A simmering argument between two men in a Columbia, South Carolina apartment tragically escalated into a double homicide, leaving a 24-year-old man dead. Eric Demetrius Griffin, a Black male, was fatally shot on February 7, 2019, inside the Willow Run Apartments on Alcott Drive. The violent encounter also claimed the life of 23-year-old Antonio Deandre Dash.
Both men succumbed to gunshot wounds to their upper bodies.
The subsequent investigation by the Columbia Police Department swiftly led to the identification and arrest of a suspect. Antonio Vashon Barnes, who was 24 years old at the time, was taken into custody in connection with the double slaying. Law enforcement officials reported that Barnes was inside the apartment when he overheard a heated argument and physical altercation between Griffin and Dash in the living room. In response to the commotion, Barnes allegedly opened fire, killing both men. He was subsequently charged with two counts of murder and possession of a weapon during the commission of a violent crime.
Following his arrest, Antonio Vashon Barnes was booked into the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center. While initial news reports detailed the charges brought against him, publicly available online sources do not contain information regarding the final disposition of his case, including details of a trial, a potential plea agreement, or a conviction. Searches for a subsequent trial or sentencing of Barnes for the murders of Eric Griffin and Antonio Dash have been inconclusive, with no further updates on the legal proceedings appearing in the public record.
