Bond denied for Rock Hill teen charged in what is described as gang double murder
A Rock Hill teenager charged with double murder in the shooting death of two people will remain in jail without bail, a judge ruled Thursday.
Sam Saadiq Robinson, 18, is charged with two counts of murder in the deaths of Zuinquarius McCrorey, 20, and Malik McCullough, 23.
The two men were fatally shot around 1:30 p.m. on Feb. 26, 2019 on Chestnut Street in Rock Hill. Robinson was in the back seat of a car with the victims in front when he shot both in the head, 16th Circuit Deputy Solicitor Willy Thompson said in court Thursday.
Thompson said Robinson had been involved with the Bloods street gang, which is affiliated with Folk Nation gangs. He then joined the Crips gang before the killings. Gang initiation and acceptance could have been a motive for the killings, Thompson said.
The court hearing was held because Robinson, jailed since shortly after the killings, wanted to be released until his trial.
Trials in York County and most of South Carolina remain postponed because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Thompson said such a young defendant accused of two execution killings is believed to be unprecedented in York County. Robinson is charged as an adult, but was 16 at the time of the killings and will not face the death penalty.
“If he was 18 when it happened, this would be a death penalty case,” Thompson said in court. “The facts of this case are extremely egregious. The victims thought they were friends with the defendant. The defendant shot both of the victims in the back of the head, execution-style. One shot in the back of each of their heads.”
Robinson planned the killings. He then pretended to assist bystanders after leaping from the car before it crashed, when the driver had been shot,Thompson said.
Police investigators found Robinson’s DNA on the murder weapon, his fingerprints in the car, and he had gunshot residue on his clothes, Thompson said. Cellphone records show Robinson was in the car at the same time as the defendants, Thompson said.
“The evidence in this case is overwhelming,” Thompson said.
Darryl McCullough, father of victim Malik McCullough, asked that bail be denied.
“It’s ridiculous,” Darryl McCullough said of his son’s death. “It’s a hurting you wouldn’t want nobody to face.”
Robinson was arrested days after the shooting. Family members tried to hide him from police. One family member tried to help him evade detection through a change of clothes while Robinson was being interviewed in police custody, Thompson said in court.
Thompson said Robinson had shown he is a flight risk, and the broad-daylight killings on a public street show he is a threat to public safety.
Robinson could face up to life in prison if convicted.
Robinson had been housed in a South Carolina juvenile jail after his arrest in March 2019 until he turned 17. He has been in the York County jail for more than a year.
Robinson’s lawyer, Geoff Dunn, asked in court for bail that would include house arrest and GPS monitoring. Dunn said Robinson was not a fully formed adult with an adult’s brain and reasoning when he was arrested at age 16.
“He’s charged as a a man, but he was 16 years old when this happened,” Dunn said. “Until he got arrested on these charges he was never in trouble.”
York County Circuit Court Judge William McKinnon said testimony Thursday showed Robinson is “a flight risk and a danger to the community.”
It remains unclear when Robinson will face trial.
This story was originally published August 27, 2020 at 2:04 PM.
