Suspected gang member sentenced to life in prison for Berkeley County triple murder

BERKELEY COUNTY, S.C. (WCBD) – A suspected gang member was sentenced to life in a South Carolina prison after committing a triple murder in 2020.

A Berkeley County jury found Jay Quan Tyheim Washington guilty of the murders of Malik Gibbs, Desmond Williams, and Martice Green.

As a result, Honorable Dale Van Slambrook sentenced Washington to life in prison.

On the day of the murders, Jan. 20, 2020, Washington was a passenger driven by one of the victims while the other two were also passengers.
The group spent hours together, according to the Ninth Circuit Solicitor’s Office.

Washington then shot Green and Williams while the car was traveling down a gravel road in Pineville. Gibbs, who was the driver, veered off the road into a flee and tried to run away on foot.

Washington chased Gibbs and finally shot him three times, trial testimony revealed.

After putting Gibbs back in the car, Washington fled on foot and texted another acquaintance, “DOA,” after the murders.

The solicitor’s office said Washington planned the murders of the three men and waited patiently for the right time to kill his supposed friends.

Special Counsel Stephanie Linder and Assistant Solicitors Ashleigh Brown and Michael Secrist prosecuted this case for the Ninth Circuit Solicitor’s Office.