On Tuesday, April 5, 2022, Sheriff’s Office investigators charged Trayvis Jenkins for Involuntary Manslaughter in the March 5 Franklin Dr., Burton death of Steven Whitlock.
Case History
On Saturday, March 5, 2022, Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to Franklin Dr., Burton regarding a report of an unresponsive male lying in a yard.
After the scene was secured by deputies, Beaufort County Emergency Medical Services responded and determined that the man was deceased.
The cause of the man’s death was not apparent, but believed suspicious.
Sheriff’s Office investigators and the Beaufort County Coroner’s Office were summoned.
At the scene, investigators processed for forensic evidence and interviewed witnesses.
On Monday, March 7, the body of the deceased man, identified as 55-year-old Steven Whitlock of Burton, underwent forensic autopsy at the Medical University of South Carolina.
At autopsy, pathologists determined Whitlock succumbed to wounds he sustained in proximity to his death. His manner of death was deemed a homicide.
Investigation
Through interviews of witnesses and evaluation of evidence, Sheriff’s Office investigators identified the subject responsible for Whitlock’s death as 33-year-old Trayvis Jenkins of Burton.
On April 4, investigators met with a Beaufort County magistrate and obtained a warrant for Involuntary Manslaughter for Jenkins’s arrest.
This morning, deputies conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle being driven by Jenkins.
Jenkins was arrested and transported to the Beaufort County Detention Center without incident.
Although Jenkins has been charged in Whitlock’s death, the case remains active.
Anyone who has information is encouraged to contact Sergeant David Tafoya at 843-255-3430 or Crime Stoppers of the Lowcountry at 843-554-1111, if wishing to remain anonymous and for possible reward.
