff’s discharged any of their weapons during the incident. He gives credit to the deputies for remaining undercover and attempting to de-escalate the situation. “We hate someone lost their life, but we are also grateful that none of our deputies were injured in this incident,” said Sheriff Foster.

The suspect has not yet been identified, and is pending next of kin notification.
SLED is investigating.