Woman shot to death outside North Myrtle Beach K & W Cafeteria

A woman was found fatally shot in the North Myrtle Beach K & W Cafeteria parking lot Saturday morning.

“We came out here and she had apparently been shot in the head,” said Jordan Virtue, 19, who said he saw the victim lying in the parking lot shortly after the shooting.

Officers received the call about 11 a.m. for a possible shooting at the North Myrtle Beach K&W Cafeteria, which faces U.S. 17. Police and EMS quickly arrived on scene, authorities said.

One witness who was in the parking lot during the incident came inside and told everyone, and patrons and workers ran to the windows to see what happened, Virtue said.

Virtue and his family had just arrived at the restaurant minutes before the shooting, and he and his father ran outside immediately afterward.

“She was face down and there was blood everywhere,” said Virtue.

Police said it appears the victim, who was a white woman believed to be in her late twenties or early thirties, and a man or men were in a white four-door car in the restaurant parking lot, and a shot or shots may have been fired inside the car.

The woman then either exited the car or was pushed from it onto the ground. The vehicle then fled the scene, according to witnesses there. Early on in the investigation, police said they were getting conflicting reports as to the number of suspects in the vehicle, and said there may have been two men present, according to J. Phillip Webster, Chief of North Myrtle Beach Department of Public Safety.

The witness who said he saw some of the incident spoke with police, but said he was rattled from what he had seen and declined to comment about the incident.

“He heard what he perceived to be a backfire or a gunshot. He turned around and saw the deceased lady fall on the ground. He wasn’t sure if she was pushed or fell from the vehicle,” said Jay Fernandez, Directer of North Myrtle Beach Department of Public Safety.

Virtue said a white vehicle with two men inside sped by shortly after the incident and screamed that the victim was dead and Virtue said they may have been the suspects.

“They were flying when they came by. They had to know she was there,” said Virtue.

Webster said they had some “good” leads, but no suspects hours after the shooting occurred. Police were reviewing surveillance footage at the restaurant and at surrounding businesses in an attempt to capture more details on the suspect or suspects involved.

“You don’t expect this to happen at any time, but particularly in a busy commercial parking lot of a restaurant in board daylight, summer day, noon time. It’s strange. It’s not something you expect to happen,” said Webster after the victim, who was pronounced dead on scene, was taken away by the Horry County Coroner’s Office.

The restaurant closed for several hours after the shooting and was set to reopen at 4 p.m. following the incident. The manager declined to comment on the shooting.

Authorities have identified the victim, and her name will be released once family is notified.

This story was originally published July 9, 2016 at 2:35 PM with the headline "Woman shot to death outside North Myrtle Beach K & W Cafeteria."