Reginald Lamont Johnson, a 24-year-old man from Kershaw County, South Carolina, was known to his loved ones as a husband, son, and brother. He was married to his wife, Dominique, and was the son of Monay Johnson Hammonds and the late Frank Hammond. Reginald was part of a large family, with numerous siblings who knew him as Jarvis, Melanie, Ebony, and many others. His roots were in Kershaw County, but his life was tragically cut short in the state's capital, Columbia.
In the first hour of Saturday, August 8, 2009, a scene of violent chaos erupted at an apartment on Pine Street. At approximately 12:40 a.m., a home invasion robbery took place at 1004-C Pine Street. According to investigators with the Columbia Police Department, as many as four individuals were involved in the crime. During the robbery, Reginald Johnson was fatally shot.
Police were called to the scene after reports of gunfire.
When they arrived, they found Reginald outside in the parking area with a gunshot wound. He was pronounced dead at the location. A neighbor, Ashley Thomas, later recounted the harrowing moments to a local news station. She said she had seen Reginald just minutes before the shooting. "As soon as I got up to my front door I heard gunshots," Thomas stated. "And the next thing I knew, Reggie was slumped over my sister's car and layed there dead." While friends at the time speculated the motive could have been related to drugs, police have never publicly confirmed a motive beyond the home invasion robbery.
The investigation into Reginald Johnson's murder was launched by the Columbia Police Department, but the case quickly went cold. In the years following the homicide, no suspects have been publicly identified or arrested. The identities of the four individuals believed to be involved remain a mystery. The case is now listed on the Columbia Police Department's roll of unsolved cases, a silent testament to a life taken and a crime yet to be answered for.
Services for Reginald were held on the Wednesday following his death at The Living Church of Christ in McBee, and he was laid to rest in the Pine Forest Cemetery. His family and friends gathered to mourn a young man whose future was stolen from him in a moment of brutal violence. The questions surrounding that night have lingered for over a decade, leaving a family without answers and a community with an unsolved murder in its midst.
As of today, the murder of Reginald Johnson remains an open and active cold case. The Columbia Police Department continues to seek information that could lead to a breakthrough. There is no statute of limitations on murder, and investigators hope that someone with knowledge of the events that transpired in the early morning hours of August 8, 2009, will finally come forward. Anyone with information is urged to call Crimestoppers at 1-888-CRIME SC.
