From staff reports
A man wanted for the 2021 murder of two women in Seabrook has been arrested by the U.S. Marshals Service in Queens, N.Y.
Police sought 22-year-old Dionte Mitchell of Seabrook for the murders of Flora Mae Gantt and Shaina Mulligan.
On Saturday, Dec. 4, 2021 at approximately 11:00 p.m, Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office responded to the report of shots fired on Detour Road in Seabrook. Deputies secured the scene and learned that two women were shot following a dispute at a party.
Gantt, a 74-year-old Walterboro resident, was pronounced dead at the scene. Mulligan, a 30-year-old Beaufort resident, died en route to the hospital.
The initial investigation identified Mitchell as one of the parties involved in the shooting. Mitchell met with investigators but was not immediately charged. Further investigation led to the issuance of warrants for the arrest of Mitchell on two counts of murder and one count of possession of a weapon during the commission of a violent crime.
Believing that Mitchell left the state after the murders, Sheriff’s Office investigators enlisted the aid of the U.S. Marshals Service, leading to his arrest Wednesday morning, June 8.
Mitchell is currently in custody and is expected to be extradited to Beaufort County to face charges related to the murders of Gantt and Mulligan.
Tony Kukulich is a recent transplant to the Lowcountry. A native of Wilmington, Del., he comes to The Island News from the San Francisco Bay Area where he spent seven years as a reporter and photographer for several publications. He can be reached at tony.theislandnews@gmail.com.
