Contractor at Myrtle Beach hotel shot during robbery. He claims it had no security
A contractor who was shot during an armed robbery at a Myrtle Beach hotel is accusing its owners of failing to provide security for its visitors and guests.
Howard Lamar Vereen was doing repairs as an independent contractor at the Sleep Inn Myrtle Beach, 108 Waccamaw Pines Drive, on Jan. 30, 2025, when two people attempted to rob the hotel manager, according to a lawsuit filed on July 13, 2026.
Vereen exited the hotel after performing his job and saw David Mills holding the manager at gun point. Vereen was shot in the left shoulder during the robbery, the lawsuit said.
The suit claims that the hotel failed to secure the premises and had no security on the property.
Mills, along with Brittany Hunter, were previous guests of the hotel and had been kicked out prior to the robbery, according to police reports. Vereen walked out the back door of the hotel during the robbery and saw Mills holding the manager at gunpoint, police said.
Vereen tried to calm the situation, which allowed the employee to run back into the hotel. Mills fired at the manager and then at Vereen as he ran to his vehicle, police said.
Vereen was admitted to Conway Medical Center, where he underwent surgery to remove the bullet, the suit said. Vereen suffered severe pain and injury to his left shoulder and arm, which caused him to lose employment, the suit said.
What the lawsuit says
The suit names Choice Hotels International, which does business as Sleep Inn Myrtle Beach; OMKR Hospitality and its registered agent Priteshkumar Patel; and Jane Doe, the employee at the hotel.
Messages left with Choice Hotels were not returned by publication. A phone number could not be found for OMKR Hospitality and Patel.
The hotel failed to properly secure the premises, including its parking lot, and provide a warning to visitors that “hazardous activities were afoot” on the property and its surrounding areas, the suit claims. The defendants knew that the immediate vicinity around the hotel was a “high crime area,” the suit said.
Vereen is asking for a jury trial and compensation, including for medical expenses and loss of employment. It is also asking for the hotel to install and maintain working security cameras on the property, escalation protocols and other information to property management and staff regarding possible dangers and threats to the safety of guests and visitors.
What happened during the robbery
Both Mills and Hunter were charged in the robbery. Horry County Police were called to the Sleep Inn for gunshots fired during the armed robbery, police said.
After Hunter and Mills were kicked out of the hotel, they waited behind the hotel until the employee took her break. When she walked out the rear hotel door, Hunter and Mills walked up to her, pointed a gun at her and demanded cash and her cell phone, police said. Vereen then walked out the back door of the hotel during the robbery.
Mills fired a gunshot into the back door of the hotel at the employee while the contractor ran to his vehicle. Mills followed the man to his truck and shot a 9-mm round into the rear truck window, which struck the man in the shoulder, police said. Hunter and Mills left the area and were captured in New York by the U.S. Marshals.
Mills pleaded guilty in February 2026 and was sentenced to a 20-year prison sentence for armed robbery and attempted murder. Hunter pleaded guilty to armed robbery and was sentenced to 10 years in prison.
