23-year-old killed in shooting outside bar, search underway for gunman, SC officials say

A man is dead and there’s a search for his killer following a shooting outside of a South Carolina bar, according to the Lexington County Sheriff’s Department.

Rodney McKensey James Jr., a 23-year-old Wagener resident, died early Sunday morning, Lexington County Coroner Margaret Fisher said.

James was shot multiple times outside of Amici Tavern, which is in the 1000 block of Savannah Highway, officials said. That’s in the Swansea area of Lexington County.

At about 3:20 a.m. Sunday, deputies responded to a report of a shooting at the bar, according to the sheriff’s department.

Witnesses told investigators that James was one of two men who were arguing in the bar before going outside, the sheriff’s department said. Information about why the men were arguing was not available, and there was no word if they knew each other prior to the confrontation.

“Based on what we’ve gathered, one man shot another man in the parking lot,” Sheriff Jay Koon said in a news release. “The shooter drove away in an unknown car while the victim was driven by friends down the road a short distance where they met EMS.”

James was then taken to an area hospital where he was pronounced dead due to multiple gunshot wounds, according to Fisher.

No other injuries were reported.

No arrests have been reported by the sheriff’s department, which is continuing to investigate the death along with the coroner’s office.

Deputies spent hours on the scene interviewing witnesses and reviewing security camera footage from a nearby business, according to the sheriff’s department.

“We’re on this investigation at the request of the Swansea Police Department and we don’t have very much to go on at this point,” Koon said. “That’s why we’d like to hear from anyone who was at the bar last night or anyone who might have heard specifics about the shooting.”

Anyone with information about the shooting, or the man suspected of pulling the trigger, is asked to call CrimeStoppers at 888-CRIME-SC or submit an online tip.

This was not the only time this year that a shooting has been reported at the Amici Tavern.

In January, a 31-year-old Salley man was charged with attempted murder and possession of a weapon during a violent crime following a shooting at the bar, Swansea police said.

Arthur James Hodge Jr. was accused of shooting at a bouncer after an argument turned into a physical confrontation, according to police. Hodge was denied bond on the attempted murder charge and he’s being held at the Lexington County Detention Center, jail records show.