Aiken County deputies confronted an unstable man stripping his clothes Thursday afternoon near J.D. Lever Elementary School, causing a physical battle that resulted in the suspect being shot and injuries to an officer.
No one at the Aiken school was harmed, but the building was placed on lockdown before deputies oversaw the safe release to parents and school buses, sheriff’s Capt. Eric Abdullah said. A large police presence helped with the investigation and security at the school.
The incident began around 2 p.m. Thursday when they got a report of a suspect acting erratically on Columbia Highway North near Beaver Dam Road. Deputies found the man on a driveway beside J.D. Lever Elementary School, where he was taking off his clothes.
During the interaction between the man and two deputies, the suspect began fighting in a long back-and-forth battle.
“At one point, one of the deputies was knocked to the ground and injured and the suspect was shot,” Capt. Abdullah said.
The suspect was taken by Aiken County EMS to the hospital while another officer transported the injured male deputy to the the hospital for treatment.
Because of the shooting, the sheriff’s office has turned over the investigation to the State Law Enforcement Division (SLED) for an independent probe.
Check back here for updates on this developing story.
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