Blood splatters on an Orangeburg County driveway marked the spot late Friday where police allege a would-be thief was made to wait for law enforcement to arrive.

Orangeburg County Sheriff Larry Williams said a Breezehaven Road man shot an intruder after he was seen apparently trying to steal several items outside of the man’s home, including a backhoe.

“We had a property owner who shot an intruder,” Williams said. “A 30-year-old in Wolfton had gone to his property and found Justin Kemmerlin, 18, and Amanda Kemmerlin, 33 years of age, attempting to steal, according to him, from the property.”

The shooting happened around 6 p.m. After receiving a call from the residence, law enforcement officers converged on the Breezehaven home.

At about 6:20 p.m. Justin Kemmerlin was transported to the Regional Medical Center to be treated for at least one gunshot wound to the face, Williams said.

“I don’t think it’s life-threatening at this time, but that could change,” Williams said.

The Neeses siblings are facing theft charges, Williams said. Justin Kemmerlin faces a charge of grand larceny, while his sister, Amanda Kemmerlin, faces a charge of accessory to larceny, he said.

Stanley Webber, the 30-year-old Breezehaven Road man, was taken to the Orangeburg-Calhoun Regional Law Enforcement Complex to give a statement to police.

Williams said no charges have been filed against Webber. The sheriff added the case in still under investigation.

A woman who lives near Webber’s property said she spoke with him after the incident. She didn’t want to be named for safety reasons.

“Because I’m afraid, I’m afraid,” she said.

The woman said Webber told her that he as he sat on his rear porch, he heard a noise on his property behind his home. When he went to investigate, he found a male and a female in the act of gathering items, the woman said.

The woman said the man, who was carrying a .22-caliber rifle, “shot him because he thought he was going to shoot him. He (the subject) was bleeding out of the mouth. I don’t know if he chipped his tooth or what. I don’t know, I don’t know.”

Williams said Kemmerlin was struck once in the cheek.

Kemmerlin was then brought up to the driveway where he was ordered by Webber to wait on police to arrive.

The woman said she went over to the area where the shooting took place, “just to look.”

“They put a big hole in the side door” of a storage facility, she said. “They were going to rip him off, big time.”

Citing an unsolved homicide on Breezehaven that took place in February, the woman said she feels the area has more than its share of criminals.

“I just wish this stuff would stop,” she said.

T&D Staff Writer Richard Walker can be reached by e-mail at rwalker@timesanddemocrat.com or by telephone at 803-533-5516.

You must be logged in to comment.