In the summer warmth of June 26, 2022, a burst of violence shattered the peace on Wadley Drive in Aiken, South Carolina, claiming the lives of three teenagers. Among them was 16-year-old Ivan Perry, a male student from Aiken High School. The incident unfolded around 1:30 p.m. when deputies responded to reports of gunfire. They discovered a tragic scene in the front yard of a home, where Ivan Perry and 17-year-old Willie L. Garrett IV lay dead from gunshot wounds.
A third victim, 16-year-old Cameron Carroll, was rushed to Augusta University Medical Center, but he too succumbed to his injuries. All three victims were students at Aiken High School, and Willie Garrett and Cameron Carroll were cousins.
Witnesses recounted that prior to the shooting, the three teenagers were engaged in an argument with three other males who then fled the scene in a dark-colored Hyundai. The Aiken County Sheriff's Office swiftly launched an investigation, which they soon described as being related to gang activity. The senseless act of violence prompted a determined effort by law enforcement to bring the perpetrators to justice. The investigation quickly led to the identification of three suspects: 18-year-old Xabian Bailey, 20-year-old Alvin Artis IV, and a 15-year-old juvenile.
The pursuit of justice saw the quick apprehension of Xabian Bailey, who was arrested late on the day of the shooting. The 15-year-old suspect turned himself in to authorities on June 30, 2022. However, Alvin Artis IV managed to elude capture, sparking a five-month manhunt. Artis was already a fugitive, having failed to appear in court for a previous charge of possessing a stolen gun. The extensive search, involving the U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force, ultimately tracked him to Lawton, Oklahoma, where he was arrested without incident in November 2022.
The legal process that followed brought a measure of closure to the families of the victims. Xabian Bailey was convicted on three counts of murder and sentenced to three life terms in prison in 2024. The 15-year-old, whose name was later released as Antonio Jones, pleaded guilty to three counts of voluntary manslaughter and received three 25-year sentences. The final suspect, Alvin Artis IV, after an initial mistrial, was found guilty on three counts of murder in September 2025 and was also sentenced to three life terms in prison. Prosecutors in his trial successfully argued that the murders were premeditated and gang-related, countering the defense's unsubstantiated claims that the victims were armed.
