SC state trooper arrested for punching man in grocery parking lot in Myrtle Beach area
A South Carolina state trooper was arrested after allegedly getting into a fight at an Horry County grocery store.
Rashaad Chestnut, 34, was arrested for third-degree assault and battery on April 13, 2025. He was booked into J. Reuben Long Detention Center and then released a few hours later without bail, online bookings show.
Chestnut began working with the South Carolina Highway Patrol in July 2023, said Kyle McGahee, the assistant director of public affairs. He has been out on extended leave since November 2024 and is now suspended pending the outcome of the investigation, McGahee said.
Chestnut is accused of hitting a man unprovoked in the parking lot of Griffin’s IGA, 8729 S.C. 90, at about 4 a.m. on April 12, 2025, according to the police report. The victim said he only laid his hands on Chestnut in attempts to defend himself.
Chestnut said the other person attacked him first, the report said. He also said after the fight, the man cut him off in traffic, pointed a gun at him and threatened to “smoke him.”
Surveillance footage from the IGA shows Chestnut walking up to the victim’s car and pulling the man out while punching him, according to the report. After the fight, Chestnut returned to his car and the victim ran after him and tried to hit him. The victim then held on to the side of Chestnut’s car while he drove away.
South Carolina Highway Patrol records show Chestnut graduated from Highway Patrol class 125 in February 2024.
This story was originally published April 15, 2025 at 9:52 AM.
