Deputies: EMS worker lied about shooting in cemetery, shot himself

A Timmonsville EMS worker reported he was the victim of an attempted murder in a cemetery, but investigators believe he shot himself.

Florence County deputies arrested Richard William Grooms, 58, of Oates Highway on charges that he filed a false police report and damaged property, according to a news release from the Florence County Sheriff’s Office. The Florence Morning News reported Grooms is an EMS employee.

The charges stem from a May 27 shooting at Byrd Cemetery in Timmonsville.

Grooms was shot once in the shoulder and told deputies someone tried to murder him. He was treated at a nearby hospital and released.

Investigators believe Grooms shot himself and earlier fired a round from a 9 mm handgun into the windshield of a Timmonsville Rescue vehicle to make it appear as though he had been shot from outside the vehicle.

Deputies charged him with filing a false police report and malicious injury to property

Grooms was released on a $5,000 personal recognizance bond Thursday.

This story was originally published June 2, 2016 at 12:42 PM with the headline "Deputies: EMS worker lied about shooting in cemetery, shot himself."