Discovery of body ends search for missing SC man, cops say. Now they seek who killed him
The search for a missing South Carolina man ended Monday night when Tyrese Najae Lawson’s body was found in a wooded area in the Midlands, according to the Clarendon County Sheriff’s Office.
On Tuesday, Clarendon County Coroner Jacqueline Blackwell confirmed to The State that the 25-year-old man’s death was a homicide. Now an investigation is underway to find Lawson’s killer.
Lawson, who is from the Summerton area of Clarendon County, was publicly reported missing by the Orangeburg County Sheriff’s Office Monday. He had not been seen since April 10, when he was in Santee, according to the Orangeburg County Sheriff’s Office.
At about 7:30 p.m. Monday, deputies responded to a report of a body that was found in the Home Branch area, the Clarendon County Sheriff’s Office said Tuesday afternoon in a news release. A person walking down a dirt road saw what they thought was a body in the woods just off the road, according to the release.
Deputies verified a body was found, and it was determined that it was Lawson, the Clarendon County Sheriff’s Office said.
The sheriff’s office contacted their counterparts in Orangeburg County to alert them of the discovery, while members of the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division’s Crime Scene Unit processed the scene. The coroner’s office responded to the scene and later met with Lawson’s family at the Clarendon County Sheriff’s Office headquarters, according to the release.
An autopsy has been scheduled for Friday at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston to determine Lawson’s cause of death, Blackwell said.
Lawson’s vehicle, a 2010 black Nissan Altima, with a South Carolina license plate reading “WPP-671,” has not been located, the Clarendon County Sheriff’s Office said.
Lawson’s death is being investigated by members of the Clarendon County and Orangeburg County sheriff’s offices along with SLED and the coroner’s office.
Anyone with information about the death, or the whereabouts of Lawson’s car, is asked to call the Clarendon County Sheriff’s Office at 803-435-4414 or 803-433-8477. Tips can also be made by contacting CrimeStoppers at 888-CRIME-SC or submitted online.
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This story was originally published April 15, 2025 at 3:04 PM.
