FLORENCE, SC — State investigators are reviewing an officer-involved shooting Friday afternoon in Florence County after deputies tried to stop a car linked to two people wanted in a Thursday robbery, according to Sheriff T.J. Joye.
Joye said the vehicle did not pull over, and deputies followed it until the chase ended in the Black Creek Road area. He said the confrontation escalated after the pursuit stopped.
One suspect was shot and taken to a nearby hospital. Authorities had not said what condition he was in. The other suspect was arrested, and officials said only one person was hit by gunfire.
Deputies linked the car to a robbery case from Thursday
Joye said deputies recognized the car as being connected to two people wanted in a robbery that happened Thursday. That led deputies to try to stop the vehicle Friday afternoon in Florence County.
The sheriff did not release details about the robbery itself, including where it happened, what was taken or whether anyone was hurt. The names of the suspects also had not been made public.
At this stage, the main confirmed link is between the car, the robbery investigation and the attempted traffic stop. Officials have not described how deputies identified the vehicle or what information pointed them to the suspects.
The chase ended in the Black Creek Road area
According to Joye, the driver did not stop for deputies, setting off a pursuit that continued until it ended in the Black Creek Road area. Authorities did not immediately say how long the chase lasted or how many deputies were involved.
The sheriff’s account places the final confrontation after the vehicle stopped. That location is where the encounter turned into a shooting investigation handled by the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division.
Officials have not given a full timeline of the pursuit, including whether other law enforcement agencies assisted or whether the suspects were on foot when the shooting began.
Sheriff says suspects fired at officers before return fire
Joye said the suspects fired shots at officers after the chase ended. He said an officer then returned fire and struck one of the suspects.
That man was taken to a nearby hospital. Authorities had not released any update on his condition Friday. The sheriff said only one suspect was wounded in the exchange.
No officers were reported injured. Officials also did not say how many shots were fired or identify the weaponry involved. The sequence described by Joye is the central reason SLED is now investigating the shooting.
One suspect is in custody while the other is hospitalized
By Friday, one of the two suspects was in custody, Joye said. The other remained under medical care after being struck by gunfire.
Police have not said whether charges have been filed yet or what charges the suspects may face. They also have not said whether the robbery case, the pursuit and the shooting will be handled separately or together as the investigation continues.
Officials stressed that only one person was shot. That detail matters because it narrows the immediate focus of the case to the single wounded suspect and the officers involved in the final exchange.
More information expected from SLED later Friday
SLED is leading the investigation and is expected to release more details later Friday evening, according to the sheriff. That update could include additional information about the robbery case, the chase and the shooting itself.
For now, the publicly confirmed facts remain limited: deputies tried to stop a car tied to robbery suspects, the vehicle fled, shots were fired after the chase ended and one suspect was wounded and hospitalized.
Authorities have not identified the suspects, described the condition of the hospitalized man or explained what prompted the robbery investigation Thursday. Those questions were still open as state investigators took over the case.
