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Nearly four years after U.S. Army veteran Connor E. Lloyd was gunned down in the driveway of the South Carolina home he shared with his fiancée, police have arrested the suspected gunman.
In a dramatic escalation of the long-running investigation, the Lyman Police Department (LPD) announced the arrest of Douglas Hilton Gilbert, 47, of Salem, S.C. Gilbert has been charged with murder and possessing a weapon during the commission of a violent crime, marking the first time authorities have publicly named an alleged gunman in Lloyd’s death.
Gilbert was taken into custody without incident on April 15, 2025, and booked at the Spartanburg County detention center. Unlike previous arrests in the case — which involved charges of conspiracy and accessory — Gilbert is being prosecuted as the individual who carried out the killing.
Notably, Gilbert was listed as an “acquaintance” of one of the two woman also charged in connection with Lloyd’s murder.
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A Veteran Ambushed
Connor Lloyd was shot around midnight on August 18, 2021, outside of his Grover Drive home in Lyman. According to police, the 29-year-old Army veteran was ambushed in his driveway. He was transported to the hospital, but succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead on arrival.
The attack sent shockwaves through the quiet Upstate neighborhood and left Lloyd’s family searching for answers. For nearly four years, the case remained unsolved.
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The Suspect
According to public records and Gilbert’s LinkedIn profile, the suspect presented himself as a man with a background in private protection. He operated Knight Services LLC and spent seven years working for Securitas Security Services USA, Inc.
He also studied criminal justice and psychology at Southern Wesleyan University and Tri-County Technical College.
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International Arrest Sparks Custody Battle
Gilbert’s arrest follows the earlier charges filed against Kendra Leigh Wilson, 33, and her mother, Cynthia Wilson, 64. Both women are charged with accessory before the fact, accessory after the fact and conspiracy to commit murder.
Kendra Wilson, the mother of Connor Lloyd’s daughter, was arrested in the Netherlands on April 7, 2025, after fleeing the U.S. in March. Dutch media reports confirm she and her child had been staying under their real names at a refugee center in Ter Apel for three weeks before her arrest.
Wilson is now awaiting extradition. Her daughter has been placed in foster care in the Netherlands pending a custody ruling from a Dutch court.
A hearing is scheduled for Thursday, April 18, to determine whether the child will be released to her paternal grandfather, James Robert Lloyd, who was granted emergency custody through an ex parte order issued by a South Carolina family court.
Wilson’s friends say she fled in fear for her child’s safety and applied for asylum under the Netherlands’ protections for women and children escaping abuse. Disclosures made during the asylum process are believed to have prompted the Dutch court’s review of the custody order. The outcome could determine whether the child will be returned to the U.S. without challenge from the Dutch government.
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Cold Case Heats Up
The arrest of Douglas Gilbert signals a turning point in the investigation. For years, no suspects were named. No motive was confirmed. And no arrests were made.
Now, with Gilbert charged as the alleged gunman and the custody of Connor Lloyd’s child under international legal scrutiny, the case is gaining momentum — and raising new questions.
As with anyone accused of committing any crime, Gilbert is considered innocent until proven guilty by our criminal justice system – or until such time as he may wish to enter some form of allocution in connection with a plea agreement with prosecutors related to any of the charges filed against him.
FITSNews will continue to follow every development in this rapidly unfolding case — from the criminal charges in South Carolina to the international custody fight playing out in a Dutch courtroom.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR…
Callie Lyons is a relentless investigative journalist, researcher, and author known for exposing hard truths with heart and precision. As a journalist for FITSNews, she dives into high-profile and murky cases—like that of Mica Francis Miller— with fearless resolve and a sharp eye for detail, whether it’s tracking white-collar crime, uncovering religious abuse, or examining the often-bizarre behavior of those who believe they’re above the law.
Callie made waves with her groundbreaking 2007 book Stain-Resistant, Nonstick, Waterproof and Lethal, the first to reveal the dangers of forever chemicals, a story that helped inspire the film Dark Waters and influenced global scientific dialogue. Her work has appeared in numerous documentaries, including Toxic Soup, National Geographic’s Parched: Toxic Waters, and more recently Citizen Sleuth, which examines the complexities of true crime podcasting.
Whether she’s navigating environmental disasters or the darker corners of society, Lyons operates with one guiding belief: “Truth never damages a cause that is just.”
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