What began as an argument inside a South Carolina apartment complex ended in gunfire, leaving two people dead and an arrest hours later at a Waffle House.
Charles Saunders, 50, of New York, will spend the rest of his life in prison for fatally shooting Alesia Dykes and Bernard Alexander Lyles in front of children at the Walsh Drive Apartments in Hardeeville, prosecutors announced Thursday.
Prosecutors said Saunders and the two victims had been arguing in the days leading up to the shooting on June 18, 2024.
Saunders and Dykes had been friends years earlier in New York. Dykes later introduced Saunders to her sister, with whom he had a son. Saunders had traveled to South Carolina after learning his son had a child and had been staying with Dykes at the time of the shooting, prosecutors said.
Shortly after noon on the day of the shooting, Hardeeville Police responded to the apartment complex where witnesses told investigators that Saunders and the two victims had been arguing.
When the confrontation escalated, Dykes and Lyles attempted to retreat inside the apartment. Prosecutors said Saunders stepped into the doorway, pulled a handgun from his waistband and opened fire.
Three young children were inside the apartment at the time of the shooting. One child ran to a nearby relative’s home to get help.
Dykes was pronounced dead at the scene. Lyles was transported to Coastal Carolina Hospital, where he later died.
Saunders fled the area. Investigators later recovered a shirt he discarded in a trash can on Main Street. Forensic testing revealed gunshot residue on the clothing.
Several hours after the shooting, Saunders was arrested at a Waffle House in Ridgeland.
On Thursday, Saunders was found guilty of two counts of murder and two counts of possession of a weapon during the commission of a violent crime. He was sentenced to life in prison.
“[Saunders] chose to repay trust and hospitality with violence of the most horrendous sort,” said Trasi Campbell of the 14th Circuit Solicitor’s Office, who prosecuted the case.
“Charles Saunders has lived a life of violence, and today’s outcome ensures he no longer endangers the public.”
