Breakthrough in cold case leads to arrest years after SC man was killed, sheriff says
An arrest was made two years after a South Carolina man was shot and killed in his Midlands home, according to the Sumter County Sheriff’s Office.
Elijah Keith Fleming — a 20-year-old Hapeville, Georgia, resident — is facing charges of murder and first-degree burglary in connection to the 2022 death of Stephen Collins, the sheriff’s office said Monday in a news release.
On July 8, 2022, Fleming and another unidentified person were armed with guns when they entered Collins’ Edgehill Road home in Sumter, according to the release. They were there “with the intent to steal items” from the 81-year-old business owner’s home, the sheriff’s office said.
Investigators believe Fleming and the other person with him shot Collins several times while he was sitting on his couch, according to the release.
The sheriff’s office said forensic evidence from Collins’ home and Fleming’s statement implicating himself led to the breakthrough in the cold case. Information about the specific evidence, and what Fleming said was not available.
“Our deputies work very hard to gather evidence and bring justice for every victim. I am thankful for their determination that has finally brought about these charges,” Sheriff Anthony Dennis said in the release.
The charges against Fleming will have to wait. He’s currently being held without bond at the Clayton County Jail in Georgia on unrelated charges, officials said.
Fleming was arrested in the Atlanta area April 23, when he was charged with murder, possession of a weapon during a crime and two counts of aggravated assault, jail records show.
Fleming’s extradition to Sumter County is pending the resolution of his charges in Georgia, the sheriff’s office said.
Despite the charges facing Fleming, the sheriff’s office is continuing to investigate Collins’ death.
July 2022
An employee was the person who found Collins’ body.
The Sumter County Coroner’s Office previously said that Collins was supposed to meet with employees on the morning of July 8, 2022. When he didn’t come out to greet them, an unresponsive Collins was discovered inside his home by an employee, who called 911, officials said.
Collins owned Collins Tree Service and operated the business from his home, where he lived alone, the sheriff’s office said.
Although the coroner didn’t immediately release Collins’ cause of death, he told The State that the 81-year-old’s death was “most definitely a homicide.”
Ongoing investigation
There was no word if Fleming had any connection to Collins prior to the shooting, or if the home was a specific target.
Information about the other person who the sheriff’s office said was with Fleming during the shooting, or anyone else who might have been involved, was not available.
Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to call the sheriff’s office at 803-436-2000, CrimeStoppers at 888-CRIME-SC or submit an online tip.
Dennis said he hoped that Fleming’s arrest would “begin to bring some comfort and a sense of closure to Mr. Collins’ family and friends.”
In addition to the sheriff’s office, several other law enforcement agencies have assisted in the investigation. That includes the Sumter Police Department, Lee County Sheriff’s Office, Kershaw County Sheriff’s Office, Lexington County Sheriff’s Department, Jasper County Sheriff’s Office, Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office, Clayton County (Georgia) Sheriff’s Office, and the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division.
The victim
Collins, a West Virginia native, served in the U.S. Air Force for more than 20 years and retired as a Major, according to his obituary.
“He was an avid boater, collector, and woodworker,” the obituary said. “He loved music and played both the accordion and trumpet. Steve was a longtime member of Shaw Heights Baptist Church where he served for many years as a deacon.”
Both a funeral service, in Sumter, and burial, in West Virginia, were held in July 2022, according to the obituary.
