GEORGETOWN COUNTY, S.C. (WBTW) — Two remains of two people found Saturday in a shallow grave in the Choppee community of Georgetown County have been identified.
The bodies of Melvin Wise, 57, and Andrene Stewart, 41, both from Bronx, New York, were identified by their tattoos, according to the Georgetown County Sheriff’s Office. Wise was a former Georgetown resident.
Authorities have not said how long the bodies had been in the grave or whether Wise and Stewart had been reported missing.
Coroner Chase Ridgeway said Wise and Stewart died from gunshot wounds and that authorities are investigating their deaths as homicides. Autopsies were completed Tuesday at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston.
Hunters found the bodies of Wise and Stewart on Saturday in some woods off Whitmire Road in the Choppee community, authorities said.
No additional information was immediately available.
Anyone with information is asked to call the sheriff’s office at 843-546-5102.
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Dennis Bright is a digital producer at News13. Dennis is a West Virginia native and graduate of Marshall University. He has won copyediting and journalism awards in Virginia and Ohio. Follow Dennis on Twitter and read more of his work here.
