SC man to serve 10 years for kidnapping child during seven-hour Rock Hill SWAT standoff
A South Carolina man who held a child in a home for hours during a standoff until a Rock Hill SWAT team rescue will serve 10 years in prison, according to prosecutors and court records.
Terrell Freeman, 37, pleaded guilty to kidnapping Tuesday in York County criminal court before the sentencing, according to court records and Chris Epting, the 16th Circuit assistant deputy solicitor.
Freeman was arrested in December 2021 at a home on Fargo Street after a seven-hour standoff where the Rock Hill Police Department sent negotiators and SWAT to the house, Epting said. SWAT entered the house, kicked in a bedroom door and whisked the unharmed child to safety, Epting said. Freeman was taken into custody by law enforcement without injury, Epting said. Freeman knew the child’s mother, police said.
Freeman pleaded guilty before a trial was scheduled to start this week.
He pleaded guilty in a negotiated agreement with prosecutors where he faced a cap of 10 years in the South Carolina Department of Corrections, Epting said.
York County Circuit Court Judge Dan Hall sentenced Freeman to the maximum of 10 years without parole, according to prosecutors Epting and Heather Burdette and court records.
Other charges against Freeman from the incident were dismissed as part of the plea agreement, prosecutors said.
