Special education teacher accused of Surfside Beach break-ins

A teacher at Socastee High School is being held at the J. Reuben Long Detention Center after he was accused of breaking into homes and at least one car in the Surfside Beach area.

Forty-five-year-old Bion Legrand Shoemaker, III, of Surfside Beach has been charged with three counts of second-degree burglary to a residence and one count of breaking into and robbing a motor vehicle. He also faces charges of simple possession of marijuana and for carrying a pistol unlawfully.

Shoemaker is a former special education teacher at St. James High School. He was employed as a teacher at Socastee High School for the 2016-2017 school year. Shoemaker was booked into the detention center Thursday evening and remained in custody Sunday afternoon.

Surfside Beach Investigators were able to recover numerous items of stolen property, which linked Shoemaker to the burglaries, according to a release from the Surfside Beach Police Department.

“We are pleased to be able to recover some of the victim’s property in these cases,” Surfside Beach Police Chief Rodney Keziah said in the release. “This is still a very fluid investigation. We anticipate recovering more property and possibly making additional charges.”