Columbia, SC (5/30/2023) – According to the Richland County Sheriff’s Office in South Carolina, a 14-year-old was shot and killed by a Shell gas station owner.
The victim was identified as Cyrus Carmack-Belton, 14.
Rick Chow, accompanied by his attorney, turned himself in without incident. Chow was charged with murder.
The shooting happened around 8 pm Sunday, May 28, 2023, at the Shell gas station on Parklane Road.
In a press conference Monday, Sheriff Leon Lott said Cyrus was not shoplifting; instead, Cyrus had touched the bottles but put them back in the cooler. Sheriff Lott said Cyrus and Chow had verbally argued before Cyrus left the store. Sheriff Lott said the store owner’s son chased Cyrus, which Chow followed.
Sheriff Lott said Chow had a pistol on him while chasing Cyrus. Sheriff Lott said the chase went near apartments, where Cyrus tripped and fell. After Cyrus got back up, Chow’s son told him Cyrus had a gun, to which, moments later, Chow shot Cyrus in the back, killing him.
Richland County Coroner Naida Rutherford said the gunshot wound caused injuries to the teen’s heart.
Sheriff Lott said a gun was found near Cyrus’s body, but their investigation determined that Cyrus was shot and killed while his back was turned.
“People pray for this family,” Sheriff Lott asked. They’ve lost a 14-year-old middle school student.”
