NORTH MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (WBTW) – A North Myrtle Beach police officer on a proactive patrol recently helped identify a suspect in a shooting, the department said.

According to a Facebook post, Officer Wallace, whose first name was not included in the post, was patrolling about 5:30 a.m. on May 28 when she conducted a traffic stop after she saw a white jeep run a red light. 

That’s when things began to unravel for the suspect.

A woman was driving, and a man was also in the car, police said. While Wallace talked to them, she noticed that the woman appeared to be in distress. When the man was not looking, police said the woman silently mouthed “help me” repeatedly to Wallace. 

That prompted Wallace to put the man in her patrol vehicle before going back to talk to the woman. That’s when police said the woman told Wallace the man had just shot someone. 

Moments later, dispatchers sent out a “be on the lookout” radio call about a vehicle that had just been involved in a shooting elsewhere in Horry County, the Facebook post said.

That led to the arrest of Collins Xavier Manning Bates, 29, of Columbia, who remains in the J. Reuben Long Detention Center on charges of attempted murder, kidnapping, and possession of a weapon during a violent crime in connection with the shooting in the 9800 block of N. Kings Highway.

North Myrtle Beach police also charged Bates with unlawful carrying of a firearm after finding a pistol under his seat in the car, a spokesman said.