Mom calls 911 about fake intruder after her son kills his wife, South Carolina cops say
A woman called 911 to report that an intruder shot her daughter-in-law — but that was a lie, South Carolina officials told news outlets.
As deputies prepared to send SWAT and K9 teams after the person accused of breaking into the home, Spartanburg County Sheriff Chuck Wright said his department learned that the 911 caller’s own son was the shooter, according to WSPA.
Officials said the realization came after gunfire erupted along Vista Drive in Moore, southwest of Spartanburg. A woman at the home reportedly was shot several times on April 3 and was taken to a hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
She was identified in a coroner’s office news release as 21-year-old Donna Victoria Grace Long.
Now her husband, 25-year-old Matthew Long, is charged with murder in the case. His parents — Carolyn and Donald Long — are also facing charges, though media outlets didn’t list attorneys for the three family members.
During a bond hearing, a prosecutor said Donald Long was seen leaving the home with a gun, according to WSPA. The solicitor’s office also played a 911 tape in which Carolyn Long told a dispatcher that an unknown person was responsible for the shooting, WSPA and WHNS reported.
“The mother tells deputies when they get there an elaborate story of somebody walking into the home and doing the shooting, when all along it was her son,” Wright said, according to WSPA.
The sheriff told media outlets the shooting was one of the worst domestic incidents that he’s seen in his time in law enforcement.
“It was very brutal,” he said during a news conference, according to WYFF.
All three Long relatives were taken to the sheriff’s office for interviews and were arrested, news outlets reported. Matthew Long was charged with murder and possession of a weapon during a violent crime.
Carolyn Long, 77, is facing an obstruction of justice charge, and Donald Long, 71, is charged with accessory after the fact. Both parents were ordered to give up their passports and must wear GPS monitors, the sheriff’s office said in a news release.
The 7th Judicial Circuit solicitor’s office didn’t immediately respond to McClatchy News requests for comment.
This story was originally published April 5, 2022 at 12:19 PM with the headline "Mom calls 911 about fake intruder after her son kills his wife, South Carolina cops say."
