WIS News 10 - Columbia, South Carolina | Deputies: ATM shooting suspect arrested, charged with murder

Deputies: ATM shooting suspect arrested, charged with murder

FOREST ACRES, SC (WIS) - Richland County deputies say 37-year-old Kendrick M. Nesbitt, the man suspected of shooting a Midlands mother as she drove through an ATM in Forest Acres, has been arrested.

Sheriff Leon Lott says Nesbitt was arrested without incident Thursday night at his apartment by the Richland County Sheriff's Department Fugitive Task Force, SLED agents and United States Marshals.

He is now being held at the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center on four charges including carjacking, weapons possession, a family support charge and murder.

Sources say Nesbitt was identified through a photo lineup and investigators have fingerprints connecting him to the crime.

Chief Gene Sealy with the Forest Acres Police Department says Nesbitt has indicated his motive was robbery.

"He was taken into custody without incident. And subsequently, he has been cooperative with police, and has gone so far as implicating himself in the crimes he is accused of, which is murder," Sealy said.

Sealy says Nesbitt had been moving around Richland and Lexington Counties in the hours prior to his arrest.

Police say Nesbitt either didn't know or didn't care that the apartment was under surveillance by federal, state and Richland County officers.

"I can't guess why he came back. I have no idea," Sealy said.

Sealy declined to say whether police have recovered the murder weapon.

Nesbitt has a rap sheet dating all the way back to a 1989 arrest for shoplifting -- starting a string of crimes that would later include armed robbery, assault and criminal domestic violence charges.

Nesbitt got out of prison in 2003 after serving most of a 21 year sentence for armed robbery.

"We were a little appalled by the fact that he did have such a lengthy history, that he was out of jail. It seemed like he still should have been in jail according to his record," Sealy said.

Nesbitt is charged with the death of 55-year-old Lynne Thompson of Elgin. Thompson was shot four times shortly before 9:00am Wednesday at an ATM outside the Bank of America on Trenholm Road in Forest Acres. 

Thompson was transported to the hospital where she died of multiple gunshot wounds to the torso.

"The victim was in her vehicle at the drive-thru at the ATM when she was approached by this individual," Sealy said.

Wednesday authorities said a man approached Thompson's vehicle and demanded money or her vehicle, a white 2001 Honda Odyssey van.

Authorities say the suspect fired five shots, four of them hitting her while she was in the van. Then, authorities say she either got out or was dragged out of the vehicle.

"Unfortunately our victim was shot numerous times. And after she was shot, she was removed from her vehicle," Sealy said.

The suspect left the scene in Thompson's van and dumped it on Cox Street near Two Notch and Beltline. Chief Sealy says the motive was robbery, but he does not know how much was taken.

Lt. Bryant Hinson from the Forest Acres Police Department said, "From the videos that we do have it does appear as if it is probably a robbery that has gone bad. And we do have several witnesses at the scene which observed the vehicle leaving."

Witnesses reported seeing the suspect get out of the van with Thompson's purse and run away. The purse and van were later recovered.

Lynne Thompson's only child, 19-year-old Jesse Thompson, spoke to reporters outside his mom's home.

Thompson was away at college when he got the news Wednesday morning.

He says the death of his mother is especially hard right now because she and his father were going through a divorce.

His mom was also in the process of moving out of her Elgin home.

Thompson says he doesn't know what his mom was doing at the ATM. He hopes the community helps deputies bring the killer to justice.

"It all was caught on camera which is very fortunate. They have clear images of the person who did this and I would appreciate any help with people who may recognize him; that's very important to me. The instant was clearly recorded. The police know as much as anyone," Thompson said.

The Presbyterian College student freshman was comforted by his church pastor.

"They handed the phone which had my dad on at the time and they told me very straightforward what happened," Thompson said.

Thompson got the call away at school. He said he spoke to his mom for the last time Tuesday.

"She just wanted to let me know she was back from St. Louis and she said she would talk to me later in the week. I told her I loved her and I had planned on calling her today," Thompson said.

It was a conversation they never had.

This difficult news for the grieving son is compounded by the fact that his parents were in the middle of a divorce.

Of the many emotions, regret is one he's facing.

Thompson said it's "just little things that you look back upon and remember that your parents do you have to appreciate before they're gone and you can't say thank you."

One source says the victim appears to have tried to resist Nesbitt.

Nesbitt's bond hearing will likely be held sometime next week.

Reported by Jack Kuenzie, Drew Stewart and Brandi Cummings

Updated by Jeremy Turnage

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