by JENN WOOD
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An 87-year-old Newberry County man who spent his retirement making wooden birdhouses and lighthouses was robbed, killed and buried behind a Laurens County mobile home, South Carolina authorities alleged Friday — detailing an investigation that followed his missing property, credit cards and a rented excavator across multiple counties.
Speaking at an October 30, 2026 press conference, Newberry County sheriff Lee Foster announced that Richard Lewis Cribb, 46, had been charged with murder, first-degree burglary, armed robbery and possession of a weapon during a violent crime in connection with the death of Edwin Geer.
Geer disappeared from the Somerset Bay community in Chappells, S.C. earlier this month. Investigators believe he was killed on or about October 6 or 7, Foster said.
Cribb has a lengthy criminal history in Horry and Greenwood counties — including drug and property convictions, cases resolved through drug court, and a 2023 methamphetamine conviction for which his sentence was suspended to mental health court.
That Horry County case recorded a new probation arrest warrant on October 28, according to the public index. Four additional drug cases stemming from an October 22 arrest were listed as pending.
Eighth circuit solicitor David Stumbo emphasized Friday that Cribb is presumed innocent of the new allegations. Prosecutors and investigators also acknowledged significant forensic work remains, including further testing related to identification of the remains.
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A NEIGHBOR RAISES THE ALARM
Geer lived alone in a quiet community on Lake Greenwood. His family lived out of state, Foster said, but neighbors knew the retired woodworker who made birdhouses and lighthouses, sometimes giving them away and sometimes selling them at a store in Chappells.
His disappearance drew attention when a neighbor noticed little activity at his home and mail accumulating. Foster said the missing person report reached his office on October 17, 2026. The agency issued a public appeal two days later – reporting Geer had last been seen at home on October 6 and that his tan 2002 Chevrolet pickup was also missing.
Investigators subsequently learned people had been coming and going from Geer’s residence. Their attention focused on Cribb, who supplied an address in Ninety Six, S.C. but appeared to move between locations in Greenwood and Laurens counties, according to Foster.
Beginning around October 6, the sheriff alleged, Cribb used Geer’s pickup, van and credit cards and pawned his belongings in Greenwood County. Investigators later traced him to Horry County, where Foster said the use of Geer’s credit card and sale of his property continued.
Horry County jail records show Cribb was booked into custody on October 21 and released on October 23, the day officials said he was charged with breach of trust with fraudulent intent and brought back to Newberry County.
Foster said additional financial charges were expected. Investigators were still calculating the amount allegedly stolen and examining indications someone attempted to access Geer’s bank accounts electronically.
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THE EXCAVATOR AND THE GRAVE
A rental transaction provided another lead.
Investigators learned Cribb had rented or leased a mini excavator that was taken to property on Broadway Lane in Waterloo, Foster said. Deputies checking the property found evidence of digging and land clearing.
Geer’s pickup was recovered several miles away on Whitton Road, according to the sheriff.
The Laurens County Sheriff’s Office (LCSO) brought in the county’s Commission on Public Works, which used equipment normally employed to locate underground utilities to help identify a possible burial site. County parks and recreation personnel also assisted with the excavation.
Behind a mobile home, investigators recovered a body from a grave approximately four feet deep, Foster said.
Authorities believe efforts had been made to conceal the burial. Evidence from the property, the broader investigation and the autopsy were reviewed with the solicitor’s office before the murder charge was obtained, officials said.
Foster said investigators had not received the official autopsy report and did not disclose a cause of death. He said authorities believed the death was a homicide.
Asked how Cribb knew Geer, Foster said investigators had not established a prior relationship. They were examining whether Cribb approached him after seeing a sign advertising his house for sale and offered to help him.
That remained an investigative theory, although officials declined to describe precisely how or where they believe the killing occurred.
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THE IDENTIFICATION DISPUTE
The announcement followed conflicting statements from the Laurens and Newberry county coroners’ offices about the identity of the remains.
Laurens County coroner Patti Canupp identified the deceased as Geer following the recovery of the body and an autopsy. Newberry County coroner Laura G. Kneece subsequently challenged the release of his name before a positive scientific identification.
Kneece called the announcement “premature, inaccurate, and irresponsible,” saying evidence suggesting an identity did not amount to scientific confirmation.
Canupp stood by her assessment, saying family members had tentatively identified the deceased and further scientific testing would be conducted.
At Friday’s briefing, Stumbo said investigators had sufficient evidence to identify the remains as Geer for purposes of obtaining the murder warrant. Foster said testing would continue, along with processing other evidence through the S.C. Law Enforcement Division’s (SLED) laboratory.
Officials did not announce completion of the additional identification testing during the briefing.
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A RECORD SPANNING DECADES
Court records reviewed by FITSNews document more than two decades of drug and property convictions in Horry and Greenwood counties, along with suspended sentences, probation and court-supervised treatment.
Most recently, Cribb pleaded guilty in August 2023 to distribution of methamphetamine, second offense, in Horry County. Originally charged with trafficking, he received a five-year sentence suspended to Mental Health Court Level 3, with credit for time served.
That case recorded a probation arrest warrant on October 28, 2026, days after Cribb was taken into custody in connection with Geer’s disappearance.
Cribb also faces four pending Horry County drug charges, with personal recognizance bonds listed at $10,000 each on two distribution-related charges and $2,500 each on two possession charges. Jail records show he was booked on October 21 and released on October 23, when Newberry officials said he was charged with breach of trust and brought back to their county.
Two charges stemming from a separate September 2025 arrest — second-degree nonviolent burglary and third-offense cocaine possession — were dismissed without indictment that December.
His earlier Horry County convictions include narcotics possession in 2003, breaking into a motor vehicle in 2005 and manufacture or distribution of methamphetamine or cocaine base in 2007. The first two brought suspended prison sentences and probation, with the 2005 sentence also requiring completion of Teen Challenge. The 2007 conviction brought a two-year sentence, with credit for 80 days served.
In Greenwood County, Cribb pleaded guilty to receiving stolen goods in 2018. Another case ended after he completed drug court, withdrew his guilty plea and prosecutors dropped the charge in 2020.
In July 2022, he pleaded guilty in Greenwood County to breaking into a motor vehicle and possession of a controlled substance, receiving concurrent one-year prison sentences, with credit for 101 days served. Prosecutors dropped several accompanying charges.
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THE CASE AHEAD
Foster said a bond hearing on the new murder case would have to be scheduled before a circuit court judge. No hearing date was announced Friday.
Stumbo said the eighth circuit would prosecute the case and that all prosecutorial options remained on the table. He did not announce a decision to seek the death penalty.
For Foster, the investigation also carried a warning about the vulnerability of older residents living alone — and the importance of neighbors noticing when their routines change.
Geer’s neighbors did notice. Investigators followed the resulting leads across the state. But the sheriff acknowledged that finding the body and making an arrest could not restore the life Geer had built on Lake Greenwood.
“Nothing we do from here on out is going to bring back Mr. Geer,” Foster said.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR …
As a private investigator turned journalist, Jenn Wood brings a unique skill set to FITSNews as its research director. Known for her meticulous sourcing and victim-centered approach, she helps shape the newsroom’s most complex investigative stories while producing the FITSFiles and Cheer Incorporated podcasts. Jenn lives in South Carolina with her family, where her work continues to spotlight truth, accountability, and justice.
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