Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott announces the arrest of a driver responsible for the death of a pedestrian on Fairfield Road in Columbia.
Deputies responded to Fairfield Road and Eisenhower Drive around 3 p.m. today, May 7. They received reports of shots fired and arrived to find that several people were hit by a vehicle.
The investigation revealed that the driver left the roadway, striking pedestrians who were gathered for an event. One female was deceased at the scene. Two others were treated at a local hospital for the injuries they sustained after being struck.
Once the driver hit the victims, he continued driving down a neighboring street and was pursued by others from the gathering. Shots were reportedly fired at that time, though no one was hit. The driver of the vehicle was detained by deputies at the scene.
The driver, Carl Giles (DOB: 9/01/1957), has been arrested and charged with Reckless Vehicular Homicide, Hit and Run Resulting in Death, Hit and Run Resulting in Great Bodily Injury, and Hit and Run Resulting in Minor Personal Injury. He will be booked at the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center.
Based on the investigation, there is reason to believe that another person may have been in the vehicle with Giles at the time of the incident. Anyone with information about this incident is asked to submit a tip to Crime Stoppers at crimesc.com.