Man kills woman and her teenage son before turning gun on himself, SC coroner says
Three South Carolina residents, including a teenager, were killed Friday in what the Berkeley County Coroner’s Office called a double murder-suicide.
Tracy McEvoy, 43, and her son William Allen McEvoy, 15, were killed, Coroner Darnell Hartwell said Sunday in a news release. Their bodies were found at a Goose Creek home along with the body of 43-year-old Nicholas Hegwein, who Hartwell identified as the suspect, according to the release.
Shooting was the cause of death for all three, Hartwell said. All three were Goose Creek residents, according to the release.
No other injuries were reported.
At around 9:45 p.m. Friday, the Goose Creek Police Department received a call about a man with a gun at a Water Oak Drive home, WCBD reported. That’s near the Naval Weapons Station at Joint Base Charleston, about 20 miles north of Charleston.
Police said the caller told them that the man was “intoxicated and holding hostages at gunpoint,” WCSC reported.
Police said officers surrounded the home. Hostage negotiators were called to the scene, but they weren’t able to make contact with anyone inside, according to WCBD. Police said officers found the three bodies when they entered the home, WCIV reported.
At about 11:15 p.m., the coroner’s office was called to the scene, according to the release.
There was no word if any or all three lived at the Water Oak Drive home, and it was unclear how Hegwein knew the mother or her son.
Information about what led up to the shooting and a motive for the gunfire, was not available.
The double murder-suicide continues to be investigated by the coroner’s office and police department.
On Nov. 26, 2023, Hegwein was arrested on a second-degree domestic violence charge, Berkeley County court records show. Although a $10,000 bond was set and posted on Nov. 27, 2023, the charge ultimately was dismissed and Hegwein was not indicted, according to court records.
Information about that prior incident, and why the charge was dismissed on Dec. 27, 2023, was not available.
