Body found in ditch is SC man who was shot in the back of the head, sheriff says
The Clarendon County Sheriff’s Office said it’s investigating a homicide after a man’s body was recently found in a ditch.
John Edward Rhames III, a 32-year-old Summerton resident, was found with what appeared to be a gunshot wound to the back of his head Sunday morning, the sheriff’s office said Wednesday in a news release.
Finding the body
At about 7:45 a.m. Sunday, deputies responded to reports of a unresponsive man lying in a ditch the area near Washington Street, according to the release. That’s in the Summerton area of Clarendon County, near the intersection of U.S. 15 and U.S. 301.
Investigators identified the victim as Rhames, the sheriff’s office said.
No other injuries were reported.
The investigation
There was no word about a shooter or shooters, or anyone else involved in the gunfire. Information about a possible motive for the shooting was not available.
No arrests have been reported, but the homicide continues to be investigated by the sheriff’s office, the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division and the Clarendon County Coroner’s Office.
Another Summerton man’s body found
This was the second Summerton man whose body was found in Clarendon County in as many days.
On Monday night, Tyrese Najae Lawson’s body was found in a wooded area was found in the Home Branch area, the sheriff’s office said. A person walking down a dirt road saw what they thought was a body in the woods just off the road, according to the sheriff’s office.
Deputies verified a body was found, and it was determined that it was Lawson, the sheriff’s office said.
Clarendon County Coroner Jacqueline Blackwell confirmed to The State that the 25-year-old man’s death was a homicide.
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.
On Wednesday, Clarendon County Sheriff Tim Baxley told The State that Lawson and Rhames’ deaths are not connected.
Anyone with information about either of the deaths 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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