HARTSVILLE, SC (WBTW) – SLED has charged a Darlington County inmate for escaping from custody after being treated at Carolina Pines Hospital on May 13.
A press release from spokesperson Thom Berry says 18-year-old Ezekiel Frequel Stevenson was charged with escape, carjacking and resisting/assault, beat or wound police officer serving process or while resisting arrest.
A SLED affidavit says Stevenson was treated and released from the hospital and while he was being loaded into the transport van in the parking lot of the medical center, he took off running. During the escape, the inmate attempted to take a car and also resisted arrest.
Documents suggest the inmate wasn’t able to drive away from officers because he tried to steal a keyless car.
Another affidavit released by investigators says Stevenson pulled the driver out of the car by his shirt, got in the driver’s side door, and locked the doors. The victim unlocked the door with his remote and “stepped away so the vehicle would not crank up.”
“Inmate Stevenson continued to lock the door each time the victim unlocked it remotely for the Darlington County Detention Center Officers to remove him from the vehicle,” the document states. Eventually, officers removed the inmate from the car and Stevenson fled again, resisting arrest and injuring one of the officers. According to SLED, the officer was thrown to the ground and the officer received medical attention for his injuries.
After a search involving local police, the inmate was captured, documents confirm.
The escape charge carries a penalty of up to 15 years in prison, carjacking carries a penalty of up to 20 years and resisting arrest carries a penalty of a fine from $1,000 to $10,000, up to 10 years in prison, or both.
SLED investigated at the request of the Darlington County Sheriff’s Office and the case will be prosecuted by the SC Attorney General’s Office.
