Aiken County suspect charged in drive-by shooting that killed 1

Suspect J’Quan Kentrall Bowers, left, and victim Jatavious Harris

Date: October 14, 2023

Aiken County authorities have arrested a local teen in a drive-by shooting over the summer that left one person dead inside a home.

J’Quan Kentrall Bowers, 18, of Monetta, was arrested Thursday afternoon and charged with murder, weapon possession and five counts of attempted murder.

Around 1 a.m. on July 17, the teen suspect allegedly drove by a home on at 820 Old 96 Indian Trail in Batesburg and shot multiple times into the residence, killing 20-year-old Jatavious Harris in Batesburg.

Authorities say he missed five others who were inside, including Dexter Gary, Tarik Harris, Phillip Harris, Treasure Gary and Tiffany Watson. A report lists at least nine others as witnesses.

Bowers was captured Thursday on the 100 block of East Frontage Road in Aiken. He is being held without bond at the Aiken County Detention Center.

The victim was remembered in an obituary as a 2021 graduate of Ridge Spring-Monetta High School, a member of Piney Grove Baptist Church and a person who liked to cook on the grill, fish and take care of his dogs.

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The Author

Greg Rickabaugh is an award-winning crime reporter in the Augusta-Aiken area with experience writing for The Augusta Chronicle and serving as publisher of The Jail Report. He also owns AugustaCrime.com. Rickabaugh is a 1994 graduate of the University of South Carolina and has appeared on several crime documentaries on the Investigation Discovery channel. He is married with two daughters.

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