In a quiet corner of the Choppee community in Georgetown County, South Carolina, a grim discovery was made by hunters on February 18, 2023. They stumbled upon a shallow grave that held the skeletal remains of two individuals. The victims were later identified as 57-year-old Melvin Wise and 41-year-old Andrene Stewart, both residents of the Bronx, New York. Autopsies would later confirm that both had died from gunshot wounds, their deaths officially ruled as homicides.
It was learned that Wise and Stewart had been in the area visiting relatives in the Dunbar community in late 2022.
The investigation into the double homicide led to the arrests of three individuals. On March 23, 2023, authorities took 52-year-old Patricia Wise, Melvin Wise's sister, and 55-year-old Wilbur Lang into custody. Patricia Wise was charged with two counts of accessory to murder after the fact, obstruction of justice, and criminal conspiracy. Lang faced the same charges, in addition to two counts of desecration of human remains. Investigators revealed that Melvin Wise and Andrene Stewart had been living with Patricia Wise at the time of their deaths.
Several months later, on November 7, 2023, the Georgetown County Sheriff's Office made another arrest in the case. Lavorn Hakeem Johnson, 32, was taken into custody in the Dunbar community. He was charged with two counts of murder, two counts of desecration of a corpse, and two counts of possession of a firearm during a violent crime. Following their arrests, both Patricia Wise and Wilbur Lang were denied bond and remained in the Georgetown County Detention Center. Johnson was also held at the same facility pending a bond hearing. The investigation is ongoing as authorities continue to piece together the circumstances that led to the tragic deaths of Melvin Wise and Andrene Stewart.
