Victim: Ted Xanthakis"Lexington County Sheriff’s Department deputies and members of a U.S. Marshals Service fugitive task force on Sunday, February 8 arrested two men and one 15-year-old boy on charges that they tried to fatally shoot a sheriff’s deputy who was responding to a call from a citizen concerning a suspicious vehicle on Oakwood Drive near West Columbia.
Lexington County Sheriff James R. Metts said the two men and 15-year-old boy opened fire with a 12-gauge shotgun while Deputy Ted Xanthakis and his K-9 police dog partner, Arcos, were in Xanthakis’ marked patrol car. Pellets from the shotgun damaged the door frame and windows on the passenger’s side of the patrol car. Xanthakis and Arcos were not injured.
Deputies arrested Carlos Alfredo Diaz De Leon, 17, of 600 Ermine Road, Lot 697, West Columbia, and Lucino Guzman Guttierrez, 20, of 600 Ermine Road, Lot 504, West Columbia, on a charge of assault and battery with intent to kill, Metts said. De Leon and Guttierrez were being held on Sunday at the Lexington County Detention Center while awaiting bond hearings. In addition to being charged with assault and battery with intent kill, De Leon was charged with unlawfully possessing a handgun and driving without a valid driver’s license.
Deputies also took custody of a 15-year-old boy, who was being housed on Sunday at a pre-trial detention facility on Broad River Road in Columbia that is operated by the South Carolina Department of Juvenile Justice, Metts said. The boy will be housed at the facility until he appears for a hearing in family court in Lexington County. Detectives will recommend that the boy be prosecuted in family court on a charge of assault and battery with intent to kill. Under South Carolina law, Metts cannot identify the 15-year-old boy because the boy is a child.
De Leon, Guttierrez and the 15-year-old boy illegally entered the United States from Mexico, Metts said. The Sheriff’s Department will work with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement concerning the immigration status of De Leon, Guttierrez and the 15-year-old boy.
Guttierrez is a member of a criminal gang, Metts said. Detectives are investigating whether De Leon and the 15-year-old boy also are members of the criminal gang. The motive for the shooting incident remains under investigation.
At 3:08 a.m. on Sunday, Xanthakis drove up to 2724 Oakwood Drive to help fellow deputies investigate a call about a suspicious vehicle, Metts said. Deputies suspected that the person or persons who occupied the vehicle might be involved in vehicle break-ins.
Xanthakis saw three males running towards him as he drove his marked patrol car on Oakwood Drive, Metts said. After seeing Xanthakis’ marked patrol car, the three males began running towards a perimeter fence at a mobile home park.
One male ran around a shed in order to hide from Xanthakis, Metts said. Xanthakis stopped his patrol car by a clothes line and saw the male point a shotgun towards him.
Xanthakis put his patrol car in reverse gear and backed up, Metts said. The male who had pointed the shotgun at Xanthakis turned and ran. As Xanthakis prepared to get out of his patrol car, he heard a gunshot and saw that a shotgun blast damaged the front passenger’s window of his car. A piece of glass from the window hit Xanthakis in his face.
Deputies later identified De Leon, Guttierrez and the 15-year-old boy as the three males whom Xanthakis encountered on Oakwood Drive, Metts said. Deputies and members of the U.S. Marshals Service fugitive task force took custody of De Leon, Guttierrez and the 15-year-old boy at De Leon’s home at about 10:15 a.m. De Leon possessed a handgun when he was arrested.
After executing search warrants at the homes of De Leon and Guttierrez, deputies recovered items that might have been stolen during vehicle break-ins in Lexington County, Metts said. The items included Global Positioning System devices and car stereo systems. Deputies also recovered the shotgun that was used to shoot at Xanthakis. Officers found the shotgun under a barn on Continental Drive near the intersection with Methodist Park Road near West Columbia.
Metts said the case remains under investigation. The sheriff said detectives might file additional charges against De Leon, Guttierrez and the 15-year-old boy.
Metts asked anyone with information about additional criminal activity involving De Leon, Guttierrez and the 15-year-old boy to call the Lexington County Sheriff’s Department at (803) 785-8230 or CrimeStoppers at 1-888-CRIME-SC.
Metts said citizens also can provide information anonymously by accessing the Crime Tip link on the Sheriff’s Department web site (www.lexingtonsheriff.com)." (1)