Columbia police investigating shooting near cemetery

A shooter tried to kill someone near a North Columbia cemetery, according to a Columbia Police Department spokesperson.

Saturday afternoon, a gunman shot a single victim in the lower body near the Palmetto Cemetery on the 5100 block of Fairfield Road, leaving the wounded person with non-life threatening injuries, Lt. T.J. Blendowski said. The call for police came about 2 p.m. Paramedics transported the victim to the hospital.

Investigators are working the scene and reviewing surveillance footage to see if they can identify the shooter or the shooter’s vehicle.

The area where the shooting happened is less than a mile from North Main Street and on the same block as Alcorn Middle School.

In July, Columbia Police Chief Skip Holbrook along with Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott and U.S. Attorney Sherri Lydon announced an initiative to fight spiking gun violence in North Columbia.

Check back as this story will be updated as The State finds out more information.

David Travis Bland

The State

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David Travis Bland is The State’s editorial editor. In his prior position as a reporter, he was named the 2020 South Carolina Journalist of the Year by the SC Press Association. He graduated from the University of South Carolina in 2010. Support my work with a digital subscription