Agents of the South Carolina State Law Enforcement Division (SLED) are reportedly investigating the circumstances surrounding an arrest that took place in Clemson, S.C. nearly five years ago.
The arrest involved officers of the S.C. Highway Patrol (SCHP) and a prominent supporter of Clemson University – Stanley Roy Riggins of Charlotte, N.C.
Riggins’ brother – David P. Riggins – is a former member of Clemson’s board of visitors who runs a successful custom metal and plastic component business.
What exactly are the agents investigating? It is not immediately clear, although this news outlet has obtained an incident report from a November 29, 2014 arrest involving Stanley Riggins.
According to the report, Riggins was detained for allegedly driving under the influence (DUI) and committing a liquor law violation at around 6:05 p.m. EST on S.C. Highway 93 at Centennial Boulevard in Clemson, S.C.
Riggins, 69, was arrested on suspicion of DUI “stemming from a fight that had occurred after the Clemson/ Carolina football game,” the report noted.
According to a lance corporal with the SCHP, “Riggins had been in an altercation with a pedestrian.”
“Riggins … became aggrivated (sic) by a pedestrian who, he states, would not move out of his way,” the report noted. “He states that he then stopped his Land Rover, got out, and confronted him.”
[su_dominion_video_scb]During this confrontation, Riggins claimed to have been “shoved to the ground” prior to the pedestrian fleeing the scene.
In the aftermath of this disturbance, the responding SCHP lance corporal reported finding “an open bottle on the driver’s side of the vehicle.”
After allegedly failing a field sobriety test, Riggins was taken into custody and transported to the Pickens County, S.C. detention center – where the SCHP incident report indicated he was offered (and refused) a breathalyzer examination.
This news outlet has searched the S.C. public index in Pickens County, but uncovered no evidence of a DUI or liquor law violation involving Riggins. A traffic charge dated December 10, 2014 was resolved in April of 2017, but aside from that Riggins’ record in Pickens County is clean.
Why, then, would SLED care about a 2014 arrest that obviously failed to yield charges?
According to our sources, the investigation is reportedly focused on SCHP’s handling – or rather its alleged “mishandling” – of this incident. Unfortunately, our moles at both SLED and the S.C. Department of Public Safety (SCDPS) – which oversees SCHP – declined to elaborate.
On the record, SLED had very little to say.
“We are working the matter,” SLED spokesman Thom Berry told us. “Our work continues.”
Stay tuned … this news outlet will continue to work our sources at both of these law enforcement agencies in the hopes of uncovering additional information about the nature of the investigation.
-FITSNews
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