Charleston deputies make arrest in 2016 Johns Island murder | News

NORTH CHARLESTON — Year after year, Charleston County sheriff's deputies search for new leads in the 2016 murder of Jason Arion on Johns Island.

Eight years later, police arrested Arion's neighbors in connection with his death. Sheriff's deputies and U.S. Marshals arrested 35-year-old David Nathaniel Mack on Oct. 3 at Freshfields Village on Kiawah Island, according to a news release. Mack is charged with murder and possession of a weapon during a crime of violence and is being held at the Sheriff Al Cannon Detention Center.

According to a press release, the arrest was made possible after an informant tipped off police in July. According to a news release, the informant told police that Mack had confided in him about the murder and discussed details of the murder that had not been publicly disclosed.

According to court documents, police discovered Arion's body at his home on Jan. 22, 2016, after his mother requested a welfare check. According to court documents, she hadn't heard from him for a day.

After police entered Arion's unlocked front door, they found him with a gunshot wound to the head. His cellphone was also missing, according to court documents.

According to a news release, Mack had been interested in the case during the initial investigation because he was the last person to speak to Arion, 35.

According to police, Mack told police in 2016 that Arion invited him for a beer after midnight on January 21, 2016. He showed police a text message from him to Mack at 12:48 a.m. that said, “Yeah we're coming bro,” according to court documents.

He later told police that he did not go to Arion's house and that he was not home until 4 a.m. that day. He told police he stayed in bed until 3 p.m. and then went to the house to see if Arion was nearby and found the doors locked, according to court documents.

His statement that Arion's house was found locked contradicted what police found at his house the next day. Mack told police he went to his cousin's house and didn't come home until later that evening.

Police obtained cell phone records from Arion and Mack and stated that Mack traveled back and forth between Johns Island and West Ashley using both cell phones. According to court documents, Arion's West Ashley phone stopped sending signals while Mack returned to his home. The cell phone data contradicted statements about Mack's trip on January 21, 2016.

Mack will appear before a judge on Oct. 4 during a bond hearing.

However, Mack's murder charge means he will not be granted bail immediately. In South Carolina, for serious violent crimes such as murder, a district court judge must make bond decisions.