An Orangeburg man has been charged with murder while two others are facing drug charges after more than three pounds of marijuana was discovered during a missing person investigation.
The Orangeburg County Sheriff’s Office charged Robert Lee Randolph, Jr, 33, with murder. He also faces a weapons charge. “These charges are in connection with the death of Miss Tyesha Williams,” Sheriff Leroy Ravenell said. “Miss Williams leaves behind three children after this senseless act.”
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Investigators say Williams’ body was placed inside an unoccupied home on Whittaker Street after she had been murdered at another location. That information came after an interview with Randolph, who had been located inside Orangeburg city limits through a collaborative investigation between the OCSO and the Orangeburg Department of Public Safety.
OCSO detectives began their initial investigation after a woman’s body was discovered on I-26 near mile marker 153. That led to inquiries about Williams, a Stilton Road woman reported missing last week.
While the victim found on the interstate was not connected to the missing persons report, the investigation led to the revelation Williams may have met with foul play.
Ravenell said an autopsy revealed Williams had suffered a gunshot wound to the upper body during an argument investigators believe happened at a Clarendon Street location while inside Randolph’s vehicle.
“Our case from the interstate took us into the city, where the two agencies, the Orangeburg County Sheriff’s Office and the Orangeburg Department of Public Safety, worked together to achieve what would eventually be two different goals – solving a homicide and making a substantial drug seizure,” the sheriff said.
ODPS Director Mike Adams stated he “appreciated the level of cooperation between the Orangeburg Department of Public Safety and the OCSO in the resolving this missing persons case.”
Randolph also faces a charge of simple possession of marijuana in connection with what ODPS officials said was the seizure of a quantity of narcotics found in the course of searching for the Bamberg Highway man.
ODPS investigators located an estimated 3.5 pounds of marijuana inside the Douglas McArthur residence where Randolph and two other men were found after obtaining search warrants for the home.
Anton Maurice Stinson, 27, and Damien Kareem Barnes, 29, both of 1264 Douglas McArthur Street, were each charged with possession with intent to distribute marijuana and also possession with intent to distribute marijuana within proximity of a school.
Orangeburg City Judge Barney Houser set bond on each of the Orangeburg men at $10,000.
Randolph’s bond on the drug charge was set at $629.
Inv. Johnny Thrower is leading the ongoing investigation for the OCSO while Inv. John Caddell is leading the ODPS’s investigation.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with both of these families as each has lost a loved one,” Ravenell said.
