Crime & Courts

Son charged with killing his parents, Lexington sheriff’s office says

A 27-year-old man has been charged with murdering his parents on Thursday in their Columbia house, the Lexington County Sheriff’s Department said.

Kevin Jackson Westberry is charged with two counts of murder and possession of a weapon during a violent crime, the sheriff’s office said.

When authorities arrived at 9:36 p.m. at the Newpark Place house to check on its residents, they found the bodies of Subrina Jackson Westberry, 60, and Kenneth Wayne Westberry, 59. Subrina Westberry’s employers asked police to check on the couple.

Subrina Westberry had not shown up for work and a co-worker had not been able to get in touch with her.

“That was unusual,” said Lexington County Sheriff’s Capt. Adam Myrick.

According to an arrest warrant, Kevin Westberry, who lived with his parents, initially told deputies he had not heard from his parents and they were possibly in Charleston. However, deputies searched the house and found the couple’s bodies in the master bedroom. How long the couple’s bodies were there is being determined.

The couple had gunshot wounds to their upper bodies, according to Lexington County Coroner Margaret Fisher.

Kevin Jackson Westberry is being held in the Lexington County Detention Center, the sheriff’s office said.

Autopsies for Subrina and Kenneth Westberry are scheduled to take place at MUSC in Charleston.

This story was originally published September 24, 2021 at 2:00 PM.

Joseph Bustos
The State
Joseph Bustos is a state government and politics reporter at The State. He’s a Northwestern University graduate and previously worked in Illinois covering government and politics. He has won reporting awards in both Illinois and Missouri. He moved to South Carolina in November 2019 and won the Jim Davenport Award for Excellence in Government Reporting for his work in 2022. Support my work with a digital subscription
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