An argument over marijuana preceded a fatal encounter that left 18-year-old Carlos Lamarcus Bethel, a male from Irmo, South Carolina, with mortal injuries. On the night of August 8, 2019, Bethel was one of three individuals shot while inside a vehicle on Forestview Circle in Columbia. Emergency services were called to the scene after a report of a car crash, only to find the three teenagers suffering from gunshot wounds.
Another young man, 19-year-old Tyson Angelo Anderson, was pronounced dead at the scene from a gunshot wound to the torso.
Bethel was rushed to Prisma Health Richland Memorial Hospital, where he fought for his life for nearly a week. He ultimately succumbed to complications from gunshot wounds to his upper body on August 14, 2019. A third victim in the vehicle survived the incident but sustained life-altering injuries. The shooting took place in the Forest at Harbison neighborhood, a short distance from a Columbia Police Department substation.
The investigation into the double homicide led authorities to 19-year-old Kevin Duane Greene III. Investigators determined that Greene had gotten into the car with the intention of a marijuana transaction. At some point while the car was in motion, Greene reportedly pulled out a gun, shot all three occupants, and then jumped from the moving vehicle. A collaborative effort between the Richland County Sheriff's Department's fugitive task force and the U.S. Marshals led to Greene's apprehension in Atlanta, Georgia.
Following his arrest, Greene was held at a Fulton County jail, awaiting extradition back to Columbia to face charges for his alleged role in the deaths of Bethel and Anderson, as well as the attempted murder of the third victim. At the time of the incident, the Richland County Sheriff remarked on the tragic intersection of youth, guns, and drugs, noting that at least two of the teens had gang connections.
