LAKE CITY, SC (WBTW) – Lake City police officers killed a man wanted out of Virginia early Tuesday morning, interim police chief Jeff Johnson confirmed to News13.
Officers pulled the man over at about 1:30 a.m. on Highway 52 near the Huddle House restaurant.
The man started shooting, the chief said, and officers fired back and killed him.
On Tuesday, Florence County Coroner Keith von Lutcken identified the man as 22-year-old Richard Lance London of Danville, Virginia.
According to GoDanRiver.com, London was the suspect in the homicide of 80-year-old Melvin Eugene Powell of Danville.
The coroner says the man was pronounced dead at 3:40 a.m. at a local hospital due to injuries incurred in the shooting incident. An autopsy will be done Tuesday at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston.
According to Thom Berry, SLED is conducting an independent investigation of the shooting.
The mayor of Lake City, Lovith Anderson, Jr., also released a statement Tuesday on the shooting.
Tragedy struck our city early this morning when a man wanted for homicide in the state of Virginia opened fire on our Lake City police officers during a routine traffic stop. It is important to note that the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) is investigating this matter as they do in all officer-involved shootings. We are extremely thankful for our brave men and women in uniform here in Lake City. They risk their lives daily for the citizens of our community and did so this morning. Thank you to our Chief for his leadership and dedication to keeping us safe
A SLED press release also says this incident was the 28th officer involved shooting in South Carolina this year and the first involving an officer of the Lake City Police Department.