Arrests made after inmates were killed inside infamous South Carolina prison
Months after two inmates were killed on consecutive days at Lee Correctional Institution several other prisoners were charged in the deaths, according to the South Carolina Department of Corrections. That’s the same prison where seven inmates were killed and 17 more were injured during a violent incident in 2018.
On March 13, prison officials said that the South Carolina Department of Corrections Inspector General released arrest warrants connected to the deaths of 37-year-old Mario Leven Harrison and 33-year-old Xavier Martez Delesline, according to a news release.
Charges
Trumaal Abdul Brown, 35, was charged following the Dec. 1, 2025, stabbing death of Harrison at Lee Correctional Institution, the S.C. Department of Corrections said. Brown was charged with murder, prisoner carrying a concealed weapon and possession of a weapon during a violent crime, according to the release.
Four inmates — 28-year-old Michael Jayvone Dennis, 34-year-old Rickardo Davon Thompson, 28-year-old Jarquez Kezavion Cooper and 30-year-old Cameron Christopher Williams — were charged for their roles in the Dec. 2, 2025, stabbing and beating death of Delesline, the S.C. Department of Corrections said. All four were charged with first-degree assault and battery by mob with death results, while Dennis and Thompson also were charged with prisoner carrying a concealed weapon and possession of a weapon during a violent crime, according to the release.
Dec. 1 death
Harrison was assaulted by Brown in a common area of his living unit and later died at a hospital, the S.C. Department of Corrections said.
After a verbal altercation, Brown attacked Harrison with a shank, an arrest warrant shows.
Information about why Brown and Harrison were arguing was not available.
Following the attack, Brown was transferred to Kirkland Reception and Evaluation Center. Brown was an inmate at Lee Correctional after being convicted in January 2024 on charges of trafficking methamphetamine and being a felon in possession of firearm/ammunition, prison records show.
Dec. 2 death
Like Harrison the day before, Delesline was assaulted in a common area of his living unit at the prison, according to prison officials. Unlike Harrison, Delesline died at the prison.
Both Dennis and Thompson stabbed Delesline multiple times with a homemade, edged weapon while others simultaneously assaulted the victim, arrest warrants show.
During the attack, Cooper and Williams punched Delesline in the face with closed fists while the others also assaulted the victim, according to arrest warrants.
Since Delesline was killed, Dennis (Kirkland), Thompson (Perry), Cooper (Perry) and Williams (Broad River) have all been transferred to other correctional institutions, prison records show.
In 2020, Dennis was convicted on attempted murder, armed robbery, first-degree burglary charges as well as two counts of kidnapping in Richland County, prison records show.
In 2013, Thompson was convicted in a Richland County courtroom on multiple armed robbery, burglary and assault charges, according to prison records. In 2015, he was also convicted on a charge of engaging in a riot.
In 2020, Cooper was convicted in Greenville County of murder and a weapons charge, prison records show.
In 2021, Williams was convicted in Richland County on charges of assault and battery, armed robbery and a weapons charge, according to prison records.
There was no word about a motive for the attack on Delesline.
Despite any similarities, S.C. Department of Corrections spokeswoman Chrysti Shain previously told The State that the attacks were unrelated. The assaults occurred in different units of the prison and were different situations, Shain said.
No other injuries were reported in either of the deadly assaults.
The prison
Lee Correctional is a men’s-only, split-custody prison that houses inmates in “close” (high-security) and “medium security” facilities, according to the Department of Corrections. Like other close prisons in South Carolina, Lee is “designed primarily to house violent offenders with longer sentences, and inmates who exhibit behavioral problems,” the Department of Corrections said.
The prison is in Bishopville, about 50 miles east of Columbia.
Another inmate at Lee Correctional died earlier in 2025 in what was originally investigated as a suspicious incident.
On May 9, 40-year-old Leo Jermaine Cheeks was found unresponsive in his cell, according to the S.C. Department of Corrections. Days later, an autopsy was performed, and it showed no foul play causing the death to no longer be investigated as suspicious, the S.C. Department of Corrections said.
History of violence
These attacks and the 2018 riot are not the only recent violent incidents at the prison.
In September 2024, another inmate at Lee Correctional was killed. Idris Wasim Ballard-Gallardo, 23, died at the prison after he was stabbed while he was in a common area of his assigned housing unit, according to the S.C. Department of Corrections.
Lee Correctional has had other violent incidents in recent years. The State previously reported there have been several large insurrections, including one in which an inmate overpowered a guard and used his keys to free other prisoners from their cells.
Another incident when a prisoner assaulted a staff member happened in February 2020, when an inmate attacked and tried to sexually assault an employee at Lee Correctional, according to the Department of Corrections.
In January 2021, an inmate at Lee Correctional died after a fight with other prisoners.
In another incident at Lee Correctional in November 2020, one inmate was killed after being attacked by other prisoners.
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