A man was shot and killed outside of the House of Raeford Farms poultry plant in West Columbia, South Carolina.
The incident occurred around 7 a.m. on June 24. According to a report from News 19, when authorities arrived on the scene, they found Daniel Jones, 33, fatally shot. An argument between Jones and the suspect, Trevor Anthony Irvin, had allegedly escalated to the point that the shooting occurred.
Irvin was taken into custody and was charged with murder and possession of a weapon during a violent crime. He made his first court appearance the day after the alleged incident occurred.
A co-worker, Antonio Williams, described Jones as a good friend who was there for him when needed. “It’s just a tragedy what happened,” Williams told News 19. “I wish he was never gone.”
House of Raeford issued the following statement: “House of Raeford confirms that a fatal shooting occurred … involving two of our West Columbia, South Carolina, processing plant employees. The incident occurred off-property after both employees had clocked out from the night shift. This is always a difficult situation for everyone involved, and we offer our sincere condolences to the family of the decedent.”
The company said chaplains are available 24 hours a day to support workers at the plant in need of counseling.
The shooting of Jones is the second time in less than one year that an act of violence involving House of Raeford employees turned into a fatality. In November 2020, House of Raeford employee Darius Atkins, was shot to death at the company’s poultry plant in Rose Hill, North Carolina. The suspect, Antwan Terrell Wright, fled the scene and was on the lam until he was apprehended on February 4, 2021.
House of Raeford Farms is the tenth largest broiler producer in the United States. According to the WATTPoultry.com Top Companies Database, it processed 28.9 million pounds of ready-to-cook chicken on a weekly basis in 2020.
