BERKELEY COUNTY, S.C.–According to the Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office, a Summerville man has been charged with murder after a victim succumbed to gunshot wounds stemming from a drug deal.
Just before 4 a.m. on Friday, February 17, 2017, deputies from the Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office responded to the 200 block of Cember Way, an industrial area in the unincorporated area of Summerville, in reference to a reported car crash involving a vehicle that was reported to have visible bullet holes in it.
Responding deputies say they found a truck against a tree with a male slumped over the steering wheel who was bleeding. EMS responded and transported the victim to Trident Main for treatment.
Shortly after detectives began investigating the incident, Richard Thomas Rentiers reported the truck the victim was in as being stolen. The truck, a company vehicle, had been in the care of Rentiers. Rentiers also reported that his .45 caliber pistol was in the
truck when it was stolen.
The investigation revealed that a witness reported that Rentiers went to the incident location to buy drugs but, upon returning, Rentiers told the witness that he had shot the victim. During the execution of a search warrant, the .45 caliber pistol that Rentiers said was in the truck when it was stolen was located hidden in the ceiling of a residence he had been visiting.
On Sunday, February 19th, the victim succumbed to his injuries. The Charleston County Coroner’s Office will release the name of the victim, according to Chief Deputy Mike Cochran.
The Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office has arrested Richard Thomas Rentiers of Driver Avenue in Summerville on Friday, February 17th and charged him with filing a false report of a stolen vehicle and attempted murder.
These charges will be upgraded to murder. An additional charge of possession of a weapon during a violent crime is also pending. The investigation is continuing in order to identify any possible suspects.
Rentiers is being held at the Hill Finklea Detention Center on no bond at the present time.
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