A Manning police officer has been fired and is under investigation by the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) after records say he helped his son, who is now charged in a Sumter County double murder.
Alexander Dukes Sr. has not been criminally charged.
The double murder
On Oct. 6, two young men were killed in a shooting in a Dollar General parking lot in Sumter County. Sumter County deputies believe the shooting stemmed from a planned armed robbery.
Keywaun Clark, 20, died at the scene after being shot and crashing his vehicle into a tree near the parking lot. Derek Parson, 19, was also shot and later died at a hospital.
Antwone Dukes, 22, was arrested and charged in the deaths. He was also shot during the incident. He remains in the Sumter County Detention Center and was denied bond.
What records say happened next
According to filings submitted to the South Carolina Criminal Justice Academy, Antwone Dukes drove himself and Parson, who had also been shot, straight to his father’s home after the shooting.
The filings state that Alexander Dukes put a tourniquet on his son’s leg and told him to go to the hospital. According to the documents, he did not call 911, report the shooting, or request an ambulance.
The Manning Police Department’s termination filing states his actions may have hindered the criminal investigation and possibly delayed care that could have saved Parson’s life. The department wrote that he “acted in a manner unbecoming of a police officer.”
Text messages and a failed polygraph
According to the filings, a SLED search of Alexander Dukes’ phone turned up text messages in which he told his children he could no longer alert them to police activity, such as roadblocks and traffic stops, because Sumter County had encrypted its radio channels.
The documents also state that he failed a polygraph exam and remains under active SLED investigation for misconduct in office.
Suspended, then fired
Manning Police Chief Sean Briley suspended Alexander Dukes on Oct. 8, two days after the shooting. He was later fired.
Records also show he previously worked for the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office for nearly 15 years before being fired in 2010. No reason for that firing was ever officially released. He was hired by the Manning Police Department about five months later.
Alexander Dukes has not been charged with a crime. Antwone Dukes is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
Source: South Carolina Criminal Justice Academy filings, as reported by WIS
