A former Florence County sheriff’s deputy accused of shooting a speeder and whose police dog mauled an innocent civilian has been charged with manslaughter, according to the South Carolina State Law Enforcement Department.
Florence County Deputy Treyvon Jonathan Sellers, 29, was charged Wednesday with manslaughter, aggravated assault and abuse of office, according to a SLED news release and affidavits and arrest warrants in the case.
Sellers is in custody at the Florence County Detention Center and is being held, according to the jail’s website Thursday morning. No bail has yet been set for him.
The events leading to Wednesday’s charges occurred on May 26 and began with a high-speed chase by Sellers several miles east of Florence toward a fleeing driver named Dewayne Rankin, according to SLED.
After four minutes, Rankin’s vehicle struck a tree in front of a residence. Rankin jumped out and ran inside, closely followed by Sellers and his released police dog, Ikar. The dog quickly “apprehended” the homeowner and began “actively mauling” him, the warrants state.
Then “Sellers struck Rankin, who was lying unarmed on a couch … (and) fired his service weapon five times, unlawfully killing Rankin…”, according to an arrest warrant charging Sellers with manslaughter.
Another warrant accusing Sellers of aggravated assault states that the deputy took Ikar off his leash without knowing who was in the house and gave him the “order to arrest” “in reckless disregard … of the risk of serious bodily harm to another person.”
“The sellers gave K9 Ikar incorrect commands and did not use available resources to remove K9 Ikar,” the warrant states. The dog also mauled the homeowner for 87 seconds. The homeowner suffered “permanent disfigurement to his left arm and left shoulder,” the warrant states. The entire incident was recorded on video, the warrant states.
The case is being prosecuted by the South Carolina Attorney General’s Office, SLED said in a press release.
Florence County Sheriff TJ Joye issued a statement saying, “I have been as open and transparent as I can be and I have expressed my deep regret and sadness over this incident.” Joye called for the SLED investigation into the May 26 incident, a SLED press release said.
This is a breaking news story and may be updated.
