Elderly woman shot, kidnapped, stuffed in car trunk for 15 hours, survives; three men arrested
Elderly woman shot, kidnapped, stuffed in car trunk for 15 hours, survives; three men arrested
Three Walterboro men were arrested Tuesday morning in connection with the bizarre home invasion and kidnapping soon after midnight Monday morning of Margaret S.Gooding, 78, of 21484 Old Salkehatchie Road in Miley, a community near Hampton, up the road from Yemassee and Beaufort. According to reports from the Hampton County sheriff’s office, Gooding was shot, kidnapped from her home, and stuffed in a car trunk for 15 hours before she was discovered late Monday afternoon alive in the trunk by deputies after a report by an alert citizen.
Stevie Lamont Aiken, 30, of 609 4th Street, Walterboro, arrested and charged with burglary first, kidnapping, assault and battery with intent to kill, grand larceny, felon in possession of a weapon and armed robbery.
Nathaniel Harris, 48, of 100 Sniders Highway, Apt. L3, Walterboro, arrested and charged with burglary first, kidnapping, assault and battery with intent to kill, grand larceny, felon in possession of a weapon and armed robbery.
Derrick Ladel Aiken,29, of 315 6th Street, Walterboro, arrested and charged with accessory before and after the fact.
According to the report, Stevie Aiken and Derrick Aiken are brothers.
Location of the community of Miley, near the town of Hampton in Hampton county, which is adjacent to Beaufort county – View Larger Map
The Hampton County sheriff’s office press release Tuesday afternoon states:
- Officers were called to Margaret Gooding’s residence around 1:30 am Monday after receiving a call from neighbors that they were concerned about her after hearing a gunshot.
- Officers arrived on scene and noticed things were not as they should be at the residence. They discovered Gooding missing, blood in the residence, and Gooding’s car gone. Also discovered was a broken window in the home.
- Once the discovery was made, a Be On the Lookout (BOLO) bulletin was issued to search for the car and suspects. Gooding’s car was described as a white Buick LeSabre bearing SC license tag number ASH693. Law enforcement officers throughout Hampton and Colleton counties, the Department of Natural Resources, and the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division helicopter were called to aid in the search for Gooding’s car. A reverse 911 system was used in the county to help aid in the search.
- The search continued throughout Monday. A break came in the investigation when a man entered the Branch Bank & Trust office in Walterboro around 2 pm and attempted to cash one of Gooding’s checks. The man was apprehended for questioning.
- Around 4 pm a citizen made a phone call to 911 after locating a white car that had been parked in the same location for many hours. The citizen gave the license tag number to 911, at which time officers went to the scene and discovered Gooding in the trunk of her car. Gooding had at least one gunshot wound and was transported by helicopter to MUSC in Charleston for treatment. She was in stable condition late Monday night and expected to make a full recovery.
Although the alleged shooting and kidnapping occurred in Hampton county, nearby Colleton county is where the suspects were arrested and is their place of residence, according to the press release. Colleton county and its normally tranquil county seat, the town of Walterboro, have been the scene of a spate of drive-by shootings, killings and other violent crimes in recent weeks, which appear to be drug-related according to press reports.
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- Two brothers shot last night near Yemassee, one dies
- Man arrested in Yemassee killing, charged with murder
- Alleged cocaine dealer arrested in Jasper county
- Four Yemassee men arrested for shooting victim in lower back
