Gunfire strikes residences nearly 100 times this year in South Carolina county
Majority of incidents are believed to be linked to rival gang activities
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Bullets have ripped into homes at least 96 times this year in the county that encompasses South Carolina's capital — most involving rival gangs — and the latest episode left an off-duty sheriff's deputy and his fiancée wounded even though they weren’t the intended targets, authorities said Tuesday.
The drive-by shooting over the weekend at a suburban Columbia home struck Cpl. Terrance Crawford and his fiancée in the legs, said Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott at a news conference.
Lott said Crawford works as a police officer at a school in Columbia and wasn't targeted in the shooting, without providing details. The sheriff said there were eight people in the home Sunday night.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"His marked police car was parked in front of the house," Lott said. "There is no doubt they knew that was a Richland County deputy in that house."
Investigators have identified several people who may have been involved in the shooting, he said.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Authorities say bullets have ripped into homes at least 96 times this year in South Carolina’s capital county.
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This was the 96th time in 2023 someone has fired into a residence in Richland County, which is home to about 420,000 people, Lott said.
Most of the shootings involved rival gangs, he said.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"It's just stupid gang stuff," the sheriff said. "They sneak around like a bunch of little cowards during the darkness, and then sneak off like a snake at night to try to get away."
The Richland County Sheriff's Office did not immediately respond to a request following Lott's news conference for further details on the shootings.