A man died after a confrontation early Friday morning that was prompted by an apparent domestic dispute, according to a press release from the Darlington County Sheriff’s Office.
Chief Deputy Sheriff Tom Gainey identified the dead man as Nathaniel “Na Na” Joe Jr. of Darlington.
Friday was Joe’s 47th birthday.
Darlington County Coroner Todd Hardee said he isn’t releasing the cause of Joe’s death pending the outcome of the investigation and an autopsy which is scheduled for today.
Deputies were dispatched to a residence on the 1400 block of Watercrest Drive in Darlington County, not far from the Florence County line near Darlington, and found a man sitting on top of Joe to hold him for law enforcement officers early Friday morning.
An investigation revealed that Joe had come to the residence sometime Thursday and broken out a window because his ex-girlfriend lived there. When deputies arrived to investigate that incident, Joe had fled the scene, according to the release.
Joe returned early Friday morning, began to knock out windows and threw flammable liquids into the house while his ex-girlfriend and a man were inside asleep.
Deputies aren’t sure what the substance was and sent it for analysis at State Law Enforcement Division headquarters in Columbia, Darlington County Sheriff Glenn Campbell said.
The male resident heard the noise, came out of the house and confronted Joe. The suspect sprayed some flammable liquid on the man and they began to fight. The resident, who had a knife in his possession, stabbed Joe several times and held him in place until the deputies arrived.
Joe was taken to a local hospital, where he died a short time later. The sheriff’s office contacted SLED’s Crime Scene Unit to process the scene, according to the release.
Roberta Brown has lived on Watercrest Drive for more than 10 years and said she never would have thought something like this could happen so close to home.
Brown said she talked with her neighbors Friday morning and they told her their side of the story.
“He said that her ex-boyfriend came and throw stuff in the window, trying to burn the house down and was trying to get to her,” Brown said of the resident who confronted Joe. “I guess he was trying to do them harm so he had to protect himself and his friend, and I am glad ‘cause if he would have burnt that house down it could have got mine.”
Gainey said state law allows homeowners to protect their property when in danger.
“We don’t know if any charges will be made against the victim or not,” Campbell said. “The man was in his own house when suspect showed up and started breaking windows in the house and spraying flammable liquids.”
A decision about any charges in this matter will be made after the investigation is concluded and the matter is reviewed by the 4th Circuit Solicitor’s Office, 4th Circuit Solicitor Jay Hodge said.
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