In the late summer of 2016, the community of Hardeeville, South Carolina, was unsettled by the discovery of a local man's untimely death. Forty-three-year-old Kenyatta Austin, a male resident of the area, was found deceased inside his Stiney Road mobile home on the morning of September 15, 2016. A neighbor, noticing that Austin's front door was open, entered the residence to investigate and made the grim discovery.
Austin was found lying face down between two couches, having sustained a single gunshot wound to his head.
The investigation into the death quickly focused on a single suspect, Kelly Lamont Anderson, a 22-year-old man also from Hardeeville. A crucial piece of evidence, a cellphone belonging to Anderson, was discovered inside Austin's mobile home, directly linking him to the scene of the crime. Following this lead, law enforcement officials were able to locate and apprehend Anderson at a nearby motel. His prior criminal record consisted of convictions for public disorderly conduct in 2014 and shoplifting in 2016.
In December 2019, Kelly Lamont Anderson appeared in court and pleaded guilty to the charge of voluntary manslaughter in connection with the death of Kenyatta Austin. As a result of his guilty plea, he was sentenced to 18 years in prison. The prosecutor from the 14th Circuit Solicitor's Office remarked on the tragic nature of the case, stating that two families had been ruined by the actions of one person. With the conviction and sentencing of Anderson, a sense of closure was brought to the family of Kenyatta Austin.
