Chester man charged in attack on pregnant woman had 1,700 pills in motel, police say
Police in Chester County found more than a convicted felon accused of shooting at a woman, when officers searched a motel room and discovered a bag of drugs and a gun, officials said.
Deputies arrested Steven Cortze Nelson on an outstanding warrant, law enforcement records show. Nelson was accused of pushing a pregnant woman to the ground then firing shots in September. At the time of his arrest, officers found more than 1,700 pills and marijuana, said Max Dorsey, Chester County Sheriff.
Nelson, 34, was located at a Chester motel Saturday, where detectives charged him with assault and battery. He’s accused of firing his gun at the pregnant woman during a dispute over an air conditioner, according to a sheriff’s office incident report.
Deputies had been seeking Nelson for more than two months, then learned Saturday morning Nelson was staying at the motel, Dorsey said.
“We have made a arrest in a violent shooting case, and we also were able to confiscate a large amount of pills and drugs,” Dorsey said. “This is an important arrest for public safety.”
It remains unclear what type of narcotic pills were found, Dorsey said.
“Although the pills appear to be prescription oxycodone, further analysis is required to determine what they actually are,” Dorsey said.
The State Law Enforcement Division lab is testing the pills, Dorsey said. SLED agents are assisting deputies in the ongoing drug investigation, Dorsey said.
Nelson is charged with two counts of assault from the September incident, and drug charges from the seizure, according to the Chester County jail Web site.
At the time of his arrest Saturday, Nelson was free on a $75,000 bond related to a January heroin drug trafficking arrest in Chester, South Carolina court records show.
Nelson also has pending charges from 2018 where he was charged with domestic violence and two counts of felony child neglect, police and court records show.
Nelson has previous drug convictions from 2011 and 2014, according to South Carolina court records.
