A Beech Island man died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound Wednesday evening following a wild chase with Aiken County deputies along Interstate 20, authorities said.
Robert J. Johnson II, 43, got into a pursuit with deputies around 7:25 p.m. Wednesday and threw objects out the window presumed to be drugs that were found by investigators.
“He also fired shots at the pursuing deputies,” sheriff’s Capt. Eric Abdullah said. “Our deputy did perform a PIT maneuver on the subject, where it came to rest on a guard rail along the shoulder near the nine mile marker.”
Johnson was found deceased in the vehicle. Deputies never discharged their weapons and no officer was injured, Capt. Abdullah said.
The investigation was turned over to the SLED and the Coroner’s Office. An autopsy is scheduled for Friday. The wreck and investigation tied up the westbound lane and caused traffic to be rerouted Wednesday night.
A family friend sent this photo of Johnson and said he had served prison time and had been addicted to meth since he was a teenager. South Carolina records show he was on probation for a stolen vehicle, and he has previous arrests for dealing drugs.
(Note: If you have a photo of Robert J. Johnson II to share, please text it to 803-487-3224.)
