Traffic Stop in Edgefield County Leads to Chase, One Dead and Two in Custody

One man is dead and two others, including a juvenile, are in custody following what started as a traffic stop Saturday night in Edgefield County.

Sheriff Jody Rowland said deputies stopped a vehicle near Exit 18 on I-20 around 7:30 pm.  He said the juvenile driver got out of the car and was talking to a deputy when a passenger in the vehicle got in the driver's seat and fled from the scene.

Authorities say 25-year-old Joseph D. Robertson of Ninety Six, South Carolina led deputies on a chase with multiple shots fired from the suspect's vehicle on I-20.  Robertson eventually lost control of the car at the entrance ramp at the 18-mile marker.  Rowland said Robertson got out of the car and fled on foot into a wooded area on the eastbound side of I-20.

"As officers searched the area, a gunshot was heard from the woods.  A subsequent search by tracking dogs led to the discovery of the body of 25-year-old Joseph D. Robertson of Ninety-Six," said Aiken County Coroner Darryl Ables.  Robertson was pronounced dead at the scene from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.  An autopsy will be done Monday in Newberry, South Carolina.

The juvenile initially behind the wheel of the car and one other passenger in the vehicle were taken into custody.

The Aiken County Coroner's Office, Aiken County Sheriff's Office, Edgefield County Sheriff's Office, and the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division are continuing with the investigation.