In the early morning hours of May 6, 2020, the life of 27-year-old DeAndre Javaan Omar Rivers was tragically cut short in North Charleston, South Carolina. A resident of Goose Creek, Rivers was discovered deceased in the driver's seat of his white 2010 Mercedes-Benz on Gullah Avenue around 4:40 a.m. He had sustained multiple gunshot wounds, which the coroner later confirmed as the cause of death. Rivers was a devoted son, brother, uncle, and friend, and was anticipating the birth of his child.
In 2019, he had launched his own clothing line and also worked with his mother in a janitorial service.
The investigation into his death led North Charleston police to 36-year-old Quinton Anthony Taylor. Evidence, including security camera footage that captured a Dodge Ram pickup truck rented by Taylor near Rivers' home before and after the shooting, pointed to his involvement. The footage reportedly showed Taylor getting out of the truck and firing into Rivers' vehicle as he was leaving his residence. Taylor was arrested and charged with murder and possession of a firearm during the commission of a violent crime. At the time of his arrest for the murder, Taylor was already in custody at the Charleston County Detention Center on unrelated charges.
Further investigation uncovered a murder-for-hire plot orchestrated from behind bars. Darrell Kasey Williams, an inmate at a federal prison in Bennettsville, was accused of hiring Taylor to kill Rivers. Investigators stated that Williams used a contraband cell phone to communicate with Taylor, arranging the murder between April and May of 2020. It is alleged that Williams paid Taylor over $12,000 to carry out the killing. Consequently, Williams was charged with accessory to murder.
On September 19, 2025, following a trial at the Charleston County Courthouse, a jury convicted Quinton Anthony Taylor for the murder of DeAndre Rivers. He was subsequently sentenced to life in prison. The prosecution's case was strengthened by cellphone data and communications that linked Taylor to the premeditated plan. Darrell Kasey Williams was also arrested on August 25, 2025, and transported to the Al Cannon Detention Center to face local charges in connection with the murder he allegedly orchestrated.
