Columbia man, woman killed in home identified. Relative charged with murder
A man and woman killed inside their Columbia home were identified by the Richland County Coroner’s Office.
Travis Cornelius Smith, 32, and Sherron Jean Hutchinson, 35, were shot to death Saturday, Coroner Gary Watts said in a news release.
They were killed by Ontrell Dashuan Martin, a 20-year-old relative, according to the Richland County Sheriff’s Department.
Deputies were responding to a shots fired call when they discovered the bodies at about 8:15 a.m. in a home in the 4500 block of Robney Drive, the sheriff’s department said. That’s near the 4400 block of Bluff Road.
Smith and Hutchinson were shot in their upper bodies and died at their Columbia home, Watts said.
During the investigation, the sheriff’s department said a woman called and told deputies she and another woman were taken hostage by Martin, who she identified as a family member.
The woman told the sheriff’s department she escaped near Bluff Road after Martin killed two other relatives, later identified as Smith and Hutchinson.
Martin physically assaulted the second woman, and she was treated for her injuries at an area hospital, according to the release.
Information on her condition was not available.
Sometime after 4 p.m., Martin was found in Lexington County, where he was arrested without incident, the sheriff’s department said.
He was taken to the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center, where he’s being held without bond, according to jail records.
Martin was charged with two counts of murder, two counts of kidnapping, attempted murder, first-degree assault and battery, and possession of a weapon during a violent crime, jail records show.
The attempted murder charge stems from Martin’s attempt to run over a pedestrian while fleeing from the double homicide scene, the sheriff’s department said.
Information on a possible motive for the shooting and attack was not available.
The shooting remains under investigation by the sheriff’s department and the coroner’s office.
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This story was originally published February 10, 2020 at 7:48 AM.
