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Agents of the South Carolina State Law Enforcement Division (SLED) announced the arrest of a fourth person this week in connection with last month’s shocking discovery of a white female who was found half-naked and “badly beaten” near a remote boat landing in Jasper County.
News of the gruesome discovery was first reported by this media outlet.
How did this saga start? At approximately 2:57 p.m. EST on April 3, 2024, homeowners observed emergency responders flooding the terminus of Corner Lake Road — four miles east of Grays, S.C. The vehicles were dispatched in response to reports of an non-responsive person with their hands bound behind their back on the riverbank.
According to SLED, the unidentified woman at the boat landing was kidnapped in Barnwell County within hours of her beating – and a presumed sexual assault. She was thereafter discarded at the remote boat ramp next to the Coosawhatchie River – purportedly zip-tied at her hands and ankles.
Three arrests were made in connection with the case on April 17, 2024.
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On Tuesday (May 21, 2024), a fourth suspect – 42-year-old Marquis Antwan Smith of Hampton, S.C. – was arrested and charged with accessory after the fact to kidnapping. According to a probable cause affidavit accompanying the warrant for his arrest, Smith transported two of his co-defendants – Kaila Bostick, 34, and Jamaal Terrell Riley, 30 – to Augusta International Airport in Augusta, Georgia on April 3, 2024. Smith also allegedly attempted to assist them with renting a vehicle.
At the same time the three were attempting to flee the state, warrants for kidnapping charges were obtained by the Barnwell County Sheriff’s Office (BCSO) for Bostick and Riley along with Adrienne Burgen Ginn, 31.
Ginn was arrested by the South Carolina Highway Patrol (SCHP) on April 6, 2024 for a second offense driving with a suspended license in Hampton County. Two days later, SLED was requested to lead the investigation into this case by the Jasper County Sheriff’s Office (JCSO) and the Hampton County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO).
Bostick and Riley were taken into custody by the U.S. Marshals Great Lakes Fugitive Task Force in Indiana on April 11 and were extradited back to South Carolina to face charges related to the kidnapping.
According to SLED, all subjects are now in custody in South Carolina and their investigation is “active and ongoing.”
Smith’s case will be prosecuted by the office of S.C. fourteenth circuit solicitor Duffie Stone. Determinations regarding the prosecution of other suspects related to the case will be made at a later date, sources familiar with the situation told this media outlet.
Stay tuned for additional coverage of this developing story as we continue to gather more information about this crime.
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THE WARRANT …
(SLED)
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR …
Will Folks is the founding editor of the news outlet you are currently reading. Prior to founding FITSNews, he served as press secretary to the governor of South Carolina and before that he was a bass guitarist and dive bar bouncer. He lives in the Midlands region of the state with his wife and eight children.
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3 comments
Great job to all law enforcement involved.
Remember you can run like hell and hide but we won’t give up and eventually your sorry ass will be caught!
So difficult to know that there are “human” beings who are this animalistic in this world. Once i did not believe in the death pay but now, 50 years older and wiser, I just can’t think of any alternative for these savages. God, help us.