- calendar_today August 6, 2025
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Nine teenagers have been arrested in the June 24 fatal shooting of 16-year-old Trey Dean Wright of Johnsonville, South Carolina. Officials say the shooting was a result of a fight that broke out “over a girl” and that at least one of the suspects filmed part of the incident on video. Police from the Florence County Sheriff’s Office found the body of Wright on First Neck Road on June 24. He had been shot multiple times.
The road where the body was found is a rural route, about 45 miles west of Myrtle Beach. Police arrested 19-year-old Devan Scott Raper of Conway on June 25. He is accused of shooting Wright after an argument between the two. According to investigators, Raper was part of a group of teens, but did not act alone in the shooting. The next day, police announced the arrest of several other teens over the coming weeks.
Police allege that several teenagers conspired to lead Wright to the road where Raper was waiting to confront him. The Florence County Sheriff’s Office said the teens lured the 16-year-old to the scene, knowing that Raper was armed and had already threatened him.
Police: Shooting Involved ‘Teen Anger and Teen Rivalry’
Trey Wright’s mother, Ashley Lindsey, told Fox News Digital that she is frustrated by the lengthy court process on top of her loss. “All this court hearing and bond court and stuff is driving me crazy,” she said. “I don’t even have time to sit down and think half the time, on top of losing my precious baby.”
Wright’s girlfriend, 17-year-old Gianna Kistenmacher of Myrtle Beach, was also arrested and accused of involvement in the crime. Police say she helped lure Wright to the site of the shooting. Kistenmacher is accused of being an accessory before the fact in the killing. Prosecutors have charged her with bringing Raper to the scene even though she was aware that he was armed and that a shooting was a possibility.
South Carolina allows prosecutors to charge suspects as adults in certain crimes if they are minors. This includes murder, and Florence County officials have said that five of the suspects are being charged as adults under this statute. “The hand of one being the hand of all is part of South Carolina law as well, so that’s the basis of the charge for each of those individuals,” Major Michael Nunn of the Florence County Sheriff’s Office told WBTW-TV.
In addition to Raper, three other teens from the Myrtle Beach area have been charged with murder. They are 18-year-olds Hunter Kendall and Corrine Belviso, and 17-year-old Sydney Kearns. Officials have said that their involvement in the shooting was significant enough that they should be charged with murder rather than as accomplices.
“We believe they were complicit in bringing the armed codefendant, Raper, to the incident location and knowing that there would be a confrontation,” Major Nunn said. “They knew that Raper had presented a firearm to the victim and made threats to shoot him, according to the arrest warrants.”
Sheriff Tells Local Reporters: Shooting Was Over a ‘Female’
Sheriff T.J. Joye of the Florence County Sheriff’s Office said the shooting was personal between Wright and Raper. “They had issues with each other, and it was over a female,” he told local reporters. “The sad thing is, you’ve got a 16-year-old who lost his life. You’ve got a 19-year-old who is going to be in jail the rest of his life. Over what?”
Raper faces charges of murder and possession of a weapon during the commission of a violent crime. He is being held without bond. Kendall, who is also charged with murder, is in custody and has not been allowed bond. Belviso and Kearns each made a $20,000 surety bond last week and were released on bond. Prosecutors are not allowed to comment on open cases, and the Florence County Sheriff’s Office has not provided additional information as the case remains under investigation.
Wright’s mother has taken to social media to share her grief, her frustration with the court process, and that her son’s girlfriend and several of his friends were arrested in the case. The shooting has raised questions among some in the community about youth violence, the role that peer pressure plays, and the availability of guns. The argument that led to the fatal shooting of Wright began as a personal feud between two individuals but ultimately cost nine teenagers their freedom and two families their sons.
