07/10/2026
Eight people were shot at Coligny Beach on the Fourth of July.
A crowded public beach became a crime scene. Families, visitors, locals, and children ran from gunfire. BCSO says the shooting happened after a fight broke out between two groups on the public beach, gunfire was exchanged, five people have been arrested, multiple fi****ms believed to be connected to the incident were recovered, and the investigation remains active.
Less than nine months earlier, Willie’s Bar and Grill left 20 people struck and four dead. The Island Packet placed Willie’s and Coligny in the same public-safety conversation, with local leaders raising concern about youth gun violence in Beaufort County.
The Watchful Citizen is not claiming Willie’s and Coligny are the same case. We are not claiming the same person was responsible for both.
They do not have to be the same case to be connected through prevention.
After Willie’s, the public was asked for tips, witnesses, videos, trust, and cooperation. Live 5 reported investigators believed there were “between two and three” shooters and that no witnesses had come forward to confirm details. Sheriff P.J. Tanner was asked whether the public was safe while shooters were still at large.
His answer was clear:
“I cannot tell you that you are safe in Beaufort County.”
AP later reported Tanner said:
“We had 700 people at this party. And we have yet to get a witness that can tell us who the shooters are. It’s ridiculous.”
AP also reported Tanner believed people wanted to cooperate but feared retribution.
Then the language became more specific.
Live 5 reported Tanner said:
“We know we have three shooters in that incident, and we’ve recovered evidence that allows us to say that we have three people that discharged weapons at that scene.”
Live 5 also reported Tanner identified Kashawn Glaze as one of the other shooters who was killed in the shooting.
AP also reported investigators determined through bullets, shell casings, videos, and interviews that there was a third person shooting too, and that Tanner expected more arrests.
One man was charged. One identified shooter was dead. The public had already been told investigators had evidence of three people discharging weapons.
What the public record reviewed does not clearly show is where the possible third-shooter or third-weapon question stands now.
That gap did not disappear because the language got quieter.
One investigation can expose weapons, conflicts, retaliation, silence, friend groups, missed warning signs, and people willing to turn public places into crime scenes.
One solid lead can prevent another shooting.
One recovered gun can stop the next crowd from running.
One person cooperating can change what happens next.
BCSO’s March 2026 update says Freeman was served with 14 additional assault and battery warrants connected to Willie’s and that the investigation remained active and ongoing. That update does not publicly resolve the possible third-shooter or third-weapon question.
This is also why public-safety messaging needs to be read beside the public record.
Doug Seifert, the Republican nominee for Beaufort County Sheriff, has been publicly endorsed by Sheriff Tanner. The Island Packet reported Tanner said Seifert had the “character, discipline and work ethic” to lead BCSO into the future, and that Seifert will face Democrat Alphonso Small Jr. in the Nov. 3 general election.
Campaigns can talk about crime stats.
Officials can talk about public safety.
Both conversations belong beside the same record: Willie’s, public pleas for cooperation, “between two and three” shooters, “three people that discharged weapons,” an active investigation, an unresolved public question, and then Coligny.
Crime stats do not close open questions. Campaign messaging does not replace case transparency. And “safe” cannot just mean Beaufort County looks better on paper than somewhere else.
The public record is not confusing because citizens are speculating. It is confusing because the language changed.
The Watchful Citizen supports law enforcement’s call for witnesses, tips, videos, and cooperation.
We also believe public trust is strengthened when official statements remain clear, consistent, and easy for the community to follow.
We are not asking anyone to guess, accuse, or interfere with an active case. We are putting the public record in plain sight so the community can understand what was reported, what changed, and what remains unclear.
Articles linked below / Public record reviewed
1. BCSO- Sheriff’s Office announces fifth arrest in Coligny Beach shooting investigation
https://bcso.net/sheriffs-office-announces-fifth-arrest-in-coligny-beach-shooting-investigation/
2. Island Packet / Beaufort Gazette- July 4 Coligny Beach gunfire alarms SC’s St. Helena Island
https://www.islandpacket.com/news/local/crime/article316415617.html
3. Live 5- “I cannot tell you that you are safe”: Beaufort Sheriff calls for leads in mass shooting
https://www.live5news.com/2025/10/15/i-cannot-tell-you-that-you-are-safe-beaufort-sheriff-calls-leads-mass-shooting/
4. AP- Sheriff calls for community help in South Carolina mass shooting investigation
https://apnews.com/article/south-carolina-mass-shooting-bar-help-investigation-6c39a9075bcbcc82c74d6fafa266a407
5. Live 5- 1 charged in deadly Beaufort County mass shooting, 1 shooter still at large
https://www.live5news.com/2025/11/14/beaufort-county-sheriff-update-probe-into-deadly-october-mass-shooting/
6. AP- Man charged with murder in South Carolina island mass shooting
https://apnews.com/article/south-carolina-mass-shooting-bar-arrest-760e50f02a38cd1709b5151ae167fc53
7. BCSO- Additional charges filed in the October 2025 shooting at Willie’s Bar and Grill
https://bcso.net/additional-charges-filed-in-the-october-2025-shooting-at-willies-bar-and-grill/
8. Island Packet- Doug Seifert wins GOP nomination for Beaufort County Sheriff
https://www.islandpacket.com/news/politics-government/article316059211.html
