Man was shot six times and fiancée’s son pulled the trigger, SC prosecutor says
A South Carolina man was recently sentenced to life in prison following the shooting death of his mother’s fiancé, according to the 5th Circuit Solicitor’s Office.
On Aug. 6, a Kershaw County jury convicted Quinterra Siriwat of murder and possession of a weapon during a violent crime charges, the Solicitor’s Office said in a news release. Judge Heath Taylor sentenced the 27-year-old Lugoff resident to life in a South Carolina Department of Corrections prison, officials said.
The conviction was connected to the 2020 fatal shooting of 36-year-old Vidal Bastien, according to the release.
On Dec. 17, 2020, Kershaw County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to a call about a shooting at a Lugoff home, where they found Bastien lying on his bed after getting shot multiple times, the Solicitor’s Office said.
Sirwat lived at the home with his mother and Bastien, who were engaged, according to the release.
Siriwat claimed he had been outside with his mother when he heard shots, and said a man ran out of the house before leaving in a gray car, the Solicitor’s Office said. Siriwat later identified the man as an ex-boyfriend of a family member, according to the release.
Deputies later located the man Siriwat had accused and quickly cleared him of any involvement, the Solicitor’s Office said.
An investigator asked Siriwat and his mother to follow him to the sheriff’s office for interviews, but as they left, a deputy noticed that Siriwat had changed clothes and taken a small bag from his room, according to the release.
Drifting in and out of consciousness, Bastien told deputies that Siriwat had shot him, the Solicitor’s Office said. Bastien died shortly after he was taken to a hospital, according to the release.
When Siriwat was confronted with Bastien’s statement, he again denied involvement and blamed the family member’s ex-boyfriend, the Solicitor’s Office said. When asked about what was in the small bag, Siriwat claimed it was nothing important, but later admitted to investigators there was a gun in the bag and confessed to the shooting, according to the release.
Siriwat told investigators he had argued with Bastien, became frightened, and opened fire, the Solicitor’s Office said. A pathologist said Bastien had been shot six times, according to the release.
Senior Assistant Solicitor Dale Scott and Assistant Solicitor Michael Bradbury prosecuted the case for the Solicitor’s Office. They were assisted by Solicitor’s Office investigator Chris Davis.
Camden attorney Kris Hines was listed as Siriwat’s lawyer, Kershaw County court records show.
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