PAGELAND, S.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) - A crowd of teenagers were standing on the corner of McGregor and South Pearl Street in the heart of the Watermelon Festival when gunshots overran the sounds of carnival rides, vendor booths, food trucks, and the hustle and bustle of Pageland's largest gathering each year.
A witness reported seeing dozens of people running away from the intersection. By the time the chaos settled, a 17-year-old boy was hit and dying near the intersection.
The shooting happened within feet of the Pageland Police Department's tent and within yards of multiple Chesterfield County Sheriff's Office deputies working security.
SLED agents work to collect evidence following a shooting at the 2025 Pageland Watermelon Festival, where a shooting took the life of a 17-year-old boy at the corner of S. Pearl and McGregor Street. (WJZY Photo/Jody Barr)Dispatch records show the call and initial dispatch happened around 10:41 p.m. Friday.
First responders initially asked Chesterfield County dispatchers to summon a helicopter to the Pageland airport to airlift the victim. In the seconds that followed, officials decided the fastest way to get the victim treated was to load him into an ambulance and take him to a trauma center near Charlotte.
The boy never stood a chance. Sources told Queen City News he never made it to the hospital alive. The Chesterfield County coroner's office pronounced the victim's death around midnight Friday.
Grieving Pageland family seeks answers one year after 13-year-old’s tragic deathA South Carolina Law Enforcement Division crime scene technician arrived on scene within an hour or so of the shooting. The technician and at least one SLED agent were on scene well into the early morning hours Saturday as Chesterfield County sheriff's deputies left the scene. By the time Queen City News left the scene around 2:30 a.m., the Pageland Police Department officers who were milling around the crime scene had also left.
A SLED agent photographs evidence following the shooting death of a 17-year-old Pageland boy on July 18, 2025. The shooting happened on the opening night of the Watermelon Festival. (WJZY Photo/Jody Barr)Some of the PPD officers were back out patrolling the town as the SLED agents worked to document and collect evidence where the shooter stood and where the victim fell to the ground.
By the time we left town, investigators did not have a shooter named. The Pageland Police Department issued a short press release, which only confirmed that a shooting had happened and the victim's age. The release did not contain any other facts related to the shooting or whether a risk to the general public existed.
EXCLUSIVE: Secret recording reveals sheriff promised defendant to help derail attempted murder case"Our hearts go out to the family and loved ones of the young individual whose life was tragically lost," the PPD quoted Chief Dean Short, "This is a heartbreaking event that deeply impacts our entire community."
Law enforcement officers from the Pageland Police Department and the Chesterfield County Sheriff's Office search for damage in buildings near the shooting scene after a deadling shooting at the 2025 Pageland Watermelon Festival. (WJZY Photo/Jody Barr)PPD handed the investigation over to SLED and handed off any further release of information to the public over to SLED.
QCN Chief Investigative Reporter Jody Barr learned while on scene Friday night that investigators discovered a second trail of blood near the shooting scene that led away from where the shooting happened. Barr's sources believed the second blood trail indicates a second person may have suffered a gunshot wound.
Fourth Circuit Solicitor Mike Burch (center, khaki pants), Senior Assistant Solicitor Kernard Redmond (left), an unidentified Pageland Police Officer, and Pageland Police Chief Dean Short (right) meet inside the crime scene after a 17-year-old boy was killed on the opening day of the 2025 Pageland Watermelon Festival. (WJZY Photo/Jody Barr)It's likely law enforcement contacted hospitals in the area to be on the lookout for someone seeking treatment for a gunshot wound, which is typical in shooting investigations. Hospitals also typically notify law enforcement when a patient arrives with gunshot and stab wounds.
The town posted an update to the Watermelon Festival that all Saturday events will go on as planned, but the festival will close at 9 p.m.
The coroner's office has not yet released the name of the shooting victim. Law enforcement also has not publicly identified a suspect in the shooting. As soon as law enforcement provides new information, we will update this report.
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