Another witness suggested it could have been a drive-by shooting. He also had scars along his right arm and stomach, which matched up with what one of the younger victims had described. Freeman was shot at about 10 p.m. July 15, 2018 at a Sumter Street residence. However, the criminal trial would never come to be. It took police a while to line up the suspect description because the vehicles in-question varied based on each witness: two described the vehicle they had been abducted in as a champagne-gold Mazda, while others pointed out either a white Toyota Corolla or a white Chevy Celebrity. Results: Unresolved. In 1993, the skull was sent off to the National Museum of Natural History in Washington, DC for DNA testing. Alex Murdaugh Charged With Fraud After Asking Former Client to Kill Him. "The murder kidnapping and criminal sexual misconduct charges have been dropped. As police tried to pinpoint the motive for Hampton's confessions, the forensic analysis they were hoping to rely on brought back an intriguing proposition. On May 18, 1988, police released a statement to the public, which informed residents that two men were seen in the vicinity of the apartment complex on the afternoon Kia went missing. It has been over a decade since there was any news or developments in the investigation, with it seeming to entering the pantheon of cold cases which will likely never be truly solved. The lone exception was a five-year old girl with tan, olive-colored skin who had dark feaures. (LogOut/ I have to ask that if you or someone you know knows anything about any one of these cases, please contact your local police department as soon as possible. They also tried to see if her disappearance was tied to other missing persons cases from surrounding states. What happened to little Jeremy? He would be sixty-five years old as of this episode's recording, and there's only a brief mention of him on the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division's sex offender registry. A missing persons report was filed with the county, where Kia is listed as being 4'2" tall, and weighing about 60 to 70 pounds. Remember, this is before the trial of OJ Simpson, so DNA testing was very much in its infancy. But, rather, because he has said some very damning things about himself and committed some criminal acts, none of which would paint him as a flattering neighbor. I'm not the first to ask that question and so many more than me want to know the answer. "He'll get credit for time served and good behavior. How can we send such a message? At the time of her disappearance, Reinaldo Javier "Ray" Rivera, now a convicted serial killer, was attending the University of South Carolina. On October 1, 1990, Malakia's remains were found in a wooded area on U.S. Forest Service property in Newberry County. Like I said, these crimes varied by location, with some taking place in Georgia and others in South Carolina. They had suspended the searches on Tuesday afternoon, after finding nothing in the two days out there. Thank you! Titled "The Malakia Z. Logan Reward Fund," it hope to incentivize anyone with information to come forward. She had one sister, named Renee, and the three lived in an apartment complex just north of Greenwood, South Carolina. He said its unlikely that no one saw the shooter, but rather that witnesses dont feel comfortable sharing what they saw. Hampton was known to spend a good amount of time on this farm, and it remained on the investigator's radar for a good amount of time after this initial confession. When Hampton stopped cooperating with police and withdrew his previous statements taking credit for the 1995 and 1996 sexual assaults, police realized that they needed to build a case around evidence, not just his comments. Childrens underwear was also found and sent away for forensic testing. Winds light and variable. He was sentenced to eight years in prison, with credit for time served and good behaviour. Nothing more is known On a cold and rainy Thursday morning Jeremy Grice mysteriously vanished from his North Augusta home. You can also contact the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division at (803) 737-9000. It was occupied by an older white male with graying hair. Dennis Beauford, the deputy who had originally responded, was a Sergeant at this point in time for the Greenwood County Sheriff's Office. Dennis Beauford, the responding deputy, ended up staying the night on the couch of the Logan family, waiting for there to be any ransom calls or communication from Kia herself. Upon receiving Bernettas call, a bulletin was released, featuring the young girls description, which informed the countys officers that she was an African American female who stood at 42; weighed 60 to 70 pounds; and was wearing yellow shorts, a yellow-and-white polka dot shirt, and slip-on shoes. Upon being let out of prison, he was immediately re-arrested for the 1995 abduction and rape of a 7-year-old victim from Richland County, South Carolina. On Sept. 3, 2007 at 1:00 am the victim LaKavis Henicks age 13 was shot to death in the parking lot of the Gaz-Bah at 6201 Farrow Rd. On June 22, 2007, the prosecutor announced that the charges against Hampton would be dropped, citing a lack of evidence to corroborate his prior confession. The location of the skull was four miles east of the city of Newberry and 35 miles east of Greenwood. The family, to their credit, was steadfast in their conviction, wanting to to see Hampton in a court to face the charges levied against him. Does it not bother you, as it does me, that our community, with a few exceptions, seems to be showing little aggressive concern over the mysterious disappearance of one of our children, Kia Logan? An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the e-mail address listed on your account. A translator helped him speak to officers, and he said he was robbed before he and the other man were shot by a masked man. Victims advocates play an important role in communicating with the families of people killed, and officers work to be up-front and communicate often with the families. To this day, the case remains open and unsolved. Kia was dead. But we can't prove it. At the scene, officers found a crowd of people with several gathered around a young mans body. Here, the skull would be confirmed as belonging to Kia Logan, with the FBI forensic investigators theorizing that Kia had originaly been killed in Greenwood County and then later dumped in Newberry County. The shooting on Sumter Street happened at 8:45 p.m. May 22, and while a car and two apartments were damaged, no one was injured. Six have gone unsolved. You never know if that tiny piece of information could flesh out the full puzzle. They are asking local law enforcement to. Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in. It is known that her friends lost track of her in the crowd so they assumed that she had a ride home and left. Coroner IDs man killed in Greenwood shooting, Greenwood police identify suspect in Taggart Avenue slaying, Father of firsts: Man's life is a walk through Black history in Greenwood, Greenwood man gets 23-year sentence in death of 18-month-old, Calhoun Falls man faces federal drug count, PTC Foundation lacing up sneakers for Spring Forward 5K, Pi Day Lecture at the Arts Center of Greenwood, EAA and AMA sponsors Build and Fly project. Just like the details he provided: he knew some information about these locales, but not all of the minute details. The results were testing alongside DNA taken from Kia's parents, Bernetta and Richard, and this time, it proved consistent. In most cases, they were sexually assaulted before being abandoned in a public setting, but at least one of the girls wasn't she was simply abducted and then dumped off at a gas station, where she was able to call for help. Speaking about the indictment, longtime Greenwood County Sheriff Sam Riley stated: "There was no relationship between him and Kia. Over the next week, the letter written by Dr. Wiggins inspired many to pledge support to the Malakia Z. Logan Reward Fund. Greenwood's law enforcement now working 4 unsolved homicides By DAMIAN DOMINGUEZ ddominguez@indexjournal.com Jun 5, 2019 Zykevious Ramsey's sister, Jada Leverette, said her brother was a. Theyre experiencing the most horrific thing thats probably ever happened to them in their life, Chaudoin said. Anyone with information on those cases is urged to call law enforcement. They were just a few hundred or so yards from their apartment, where the sisters lived with their mother, a middle school teacher. The felony, which carried a potential ten year sentence, was handed down shortly after his plea. Low 44F. There were approximately 17,721 homicides in South Carolina between 1980 and 2019, according to the Project: Cold Case website for unsolved homicide statistics. And of course, we have our legendary tale of the "swamp man.". At the scene, people were scrambling into cars and driving off, including someone driving Hawkins to the hospital for treatment. The Sheriffs Office, along with other law enforcement and volunteer agencies, conducted a three week search of the area, but were unable to locate any other remains. Along Mount Pleasant Road also known as the S.C. 34 Highway he came across a badly decomposed human skull, which prompted him to contact the Newberry County Sheriffs Office. Renee and their friend decided to stay at the court for a short while longer. The responding deputy ended up spending the night on the Logan familys couch, in case someone called with a ransom or if Kia herself somehow managed to communicate with them. They all lived in housing close to the highway in-question, and they were all abducted from one location and led to another. They wanted to keep their options option, should more evidence be found against him, so they didn't want him to go free and then lose any chance at a prosecutor under double jeopardy laws. Despite the charges being dropped in relation to Kias murder, Hampton was convicted on obstruction of justice in relation to the Richland County case and his alleged false confessions. A lot of times what you hear law enforcement say is we dont want to give a lot of details out because the case is still pending, he said. Three years later, in 1996, Newberry County investigators asked a private genetics lab in North Carolina to perform mitochondrial DNA testing, using DNA obtained from Kias parents, which suggested the skull did, in fact, belong to Kia, a fact that was confirmed upon the skull being sent to the FBI lab in Washington in 1998. Love South Carolina? DNA testing didn't match him in one of the Georgia cases. However, Kia lived with her mother, Bernetta Logan Baylor, who was a teacher at a nearby middle school. He had a pockmarked face with pointed features, and his hair is believed to have been brownish with sun streaks. Can't we show at least as much concern for the fate of a child? Upon the 1996 arrest of Charles Hampton, the string of child abductions plaguing the area of Georgia and South Carolina seemed to come to an end. When you get a case like, for example, in 2006 if we havent developed any suspects then I think we need to release a little more information and try to bring a little more to the board and see if we get some more probability of striking someones memory.. They tried to use the dental records and skull reconstruction techniques available to them, in an effort to determine if the skull was Kia's, but nothing was positively confirmed. "We're looking for a medium blue utility-type van with dark tinted windows. Witnesses said they heard the shooting and one gave a description of a suspect but left before officers could question them further. As the years pass, the mystery just intensifies. There was no identification on them, but it was surmised they were traveling or 'backpacking'. Since that time two ponds have been drained, searches have been conducted, and a serial killer (who would have been a teenager at that time) has been interviewed all to no avail. They had been shot. I know that we dont want to think about such things happening in our own backyard, but we must. It happened May 15, 1988, somewhere between the small park that was just 300 yards away from the apartment complex and her door. However, theyd waited to pursue their case, as they didnt want to risk activating an interstate agreement between Georgia and South Carolina, which would have required them to have brought Hampton to trial within 180 days of the charges being laid. People with information are encouraged to call Crime Stoppers at 1-888-CRIME-SC. He also had a blotchy, pockmarked face, made worse from poison ivy exposure the year prior. And in that time, more terrifying and intriguing mysteries would present themselves. Needless to say, Charles Hampton was now on their radar. As time passed, approximately 13,853 of those murders were solved, leaving the state with approximately 3,868 unsolved murders in South Carolina as of the last website update. He had bloodstains on his clothes and was trying to tell officers something, but he didnt speak English. Subscribe Now:. Police recovered six shell casings and spoke with witnesses who heard the shooting, but didnt see the car the shooter drove by in, according to a report. It was early morning, October 2001 on Interstate 526. This is the name that will be displayed next to your photo for comments, blog posts, and more. James Paul Freund (September 16, 1946 - August 9, 1976) and Pamela Mae Buckley (December 16, 1951 - August 9, 1976), commonly known as the Sumter County Does, Jock Doe and Jane Doe respectively, [5] were two previously unidentified American murder victims found in Sumter County, South Carolina on August 9, 1976. The victim was not the intended target. In fact, police noted that he might have been a little TOO eager at times. In all of the sexual assaults, the victim profile remained largely the same. It saw donations come in from both residents of Greenwood and local businesses, resulting in a total of over $20,000 raised. Sam Riley, who had been a Major in the Greenwood County Sheriff's Office, had recently been elected Sheriff. The Greenwood County Sheriffs Office can be reached at 864-942-8632, or by calling CrimeStoppers at 1-888-CRIME-SC. It happened around 9:15 p.m. at a home. cityofgreenwoodsc.com/departments/police/submit-an-anonymous-tip. In-between the apartment's basketball court and her front door, this little girl had disappeared. ", "People are definitely keeping small children in. Unsolved Cases - City of Columbia Police Department Unsolved Cases If you can help solve any of these crimes or think that you may know something no matter how small, please contact the Violent Crimes Against Persons Unit - VCAP at: (803)545-3525. Rewards are being offered. Police have shared that Kias abduction was a crime of opportunity, and that Hampton did not know the young girl. Sadly, if we forget then so do others and no one should be forgotten. We're requesting anyone with information call our office.". If You enjoy it, please Like, Share and Subcribe this Chanel. After this discovery, interrogators circled back around to Hampton. Every state has its unsolved mysteries and South Carolina, unfortunately, is not without its own. DNA testing confirmed her identity. "Reading his statement, you'd think that only the person who did that would know those details. Calling them cold cases implies theyre no longer active, but Chaudoin said the unsolved homicides in Greenwoods city limits since 2001 are still top of mind for him. Advertisement Investigators with the Greenwood Police. Major Sam Riley was stated: "Our department, as well as SLED and FBI personnel, are still actively investigating. Create a password that only you will remember. Change). Between the 2002 indictment and this, he had accrued nearly five years of time served. The physical search didn't produce any leads or clues. Your e-mail address will be used to confirm your account. The charges against Hampton was dropped due to lack of evidence. Kia was a third grade student at Merrywood Elementary School. (LogOut/ Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in. From video footage they have been able to piece together that the car was a red Oldsmobile Alero made between 1999 and 2003. He did not live here. If you forget it, you'll be able to recover it using your email address. "Normally there would be a family get-together in Saluda. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. The sunny atmosphere from just a few days prior had evaporated. Soon, the one-year anniversary of Kia's disappearance had come-and-gone. The Disappearance of Nguyet Thu Wiki Phung, Case Update: Brittanee Drexels Remains Discovered After 13 Years, SuspectCharged, The Disappearances of Tina & BethanySinclair. He admitted to committing three child abductions in northern Georgia and confessed to having killed a child at an out-of-state farm. It hasn't been updated with any of his current information. He was taken to Self Regional Medical Center for treatment, where he died of his injury. When the police finally arrived they found all three of the victims in a utility room in the back of the bank. Sometime in the middle of the night, a man stole her from the bedroom without waking her. You hate to have any murders, but I think a 91% solve rate is probably one of the highest ones out there, especially for a department our size and with that number of them, he said. This means that, between the time of his plea and now, Charles Wade Hampton has likely served his time and since been released. ", Riley, of course, was Major Sam Riley of the Greenwood County Sheriff's Office. This indictment was signed by 8th Circuit Solicitor William Townes Jones - the same William Townes Jones whose daughter, Townes, was given international popularity in the Harry Styles' song "Carolina.". In each crime, the suspect was described as a middle-aged white man, with some kind of gray stubble on his face and a pockmarked complexion, as well as a unique tattoo on a bicep - which some of the young victims called a "dragon," and others a "snake.". We won't share it with anyone else. Through the rest of the year, police would remain relatively silent as to where their investigation stood. Sylvia Holtzclaw was running the bank alone on Friday, May 16, 2003, in Greer, SC. Freeman died at the hospital while being treated for his injuries. Cold cases isnt the term Greenwood Police Chief T.J. Chaudoin likes to use for his departments unsolved homicides. He was a former Department of Transportation employee, who lived in Clarke County, Georgia, and worked at the rest stop at Hard Labor Creek State Park as a maintenance man. One of the most intriguing and promising leads in this investigation came on that Wednesday night, May 18th, when a composite sketch of a potential suspect was aired on the evening news. A clear sky. It was not long until 52-year-old Charles Wade Hampton, a maintenance worker at the Hard Labor Creek State Park rest stop in Georgia and a former employee of the Department of Transportation, came onto police radar. In the weeks since Kia had gone missing, Bernetta struggled to leave the phone for any prolonged period of time. Calling them cold cases implies they're no longer active, but Chaudoin. Earlier that morning, his mother had checked on him before leaving for work. It was a Sunday in Greenwood, South Carolina - a small town roughly an hour north of Augusta, Georgia and about an hour-and-a-half west of Columbia, South Carolina. Anyone with information on any of Greenwoods homicides is asked to call law enforcement at 911, or police detectives at 864-942-8407. Alex Murdaugh took the witness stand on Feb. 23, Day 23 of his trial for the murders of his wife Maggie and son Paul.When Murdaugh . But Mr. Murdaugh, part of a prominent family of South Carolina lawyers, has denied any involvement in the unsolved killings . He voluntarily provided blood and hair samples. Online"10 Books to Cozy Up With This December"PopSugar A popular sorority girl. Scary. Contact staff writer Damian Dominguez at 864-634-7548 or follow on Twitter @IJDDOMINGUEZ. Many of these details matched up with what police had heard from the victims themselves - but others did not. Video from the area showed a car with someone hanging out of the back passenger window and firing. Parker told police he heard a knock at the front door and opened it, then was shot by one of the two men there. I'm thinking in terms of fifty or a hundred thousand dollars for information leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible a reward made up of contributions from those who really care, in amounts affordable to them parents, concerned citizens and businesses. Police were later able to link him to a farm, which was owned by a friend. He had been in police custody, and when questioned, he began confessing to the crimes. Link said Maj. Hugh Butler, who oversees the detectives division, said officers are making progress with the evidence they have, but there is no new information detectives can release right now. Within the year, the Malakia Z. Logan Reward Fund had topped $20,000, for any information that would lead to answers for the missing eight-year old. On September 23, 1992, Dail Dinwiddie vanished into the night as she was walking along Harden Street in Columbia, SC. Bernetta spent a few minutes searching the area around the apartment complex, but when she couldnt find her daughter, she called the Greenwood County Sheriffs Office to report her as missing. Her father was the mayor of Saluda, a small town in South Carolina, and her mother was a teacher at a local middle school. They searched pretty exhaustively for around three weeks, unable to locate any more remains other than the skull. Soon, children began playing outside of the Georgetown apartments once again, Kia's disappearance becoming an outlier to a safe community. Two months into the investigation, at least one thing was crystal clear: Kia Logan may have been missing, but she most certainly wasn't going to be forgotten. We won't share it with anyone else. Most concerning, though, were torn out magazine images of children - a discovery that made investigators think that there might be more to this deviant than meets the eye.
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