Shooting at Sumter Sleep Inn leaves two dead; investigation ongoing

COLUMBIA, SC — Two Sumter residents are dead following a shooting early Sunday morning at the Sleep Inn on Broad Street, according to Sumter police.

The victims were identified as 20-year-old Saquan Logan and 19-year-old Demari Spann, the Sumter County Coroner's Office confirmed.

No arrests have been made in connection with the shooting and police are continuing to investigate.

Family members of Saquan Logan said they could hardly comprehend the sudden loss.

“I feel like it was the wrong place at the wrong time because like I said, Saquan is not a troublemaker. He doesn't get involved in anything,” said a family member. “I can't really imagine who would do something like that to Saquan because he would just work, come home and play games.”

For Logan's mother, the grieving process is even more difficult as she is still mourning the loss of another son to gun violence.

“She is still mourning the loss of her other son who passed away in November last year,” the family member said.

Guests at the Sleep Inn were startled by gunshots around 4:30 a.m.

“We hid between the beds,” said one guest.

When police arrived at the hotel, they found both victims dead at the scene.

A guest from Atlanta described the chaos that followed the shooting.

“After the shooting, I looked through the peephole and saw a child standing by the elevator in a panic – you could see blood was pouring,” the guest said. “After that, we looked out the window and saw people running toward the Candlewood. There were about two or three running in that direction, then three or four running away from the hotel.”

In daylight, the extent of the crime scene became clear: bullet holes were visible on the side of the building and shards of glass were scattered on the floor.

A hotel employee who wished to remain anonymous described her first reaction when she arrived at work and saw the police presence.

“I was just shocked. It made me really nervous,” she said. “Something like this has never happened here before. It's just sad.”

“I almost cried last night because we had our window open and when the parents pulled up she just started screaming like it was murder,” said the guest from Atlanta. “We had to close the window. It was horrible. I felt horrible.”

Autopsies of both victims are scheduled for Wednesday at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston.

Sumter police are offering a $5,000 reward for information leading to an arrest. Anyone with information is asked to call CrimeStoppers at 1-888-CRIME-SC.