Cayce, SC 07/12/2022 (Paul Kirby) - On Tuesday afternoon, the City of Cayce released a statement advising the public that Richland County Coroner, Nadia Rutherford, had positively identified William Thomas Bowie, 44, of Newberry, SC, as the driver of the vehicle that led Cayce police on a deadly high-speed chase on Monday afternoon. According to that statement, Bowie was killed on impact when he ran a red light at the intersection of Pineview Road and Shop Road and hit another vehicle. There were two vehicles involved in the crash; the other driver was taken to the hospital with injuries that were not life threatening.
Bowie was wanted in the City of Cayce and in Richland County on charges of larceny, burglary, grand larceny and had other felony charges that were forthcoming prior to his death.
According to Ashley Hunter, a spokesperson for the City of Cayce, Bowie was a person of interest in a number of crimes that occurred in Cayce on Sunday, July 10th, 2022. Hunter said that on Sunday, an individual travelling in a 2008 Infinity sedan entered Fleet Truck Repair on Charleston Highway in Cayce several times over the course of the night. The driver, identified as William Bowie, stole items from various vehicles on the business property.
That same vehicle with Bowie driving was spotted in the 2000 block of Charleston Highway on Monday afternoon at approximately 3:45 p.m. by Cayce officers. When the officers tried to stop the Infinity, instead of pulling over, Bowie fled in the vehicle while officers pursued. The entirety of the pursuit was 15 miles.
At one point, Bowie got on I-26 at exit 115. He exited at the 119, eventually entered I-77 north, crossed the Congaree River into Richland County, took exit 5/Bluff Road off of 77 and made a left onto Pineview Road. The pursuit ended when Bowie crashed at the intersection of Pineview Rd and Shop Rd in Richland County.
In the city’s statement, Cayce police Chief Chris Cowan said, “In this case, the dedicated work of our investigators and officers lead to identifying William Thomas Bowie as being responsible for multiple crimes in Cayce. He also had outstanding warrants for multiple crimes in Richland County.
It is very disturbing when suspects decide to not stop for police; especially ones who are career criminals. Bowie’s background has varied from drugs to burglary to auto break-ins and grand larceny dating back twenty years.
It is inexcusable for someone to disregard the law and refuse to stop for blue lights and sirens.”
Comments