At Myrtle Beach’s iconic Peaches Corner, a 17-year-old from Conway, named Evany McCray, quickly escalated a verbal dispute into a deadly situation by pulling out a firearm and shooting two individuals, resulting in one fatality, according to law enforcement on Saturday.
Officials shared these details while revealing a series of charges against McCray, including murder and aggravated assault. He will face trial as an adult.
Additionally, McCray faces charges for possessing a weapon during a violent act and for having a weapon as a minor. For these offenses, a municipal court set a bond at $250,000.
Bond wasn’t granted on the assault charge, and McCray will have to face a 15th Circuit Court judge to determine any bond on the murder count, police said.
The victim’s name was not immediately available.
“We share our community’s frustrations with these societal issues of youth unlawfully carrying firearms and engaging in illegal activity,” Assistant Police Chief Chris Smith said a Saturday news conference.
The incident happened at 11:15 p.m. following a fight between an employee and another person. Two people were shot, with one being transported to an area hospital with non life-threatening injuries.
Witness video obtained by News13 shows a frantic scene outside the landmark eatery that opened in 1937, including police tape, multiple police officers, a shattered glass door and people leaving the scene quickly.
Lt. Allen Amick said that officers on active patrol in the area had taken McCray into a custody within a minute of the gunshots.
“Due to our upstaffing and deployment strategies, our officers were patrolling both on bicycles and on foot within the proximity of 900 Ocean Boulevard,” Smith said. “Our officers immediately responded by running to the gunfire, and within seconds entered the establishment.”
The shooting comes two months after another Ocean Boulevard confrontation that left 17-year-old Jerrius Davis of Bennettsville dead from an officer’s bullet. Authorities said Davis opened fire into a large crowed, injuring 11 people.
