SC man said his 84-year-old relative stabbed him, but he’s the one in jail, cops say

A Midlands man who told law enforcement officers he was stabbed by his 84-year-old aunt is the one who was locked up on multiple charges stemming from the violent incident, the Kershaw County Sheriff’s Office said.

Kirim Deshown Gaskins, a 27-year-old Camden resident, was charged with first-degree assault and battery, as well as kidnapping, the sheriff’s office said Wednesday night in a news release.

Although there was initially a manhunt for his elderly relative, she was not charged with any crimes, according to the sheriff’s office.

The attack happened at about 5:30 a.m. on June 19 in the 2200 block of Baron Dekalb Road, according to the release. That’s in the Camden area of Kershaw County, between U.S. 601 and Lake Wateree.

Gaskins told deputies that he was stabbed by the woman, who he said has dementia and ran away from the scene, the sheriff’s office said.

While Gaskins was taken by ambulance to an area hospital, a search for the 84-year-old was launched, according to the release. The search included deputies, police dogs, a drone, and South Carolina Law Enforcement Division helicopter was called to help, according to the sheriff’s office.

When law enforcement officers found the woman, “she told a completely different story,” the sheriff’s office said. The woman said Gaskins attacked her and she was forced to defend herself with a knife, according to the release.

She was injured and also was taken to another area hospital, where she was treated and released on June 20, the sheriff’s office said.

Gaskins was released from the hospital Wednesday and arrested by officers with the Columbia Police Department, who took him to the Kershaw County Detention Center, according to the release.

Bond was set at $50,000 on the combined charges, but Gaskins remains behind bars, jail records show.

“Incidents do not always occur the way they are originally reported to us,” Kershaw County Sheriff Lee Boan said in the release. “This incident is a great example. I am proud of our KCSO investigators for following the facts and completing a thorough investigation to ensure justice was properly served.”