The shooting death of an African American whose body was dragged for several km is being investigated as a possible hate crime after the arrest of a white man he worked with, said South Carolina's state police chief.
Gregory Collins (19), is charged with murder and made his first court appearance on Friday.
No bond was set and he did not yet have an attorney, said Newberry County Magistrate Ron Halfacre.
The FBI was in Newberry County in central South Carolina on Thursday assisting in the investigation of the shooting death of Anthony Hill (30), State Law Enforcement Division director Reggie Lloyd told The State newspaper.
“We don't yet have a definitive motive for all this,” said Mr. Lloyd.
Mr. Hill's body was found around 0430 am on Thursday on US Highway 176 and Newberry County sheriff's deputies followed a trail of blood to the home of Collins.
For several hours, Collins refused to come out and police agents fired tear gas into the home, prompting him to surrender, said Mr. Lloyd.
