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A prolonged dispute over whether a scandal-scarred Greenville County councilman lives within the district he represents is now under review by South Carolina’s top prosecutor.
Ennis M. Fant Sr., the longtime District 25 representative at the center of this controversy, is facing renewed scrutiny after the findings of a S.C. State Law Enforcement Division (SLED) investigation were transferred to the office of Alan Wilson for possible prosecution.
This latest development was confirmed by FITSNews after we obtained a January 14, 2026, letter from Wilson’s office. The letter acknowledged receipt of a request to “review and handle” SLED’s investigatory findings – which were first compiled nearly two years ago.
“This matter is accepted by this office and is assigned to Assistant Attorney General John Meadors for reviewing and making the prosecutorial decisions,” the letter stated.
A spokesperson for the attorney general’s office confirmed the authenticity of the letter but declined further comment.
“Generally, we cannot confirm or deny the existence of an investigation,” the spokesperson told FITSNews in a text message.
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? A prolonged dispute over whether Greenville County councilman Ennis Fant lives within the district he represents is now under review by the South Carolina Attorney General’s Office.
— Andrew Fancher (@RealAndyFancher) March 10, 2026
A Jan. 14, 2026, letter confirms the case was transferred to the state’s top prosecutors by… pic.twitter.com/YJFqnNY7pS
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As for how the case reached the attorney general’s desk, the January 14 letter confirmed the matter was transferred from the office of S.C. thirteenth circuit solicitor Cindy Crick – whose jurisdiction covers Greenville and Pickens counties.
Crick’s circuit was originally responsible for determining whether criminal charges related to Fant’s residency were warranted.
About that…
The prosecutorial responsibility previously rested with Crick’s predecessor, former thirteenth circuit solicitor Walt Wilkins, who retired from office last summer. Prior to his resignation, Wilkins declined to prosecute Fant after reviewing the same investigative findings from SLED.
Wilkins nonetheless conceded state agents had obtained evidence suggesting the councilman did not reside within the district he represents. He put that conclusion in writing in his February 6, 2025, letter declining to prosecute the case.
“Based on the information provided, there is evidence that Councilman Ennis M. Fant, Sr., does not reside within Greenville County Council District 25,” Wilkins wrote. “However, I conclude there are legal and evidentiary issues that would preclude our ability to prove criminal charges beyond a reasonable doubt at this time.”
Now under a new solicitor and a new year, the same findings Wilkins previously declined to prosecute are now in the hands of state prosecutors.
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“THE BASEMENT…”
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The path to the current prosecutorial review of Fant’s case began nearly two years ago, during the 2024 Greenville County Council election cycle.
During that campaign, Fant’s opponent – Derrick Quarles – alleged the incumbent falsely claimed a residence inside District 25 while actually living miles outside its boundaries.
Those allegations were eventually presented to Wilkins in the form of a complaint accompanied by what authorities described as “documents, photographs and videos.” Wilkins subsequently requested a SLED inquiry into Fant’s “residency verification.”
The probe ultimately produced a 353-page investigative file later obtained by FITSNews.
Among the central claims reviewed by agents was Fant’s longstanding assertion that he resides at 11 Ghana Drive in Greenville, an address located within District 25. Investigators quickly determined the home had instead been occupied by a married couple.
For years…
When contacted by agents, the couple indicated Fant “also resides at the residence,” more specifically “the basement.”
“Upon additional questioning,” agents noted, the husband “indicated he would no longer answer any questions on the matter and terminated the call.”
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Agents subsequently interviewed multiple neighbors of the Ghana Drive property, several of whom said they either “had not known” Fant to live there since 1992 or “had not seen” him at the residence for years.
Investigators then examined allegations that Fant actually resided at 4 Smokerise Court – a home located approximately three miles from the nearest boundary of his district. Neighbors there overwhelmingly indicated to agents that Fant had lived at that address since the mid-2000s.
And property records appear to corroborate those claims…
According to SLED, Fant applied for and received legal residency status at the Smokerise Court address in 2008. He remained listed as the owner until around 2012, when ownership transferred to a private land trust listed in the care of at least one relative.
Additional records obtained by agents included Greenville County School District documents related to Fant’s children. Those records contained no reference to the Ghana Drive address, according to SLED.
Investigators further determined Fant had listed the Ghana Drive address on candidate filing documents since at least 2016.
Even so, just weeks before Wilkins requested that SLED investigate these issues, the Greenville County Board of Voter Registration and Elections held a hearing to determine whether Fant met the residency requirement for District 25.
At the conclusion of that hearing, the board unanimously ruled that Fant did in fact meet the residency requirements set forth in S.C. Code of Laws § 7-5-120 to represent the district.
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“THIS QUESTION HAS BEEN RESOLVED…”
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Just as when the residency dispute first surfaced, the councilman is represented by criminal defense attorney Josh Kendrick, who has been an open critic of this author’s reporting in the past.
While Fant did not respond to a request for comment despite ample time to do so, Kendrick returned a phone call within hours and provided the following statement.
“In my opinion, this question has been resolved by both the Democratic Party and Greenville County courts in previous actions. So we’re just going to have to engage in litigation and see where it goes. This is not really a court issue. It’s a political party issue.”
While prolonged, this is one of the least remarkable scandals to hit Fant.
In 1991, he was sentenced to 20 months in federal prison after being convicted of conspiracy to commit extortion while serving as a South Carolina representative. That conviction stemmed from Operation Lost Trust, a federal sting that involved 16 other South Carolina lawmakers.
This story may be updated.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR…
Andrew Fancher is a Lone Star Emmy Award–winning journalist from Dallas, Texas. He joined FITSNews in 2023 after leaving an NBC affiliate, where he served as on-air talent. His reporting focuses on public corruption in South Carolina, with an emphasis on law enforcement misconduct and abuse of power.
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3 comments
So he believes he is above the rules. And the idiots in Greenville just go along with it. Continued corruption in S.C.
Reminds me of the reporting that Charleston County Democratic party chairman has a long rap sheet for felony convicting. Even served time in State Prison
If the so called conservative legislature would get off their as**s and write an unambiguous residency statute this issue would be solved. Also why do we allow convicted felons to run for elected office at the state level. The revolutionary war was over two centuries ago so there are no longer any British designated felons running for office in South Carolina. Also FITS might dig a little deeper into what Fant was actually involved in during his time in the legislature. Maybe foia the fbi for its files, some J E type stuff.