CHESTER COUNTY, S.C. — A South Carolina community continues to be on edge as the search for an accused killer continues. Channel 9 spoke with the mother of the woman connected to the crime spree.
Police from several agencies have combed the Chester County area trying to find 27-year-old Tyler Terry, who is accused of four murders and multiple shootings spanning from South Carolina to Missouri.
His accused accomplice, Adrienne Simpson, was arrested Monday night after a high-speed chase with deputies. She has been charged in connection with the killings and shootings involving Terry, including the murder of her husband, Eugene Simpson.
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Chester County Sheriff Max Dorsey said they’re confident Terry is still in the area. The manpower doubled in size Friday with more FBI and ATF agents joining the search.
“He is armed with a weapon. He will use it, as he has used it in the past, that has brought devastation and destruction to many communities,” Dorsey said.
It’s destruction that Carol Dewitt knows too well. She is Adrienne Simpson’s mother.
“I am so sorry for the pain that she has caused so many families with this crime spree with Tyler. That my heart just broke for these families,” Dewitt said.
She told Eyewitness News reporter Genevieve Curtis that she’s heartbroken her two grandchildren have lost their father, and their mother is in jail.
“I’m still having a hard time wrapping my head around that. Adrienne really loved (Eugene) Gene,” Dewitt said.
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She said Terry abused Adrienne Simpson for years. He once put a gun in her mouth, swung a machete at her and beat her with a belt. Court records show he was charged with abusing her multiple times.
On Saturday, Channel 9 obtained a Myrtle Beach police report from March 31. It said Adrienne Simpson told officers she went to a motel there to return Terry’s belongings. She said that led to a fight in which Terry hurt her hand and broke her phone.
Police then arrested Terry for domestic violence and marijuana possession. He got out of jail on April 9, and police said he’s been on a violent crime spree spanning more than 700 miles.
“She told me once before that maybe she could make a difference in his life, show him that she loves him and that he would change,” Dewitt said.
Simpson told police that she has been with Terry for three years.
Curtis spoke with Dewitt after her first phone call from her daughter, who’s been in jail. Dewitt said she asked Adrienne Simpson why all this happened, and she told her mother that she felt manipulated by Terry.
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In Chester County, nine special units went door-to-door Friday night, checking every home and family in the area.
“We’re just wanting to make sure everyone is OK. Our goal is to get a confirmation that everyone on this side of the county is OK,” the sheriff said.
Authorities are hoping that without food or water, it won’t be much longer before Terry is found.
“He’s probably not feeling too well right now, but that’s OK. Whatever it takes to make him uncomfortable until we bring him to justice,” Dorsey said.
Crime Stoppers has increased a reward to $2,000 for any information that leads to Terry’s arrest, and the FBI has added a $10,000 reward. Click here to leave an anonymous tip or call 888-CRIME-SC.
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