William Whitaker Stewart, 33, of Hilton Head was shot and killed on February 14, 2024, in the New Hope Village area of Bluffton, South Carolina. Police and emergency crews attempted life-saving measures at the scene but Stewart did not survive; a second victim, 34-year-old Roshaun Middleton of Beaufort, was also found dead from gunshot wounds. One victim was located behind a building materials dealer with multiple gunshot wounds to his lower extremities, and the other was found behind a residence on Fuller Court with a gunshot wound to the head. Stewart and Middleton were coworkers and Stewart is survived by his wife, Brandace Nicholle Stewart, and their two sons.

A Bluffton officer spotted a gold-colored sedan leaving the area; the driver attempted to flee, struck a parked patrol car, and later crashed on U.S. 278. The driver, 33-year-old Orlando Odell Murphy of Bluffton and a coworker of both victims, was taken into custody and charged with two counts of murder and illegal weapons possession.

The motive has not been released — does anyone have information about the victims’ movements or who may have seen them in New Hope Village that day?