Person of Interest in Custody in Colleton County Deputy Killing

Update: (10:40 p.m.)

Police have a person of interest in the shooting in custody.  They are not releasing his name since he is a person of interest and not a suspect at this time.  Deputies caught the man in a Dorchester neighborhood at around 8:30 tonight.  Dorchester County Sheriffs Deputies stopped the man in a car, he was actually the passenger. Officers say he fled the car and a foot chase ensued. Officers did catch him about an hour later in a wooded area near the neighborhood.

Update: (3:00 p.m.) The following news release has just been issued by Colleton County Sheriff Georgia A. Malone:

On August 6, 2008, early this morning, the Colleton County Sheriff’s Office 911 Center received a call from the alarm company advising that a burglar alarm had been activated at 699 Sunflower Rd. near Smoaks, South Carolina in Colleton County.  Deputy Dennis Compton responded to the scene and several minutes later the son of the home owner called across the deputy’s portable radio saying the deputy had been shot.  The residence had been unoccupied at the time and the home owner’s son had received a call from the alarm company and he also responded to the residence where he found the deputy down with a gunshot wound.  The suspect or suspects were not on scene and are currently at large.  The area is being searched by the Colleton County Sheriff’s Office, SLED, SCHP and surrounding law enforcement agencies that had responded to the area to assist. 

Officer Compton

DOB: 11/23/68

Officer Compton has been a certified officer with the Colleton County Sheriff’s Office for sixteen months.  He started on June 12, 2006 at the Colleton County Detention Center as a Detention Center Officer.

    SMOAKS, S.C. (AP) - A Colleton County sheriff's deputy has been

shot and killed, and deputies were searching for a suspect.

      Sheriff George Malone told The Post and Courier of Charleston

that Deputy Dennis Compton died shortly after the incident at

around 3 a.m. Wednesday near Smoaks.

      Details of the shooting were not immediately available.

Authorities planned a news conference later in the day but did not

specify a time. Malone did not immediately return phone calls from

The Associated Press.

      Deputies have closed a road near state Highway 61 and were

searching woods near a one-story house on Sunflower Drive for a

suspect.

      The newspaper also reported deputies were stopping traffic and

searching cars. The State Law Enforcement Division says its agents

are assisting and have sent a helicopter to the area.

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