22-year-old charged with kidnapping after stealing car at Cayce hotel, cops say
The man accused of stealing a car with a 2-year-old inside on Tuesday night in Lexington County was arrested on multiple charges a day later.
On Wednesday, Shyheem Malik Phillips was charged with vehicle theft and kidnapping, Cayce Department of Public Safety Director Byron Snellgrove said in a new release.
No bond has been set for the 22-year-old, who’s being held at the Lexington County Detention Center, jail records show.
Cayce Department of Public Safety spokesperson Ashley Hunter said at about 4 p.m. Wednesday that Phillips was in custody.
“Last night, he stole a car at one of our Cayce businesses and in doing so, he took an innocent 2-year-old little girl,” Snellgrove said.
At about 11:30 p.m. Tuesday, the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division put out an AMBER alert at the behest of the Cayce DPS.
A person had stolen a car with a 2-year-old girl and dog inside while it was parked at the Quality Inn at 3020 Charleston Highway, DPS said.
The child and dog were found safe about an hour later. Law enforcement officers continued searching for the man who stole the car.
At about 4 p.m. Wednesday, authorities named Phillips as a person of interest, saying he has ties to the Gaston area of Lexington County. Only minutes later, he was in custody, Hunter said.
Phillips was out on bond following a Jan. 15, 2020, arrest on a weapons charge of unlawful carrying of pistol, Lexington County court records show.
“I’m proud of our department — our officers acted swiftly, followed every lead and investigated every detail. And I’m grateful for a caring community and the media who shared the information that helped us identify the suspect,” Snellgrove said. “What’s most important is that (the girl) and her dog were safely returned to her family.”
Tuesday night’s incident happened almost exactly a year after Faye Swetlik went missing while outside her Cayce home. The 6-year-old girl’s body was found in a shallow grave in a wooded area a few hundred feet from her home three days later. Cayce DPS concluded that a 30-year-old who lived nearby abducted and killed Faye and killed himself.
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This story was originally published February 10, 2021 at 4:49 PM.
