en were gunned down and left with serious injuries Friday night in the former Walmart parking lot in Winnsboro.
The incident occurred around 11 p.m. on Friday, Sept 20, adjacent to the Planet Vape in the parking lot in the 700 block of U. S. Hwy 321 By-Pass.
As two cousins – a boy, 12, and a girl, 16 – were walking with family members to a car in the parking lot following the Fairfield Central High School’s Homecoming game across the street, individuals behind the Planet Vape shop opened fire, hitting the young cousins, according to officials.
“The kids were not the target,” said Interim Winnsboro Public Safety Department (WDPS) Police Chief Patrick Clemons. “There was definitely one group shooting at someone. We feel we know who the intended victim was, but we haven’t nailed down the names of the shooters who hit the two children.
“The teen girl was shot in the face. She underwent surgery Monday and will require reconstructive surgery,” Clemons said. “The 12-year-old boy was struck in the arm and leg and is expected to make a full recovery.”
Both remain hospitalized, Clemons said.
According to Clemons, immediately after the children were hit, an adult family member of the victims drove them directly to MUSC Fairfield where Fairfield County EMS picked them up and transported them to Prisma Hospital in Richland County.
In the meantime, Fairfield County Sheriff’s deputies, who had been working security at the FCHS football game, heard several gunshots coming from the direction of Bojangles, which borders the Walmart parking lot. Deputies responded, but according to Clemons, the children had already been driven to the hospital and were no longer at the scene when the deputies arrived.
Upon arrival, the deputies reported seeing blood and shell casings in the parking lot near Planet Vape.
While deputies were on scene, a caller reported three males walking around behind apartment building No. 4 of the Deerwood Apartments – which are next to the Walmart parking lot – armed with pistols and yelling at bystanders.
Clemons said it is not conclusive whether the three males were involved in the shooting incident.
The deputies relocated to the Deerwood Apartments where multiple individuals were at the entrance to the apartments. As several individuals in an SUV appeared to be trying to leave quickly, a female occupant stated to deputies that an individual had made a threat about possibly starting another shooting incident, a Fairfield County Sheriff’s incident report stated.
According to the report, a male, identified as Jeremiah Marquees Ruff, 20, who matched the description provided by the female occupant of the SUV, was walking away from the group at the entrance when deputies approached him and advised him that because of his match to the description, they were going to check him for weapons. They subsequently discovered a handgun sticking out of his waistband, according to the report.
When deputies attempted to detain Ruff, he resisted and assaulted one of the officers, prompting them to place him under arrest and transport him to the Fairfield County Detention Center, according to the report.
“We’re still trying to determine whether the two incidents – the one in the Walmart parking lot and the one behind Deerwood Apartments – are related,” Clemons stated.
“The biggest problem with people out there shooting guns is that they shoot randomly and hit innocent bystanders who are minding their own business,” Clemons said.
While the Fairfield County Sheriff’s department was first on the scene, the incidents are being investigated by the WDPS. The department asks anyone with information to call 803-635-4511.
This story will be updated as more information is available.
