SC man charged with murder captured, extradited following high speed chase in Tennessee
A murder suspect is in Georgetown County jail after being extradited from Tennessee, according to jail records.
Eric Wade Hempel, 22, was booked into the Georgetown County Detention Center Thursday just after 6 p.m. He is charged with murder and possession of a weapon during a violent crime.
Hempel, who was arrested after a reported high-speed chase in Tennessee, is one of two suspects accused in the death of 35-year-old Harry Barkley.
In August 2020, relatives of Barkley, of Kingstree, reported him missing to the Georgetown County Sheriff’s Office and Williamsburg County Sheriff’s Office. The departments collaborated in an investigation that eventually led to the charges.
Police found Barkley’s vehicle dumped in the Black River at Chavis Landing in Sept. 2020. In May 2021, human remains believed to be Barkley were found in a remote wooded area in Williamsburg County, police say.
Police identified suspects but were unable to make arrests until the remains were conclusively identified. Ashby was taken into custody on Wednesday, while Hempel was awaiting extradition from Tennessee, where he was taken into custody following a high-speed chase.
In August 2021, police received DNA results confirming the remains were Barkley, and charged Hempel and Ashby.
Ashby is charged with accessory to murder after the fact for allegedly assisting Hempel in moving and disposing of Barkley’s remains.
