A Myrtle Beach man wanted in the shooting death of a 20-year-old man earlier this month was arrested Tuesday, after dogs tracked him, according to authorities.
Shelton Lathal Butler Jr., 21, was booked into J. Reuben Long Detention Center at 9:16 p.m. Tuesday on a charge of murder, according to jail records. He is being held without bond until he appears before a Circuit Court judge.
Horry County police and U.S. Marshals arrested Butler in a wooded area on Lucas Bay Road, Sgt. Robert Kegler said. Police found Butler, but he tried to run from them and the Horry County police bloodhound tracking team was called in to find him, Kegler said.
Butler was then arrested without incident.
On June 11, authorities obtained arrest warrants for Butler and 19-year-old Donavon Curtis Johnson, who is still wanted by police, Kegler said. The warrants charge the men with murder in the June 8 shooting death of 20-year-old Jose Gutierez of Myrtle Beach.
Gutierez died shortly after he arrived at Conway Medical Center following a shooting about 8:30 p.m. June 8 on Ronald McNair Boulevard, according to authorities.
A police report showed that police were called to Ronald McNair Boulevard, which is near the Carolina Bays Parkway overpass, for a report of gunshots being fired in the area. The caller told dispatchers that a man had been shot and several women put him in a vehicle and drove away.
Officers found a crime scene in that area that included blood, a cell phone and shoe in the street, according to the report. A witness told police that she was inside her house and heard what sounded like gunshots. The witness told police she saw a man leave the scene in one vehicle and the women and Gutierez leave in another vehicle.
While officers were at that scene, Gutierez arrived at the hospital for treatment, police said.
Officers learned the women took Guiterez to the hospital, and they were questioned about the shooting there. The man, who the witness described as leaving the scene, also arrived at the hospital and was questioned by police.
Several neighbors told police they heard three gunshots at the time of the incident, but that they did not see what happened, according to the report.
A background check with the State Law Enforcement Division showed that Butler and Johnson have previous criminal records involving weapon charges, armed robbery, kidnapping and drug charges.
Butler was charged in November 2008 with failure to stop for a blue light and strong armed robbery; September 2009 with armed robbery, possession of a weapon during the commission of a violent crime, grand larceny with a value of more than $5,000 and four counts of kidnapping; and December 2011 with driving under suspension and a window tint violation. Butler was ordered to serve a prison sentence not to exceed six years under the Youthful Offender Act in March 2010 and was released on probation in July 2010 on the robbery charges. He was ordered to serve 90 days in jail for failing to stop for a blue light.
The robbery charge from 2009 filed against Butler was filed after a taxi cab driver in Conway reported two men, including one identified as Butler, punched her in the face repeatedly, held a knife to her neck and robbed her.
Johnson was charged in May 2010 with driving under suspension, possession of meth or cocaine base; in December 2010 with first-degree burglary and possession of a weapon during the commission of a violent crime; March 2011 with indecent exposure; August 2011 with speeding, DUS and possession of 28 grams or less of marijuana; and January 2012 with first-degree manufacture, possession of controlled substances and giving false information to police. Those charges are pending.
Contact TONYA ROOT at 444-1723.
