A GOOD Samaritan shot and killed a 29-year-old man moments after saving him and his girlfriend after the couple fell off their Jet Ski.
A 74-year-old boater, who has not been identified, was out with his wife when he spotted Nathan Drew Morgan and his girlfriend drowning in Lake Keowee Tuesday.
4
4
Neither of them were wearing life jackets and their Jet Ski was circling around them, officials said. The elderly man pulled the couple onto his pontoon boat when Morgan allegedly became aggressive and started assaulting them.
Tenth Judicial Circuit Solicitor David Wagner announced Friday that his office will not be filing charges against the elderly man, citing the incident as “a clear self-defense case.”
After his rescue, Morgan had allegedly began arguing with the older man. His girlfriend had tried to push him back into the lake to diffuse the situation, according to the Oconee County Sheriff’s Office.
Investigators believed that Morgan had wanted to get back on his Jet Ski.
The couple on the pontoon helped Morgan back on the boat, but the older man says the 29-year-old remained belligerent. As a result, the elderly man shot him, telling authorities he fears for his and his wife’s lives.
Morgan died from a gunshot wound to the chest, said the Oconee County Coroner’s Office.
Most read in US News
According to Sheriff Mike Crenshaw, Morgan may have been intoxicated. An autopsy report is still pending.
Investigators also believe that Morgon and his girlfriend might have gotten into an argument before falling into the water initially.
Morgan was a member of the Flat Shoals Baptist Church, according to his obituary, and enjoyed being out on the water and fishing.
He is survived by his 10-year-old son.
Friends who knew the man expressed their anger and confusion over the strange case.
“And…anyone who knew drew knows this is absolute BS. He wouldn’t hurt or attack anyone unless HE FELT THREATENED!” wrote Kelcie Bratton on Facebook.
She continued: “He would never harm anyone who would try to help him in a situation and I know this first hand.
“He was a big teddy bear inside but if you harmed anyone he loved or crossed a certain line and stepped at him first he would have finished it off. He’s not here to defend himself and the ones involved seem like they are not telling the whole truth behind this.”
Another friend of Morgan, Kesslin Cole, shared Bratton’s frustration and called for more from Oconee authorities.
“This Amazing man had a son who lost his Best friend & Drew’s parents will never see their son again…Many people throughout the community lost a very special friend, [and] This is all we get…You call this JUSTICE [?] This is far from that,” wrote Cole.
Brandon Thomas, who lived near where the shooting took place, told WSPA that he had never heard of a situation like this in the area before.
“Certainly have never seen [or heard] anything like that,” he said, calling the incident “surprising” and “unexpected” for the area.
4
4
We pay for your stories!
Do you have a story for The US Sun team?
