Criminal charges involving SC state Rep. RJ May could come within 3 months, feds say

Federal prosecutors indicated in a court filing that State Rep. R.J. May III, R-Lexington, is the likely subject of a pending criminal investigation and may be involved in a criminal indictment “within three months.”

The filing in a federal court records data base is the first official public confirmation that May, who until now has been the subject of speculation he was being investigated, is involved in a criminal investigation.

May is running for a third term in House District 88. He is alone on the ballot, but business owner Brian Duncan has launched a write-in campaign for the seat.

May’s attorney, veteran Columbia criminal defense lawyer Dayne Phillips, could not be reached for comment.

The Thursday filing in federal court record database does not say for what charges May might be indicted.

The filing lists various electronics that were seized apparently at May’s house, on Aug. 5: One Lenovo laptop, one Amazon tablet, four cell phones, four hard drives, four SD cards, two DVD-Rs and 19 thumb drives.

The filing says that federal law authorities seek to take permanent possession of the seized electronic gear in a legal proceeding called a “judicial forfeiture action.” May is contesting the seizure, the filing says.

The State newspaper and other media reported in August that a house belonging to May was searched Aug. 5 by agents of the Homeland Security Investigations unit, a law enforcement agency within the Department of Homeland Security. The agents seized various electronic gear but did not specify what was taken.

That agency conducts federal criminal investigations into child exploitation, human trafficking and the illegal movement of people, goods, money, contraband, weapons and sensitive technology into, out of and through the U.S.

Since those reports, May — noted for being responsive to reporters’ queries on political matters — has been unavailable for comment on the search by phone, text, email and in person attempts.

May did, however, give The State a comment when asked about write-in candidate Brian Duncan, where he shot back at assertions Duncan had made about his recent presence in the district “Mr. Duncan’s assertions simply aren’t true,” May said in a text message. “I’m committed to responding to the needs of the people of District 88 and to representing them for the next two years.”

May did not respond to questions on the investigation this week.

May, 37, was elected to the S.C. House in 2020. He was the former chair of the state Freedom Caucus, a group of ultra conservative Republicans known for their unyielding positions and limited government stances.

May has been described by many in and outside the group as instrumental in the success and startup of the Freedom Caucus. The group often would clash with more moderate Republicans over the last three years.

May is the owner of a political consulting firm, Ivory Tusk Consulting, and lives on Lake Frances Drive in West Columbia. He is married and has two young children, according to state records.

State Rep. Jordan Pace, R-Berkeley, chairman of the Freedom Caucus, told The State on Friday he hadn’t spoken with May in months, and did not have a comment on the federal filing. Pace said some of the other members of the Freedom Caucus may have spoken with him.

State Rep. Ryan McCabe, R-Lexington, another member in the hard-line group, had spoken with May recently.

McCabe said he wasn’t aware of the motion and said he has known May for a few years and has no reason to believe that any of the rumors or things he is accused of are true.

“I know him to be an upstanding person,” McCabe said. “I’ve never learned anything about him, or seen him do anything that would lead me to believe that he’s anything other than an upright individual. But this is all news to me, I had not heard about this.”

McCabe said based on his last conversation with May, he said he assumes May would be incredibly surprised to hear about the motion as well.

“I do believe in R.J., and again… the only thing I know about R.J. is for him to be an upstanding person that you can always count on to keep his word,” McCabe said.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Scott Matthews and Carrie Fisher Sherard are federal prosecutors involved in the case.

A spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s office in Columbia said Friday the office has no comment. “The document speaks for itself.”

The federal judge in the case is Cameron McGowan Currie.

Reporter Joe Bustos contributed to this story.

This story was originally published October 25, 2024 at 6:34 PM.