A South Carolina man has been arrested after he allegedly stabbed a woman to death. Chillingly, this incident comes almost exactly nine years after he was accused of attempted murder of an elderly woman. He was only 16 years old at the time, but was charged as an adult.
As reported by WLTX, Newberry Police Department officers responded to a stabbing call at Bethlehem Gardens in Columbia, South Carolina, at around 1:15 a.m on Saturday, March 14. Upon entering the residence, officers encountered a woman having suffered a stab wound to her upper body.
The victim was transported to a local hospital, but she unfortunately succumbed to her injuries.
Later in the morning, as reported by WIS, Newberry Police and the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) arrested 25-year-old Demars Unique Tyreke Randolph Jr. Newberry Police Chief Kevin Goodman said, “They worked tirelessly throughout the early morning hours to bring this terrible situation to a peaceful end.“
Currently, Randolph is being held at Newberry County Detention Center, where he is awaiting charges.
Previous Attempted Murder Case
Shockingly, this is not the first time that Randolph has been arrested in connection with violent incidents. According to a statement issued by the Lexington County Sheriff’s Department, a 16-year-old Randolph was arrested in Gaston, South Carolina.
Allegedly, the then-teen had entered an elderly woman’s home and used a metal baseball bat to hit her multiple times. Then, he is accused of stealing the woman’s vehicle. He was charged as an adult with attempted murder, burglary, and grand larceny.
“SLED helped us on this case by rendering a composite sketch of the suspect,” Sheriff Jay Koon said at the time. “Our investigators used the sketch to identify Randolph.”
This incident, according to police, occurred on March 15, 2017. That is almost exactly nine years before he allegedly stabbed a woman to death.
It is unclear what the 2017 charges led to, but it appears that Randolph didn’t face the consequences of his alleged actions.
Users online made the connection between the two incidents, and they similarly wondered why he was apparently let off the hook.
“Dates can serve as triggers!” one user said. Another one commented, “Should’ve been locked up from the beginning.” A third one asked, “How did he get away with attempted murder the first time?“
