COLUMBIA – South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson announced Thursday State Grand Jury criminal gang-related indictments of eight people in Richland, Lexington and Newberry Counties on murder, attempted murder, burglary, conspiracy and other offenses. The indictments allege the defendants committed these crimes as members of a criminal gang.

“These indictments describe a gang that allegedly carried out acts of violence throughout the Midlands,” Wilson said. “The State Grand Jury, the Attorney General’s Office and state and local law enforcement will continue to work together to make our communities safer.”

The indictments were handed down by the State Grand Jury after work by the Columbia Police Department, South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED), Lexington County Sheriff’s Department, Cayce Police Department, Swansea Police Department, the Attorney General’s Office and the South Carolina State Grand Jury.

The State Grand Jury investigation into these criminal activities began following a series of shootings on April 8, 2016 at multiple locations in Lexington County and the City of Columbia. Through the course of their separate investigations, the local law enforcement agencies involved in this case were able to determine that these shootings were all connected to each other, to two earlier burglaries involving car dealerships in Swansea, and multiple vehicle thefts in Lexington County and Newberry County. After establishing these connections, the local law enforcement agencies jointly approached SLED and the Attorney General’s Office for assistance in what was determined to be a multi-jurisdictional gang investigation.

Suspected Blood gang members Tyree Dayquan Geiger, William Anthony Burrell Jr., Davanta Terrance Johnson and Nasiir Ali Shaheed Daniels have each been charged with conspiracy, two counts of second degree burglary, petit larceny, grand larceny, and multiple counts of breaking into motor vehicles in connection with the March 30, 2016 burglaries of two Swansea area car dealerships resulting in the theft of five vehicles which have all been recovered by law enforcement. Another co-conspirator has already pled guilty to Lexington County indictments being prosecuted by the Attorney General’s Office.

Geiger, Davanta Johnson, and Daniels are also charged with additional counts of conspiracy, breaking into motor vehicles in relation to the additional thefts of a Chevrolet Avalanche (Lexington County) and Chevrolet Impala (Newberry County) on April 8, 2016. These vehicles are suspected to have been used in four separate shootings on that date.

These indictments report that the first shooting occurred when Davanta Johnson, Geiger and Daniels participated in a drive-by shooting at a Lexington County school bus stop in an attempt to murder a rival gang member.

The indictments further state that Geiger and Daniels committed a random drive-by shooting in Lexington County later that same day.

A separate indictment says that, later that evening, suspected Blood gang members Faiquan Daewoo Shyon Swindell, Jamal Taewon Johnson, Daquan Darnell Henderson, Daiquan Lamont Brooks, Tyree Dayquan Geiger, Davanta Terrance Johnson and Nasiir Ali Shaheed Daniels conspired to drive into the City of Columbia to shoot opposing gang members. While driving through the Hammond Village apartment complex, the defendants allegedly shot into a group of people standing outside whom the defendants believed to be opposing gang members. The only person in the targeted group to be hit by a bullet was an suspected fellow Blood gang member who died as a result of his injuries.

Immediately following the murder in the City of Columbia, these defendants are suspected to have conspired and committed another drive-by shooting in Lexington County.

On April 30 Faiquan Daewoo Shyon Swindell, Jamal Taewon Johnson, Daquan Darnell Henderson, Tyree Dayquan Geiger, Davanta Terrance Johnson, Nasiir Ali Shaheed Daniels, and William Anthony Burrell Jr. appeared in court for bond hearings. William Anthony Burrell Jr. was granted a $150,000 bond with special conditions. However, he is currently being held in the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center on unrelated charges. Bond was denied for the remaining defendants. Daiquan Lamont Brooks is currently incarcerated in the South Carolina Department of Corrections and will have a court appearance at a later date.

The investigation remains ongoing. Any citizens with information on these individuals or their associates should contact the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED), the Columbia Police Department, the Cayce Police Department, or the Lexington County Sheriff’s Department.

The Attorney General stressed that all defendants are innocent until they plead or are proven guilty in court.

In regards to this case, City of Newberry Police Chief Roy McClurkin said that gangs are prevalent throughout this state and county.

“We do get people from other jurisdictions to this area to commit crimes to further their criminal activity, it’s nice to know that a partnership between the city, county and state can help alleviate these type crimes, and bring people who commit these crimes to justice,” he said.

Sheriff Lee Foster added that gangs are a problem all over the state, and it doesn’t matter if it is a rural or urban area.

“They are going to come into an area and victimize you, and that’s what they do, commit crimes to further their goals,” he said.

https://www.newberryobserver.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/web1_jpeg.jpgCourtesy photo

Staff Report