‘He’s got a gun!’ Witness testifies about moments leading up to SC teen’s death
On the third day of an increasingly contentious murder trial, the defendant’s son was planted on the witness stand for nearly three hours, detailing moments that led up to the shooting death of a 14-year-old boy.
On May 28, 2023, only two people could give a first-hand account of what led to the death of Cyrus Carmack-Belton — Rick Chow and his son, Andy.
The two men had chased Carmack-Belton 130 yards from a Shell gas station at 7441 Parklane Road, down Springtree Drive, after wrongfully suspecting he’d stolen bottles of water.
Following nine witnesses presented by the prosecution, the defense began its case-in-chief Friday morning after asking Circuit Court Judge Heath Taylor for a directed verdict of “not guilty,” arguing the state failed to prove that Chow was guilty of murder beyond a reasonable doubt.
Taylor “respectfully” denied the motion, prompting defense attorney Shaun Kent to take to the podium, calling Andy as the defense’s first witness.
At 5’11’’ and 185 pounds, Andy, now 23, appeared timid and soft-spoken as Kent began asking him to recall his encounter with Carmack-Belton on May 28, 2023.
How the encounter began
Andy testified that he first encountered Carmack-Belton as he was he stocking shelves inside the Shell gas station then-owned by his parents, Chow and Alice Chow.
Carmack-Belton, who carrying a bookbag, was asked to leave the bag in front of the store by Alice, Rick Chow’s wife, according to Andy. The 14-year-old complied.
“He goes to the water cooler, and that’s when I think he pockets the water,” Andy told jurors. “He starts coming to the front, and I ask him if there’s anything in his pocket, and he says no.”
Evidence presented at trial showed that Carmack-Belton wasn’t lying. After reviewing an “intricate” and “expensive” video surveillance system installed in the store, investigators and prosecutors determined the boy hadn't stolen anything.
As Carmack-Belton is seen on video footage casually exiting the store — after being accosted by Alice and Andy about a suspected theft — Andy, Chow and Alice left the store in pursuit of the teenager, leaving another customer alone who was standing at the register.
After making his way around a corner of the building, realizing he was being pursued, Carmack-Belton took off running with Chow and Andy in hot pursuit — even running out of a shoe and abandoning two cell phones, one belonging to his mother. Alice, meanwhile, hoovered around the store’s parking lot, according to video evidence submitted at trial.
In support of his suspicion that Carmack-Belton had stolen something, Andy testified he noticed a “heavy bulge” in the pocket of the boy’s hoodie.
‘He has a gun!’
As Andy and Chow began pursuing Carmack-Belton down Springtree Drive — which dead ends to an apartment complex — Andy said he saw the boy throw something to the right, but did not stop long enough to identify what it was.
He told the jury the teen crossed the street and then tripped and fell “flat” on the grass. Upon catching up to Carmack-Belton, Andy said he saw something in the teen’s hand — and as the boy began to get up, Andy realized it was a gun.
“He points it at me,” Andy testified. Andy said he raised his hands, backed away and yelled to his father, “He’s got a gun,” telling jurors his father yelled for the teen to drop the gun and then fired a single shot.
Carmack-Belton then “took a step or two, dropped the gun and fell to the ground.”
Andy’s testimony spoke to the most prevalent and disputed issue in the case: whether Carmack-Belton presented and pointed a gun at Andy before Chow fired.
“Andy how did you feel when there was a gun pointed at you,?” Kent asked Andy.
“Terrified. I thought (Carmack-Belton) was going to shoot me,” Andy replied.
Evidence of a 911 call made by Andy, moments after Carmack-Belton was shot, shows Andy telling a dispatcher the teen “pulled out a gun” on him before Chow fired.
The defense also highlighted how Andy told the dispatcher that Chow was actively performing life-save measures on the teen by giving him mouth-to-mouth CPR.
Conflicting accounts
Despite Kent’s efforts to show Andy “was in fear of his life” after Carmack-Belton allegedly pointed a gun at the then-20-year-old, evidence showed inconsistent accounts.
Indeed, Andy informed the 911 operator that Carmack-Belton “pulled a gun,” but never said the gun was directly pointed at him, according to evidence presented at trial.
Moreover, Chow, before firing the fatal shot, never saw the teen with a gun, but only fired after being alerted by Andy, according to born-worn camera footage shown in court.
Andy was questioned on cross-examination about why he and his father pursued the boy in the first place, with having such an elaborate video surveillance system they could’ve easily used to furnish police with evidence of a suspected shoplifter.
Notwithstanding whether Carmack-Belton pointed a weapon at Andy — which the prosecution denies — the issue of who started the incident was brought into question by Scott.
“Who put you and your father at that location on Springtree Drive,” Scott asked Andy.
“I put myself there,” he responded looking downcast.
“Who put your dad there,?” Scott responded. “Did you drag (your dad) along? Did anybody make (you and your dad) run up a hill 130 yards from your store, leaving the cash register unmanned?
Struggling to answer the question, Andy eventually testified he and his father pursued Carmack-Belton on their own.
“The Shooting doesn’t happen if everybody stays put in the shell gas station, correct?” Scott asked Andy.
“Yes sir,” Andy replies.
On a third re-direct, Kent asked whether the shooting would’ve happened had not the teen pulled a gun.
To which, on his final re-cross, Scott yells, “You don’t even know there’s a gun if you stay in the gas station, right?”
“Yes sir,” Andy humbly replies.
Closing arguments expected Monday
The defense called three witnesses, who besides Andy included a former Richland County Sheriff’s Deputy who responded to the scene of the shooting and an EMS student who rendered aid to Carmack-Belton, rested Friday afternoon.
Chow nor his wife, Alice, will testify in his defense.
Closing arguments are expected to begin Monday morning.
This story was originally published May 29, 2026 at 5:44 PM.
