In a quiet neighborhood in Columbia, South Carolina, the life of 34-year-old Demetrius Floyd, a male, was tragically cut short on a Sunday night in late November. On November 24, 2019, just before 10 p.m., deputies from the Richland County Sheriff's Department were called to a home in the 400 block of Dubard Boyle Road, near Fairfield Road, following reports of a shooting.
Inside, they found Floyd suffering from multiple gunshot wounds to his upper and lower body.
Emergency medical services rushed Floyd to a local hospital, but his injuries proved to be fatal. He was pronounced dead at 10:38 p.m. The Richland County Coroner's Office later confirmed the cause of death as complications from the gunshot wounds. The incident was one of five shooting deaths reported by the coroner on that same day.
In the days that followed, the Richland County Sheriff's Department launched an investigation, appealing to the public for any information that could lead to an arrest. The search for the person responsible culminated three days later with the apprehension of 18-year-old Jaylen Bell. U.S. Marshals assisted sheriff's deputies in taking Bell into custody in Columbia on the Wednesday following the shooting.
Jaylen Bell was subsequently charged with murder and possession of a weapon during the commission of a violent crime. After his arrest, he was booked and held at the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center. Sheriff Leon Lott publicly thanked the community for their assistance in locating the suspect. While an arrest was made, authorities did not immediately release information regarding a possible motive for the shooting.
