11 years later, Myrtle Beach man charged in beating death

Back in December 2005, Myrtle Beach police were called out to a simple assault case that then turned deadly.

The man police say is responsible for the beating death of 43-year-old Harold Gibson Jr. that December night years ago was arrested Thursday, records show.

Damien Shawn Scott, 39, is charged with involuntary manslaughter in connection with Gibson’s death.

Scott was arrested on the 400 block of South Kings Highway at 7:30 a.m. Thursday, Myrtle Beach jail records.

Officers were called the evening of Dec. 7, 2005, to a home on the 1700 block of North Ocean Boulevard in reference to a fight in progress.

Police spoke with the victim who stated he had gotten into a fight with the suspect after asking the suspect who he was looking for on the property, a police report states. The suspect allegedly punched the victim multiple times during the incident, an affidavit states.

The victim’s girlfriend was a witness to the altercation and said she ran inside to contact police, but the suspect fled southbound on Withers Drive toward 16th Avenue North before authorities arrived, police said.

Responding officers put out a description of the suspect to units in the area then left the scene after the victim declined EMS and told them he didn’t want to file a report, authorities said.

About 10 to 15 minutes later, units were called back to the residence for a 911 call concerning an unconscious patient. When police came back, they noticed the same person they had just spoken with was receiving treatment.

Authorities spoke with the victim’s girlfriend, who told them she discovered the victim in the bathroom and his feet had turned gray.

Police told surrounding agencies to be on the lookout for the suspect and a vehicle he was likely traveling in, according to the report.

The victim, who had been taken to Grand Strand Regional Medical Center, was pronounced dead a short time later.

On Aug. 30, 2006, an administrative assistant within the investigative division of the Myrtle Beach Police Department got an anonymous phone call naming the suspect of the fight as Scott, and said Scott had been bragging about beating the victim to death, authorities said.

The caller also said the suspect lost his hat during the incident and burned his clothes after the incident, and authorities noted a hat was recovered from the crime scene, according to an affidavit.

On Aug. 8 2016, police were notified by South Carolina Law Enforcement Division that evidence that was collected on the scene in 2005 came back linked through the DNA database to Scott, the affidavit said.

Scott was being held at the J. Reuben Long Detention Center where his bond had not been set Thursday afternoon.