Officer identified in Myrtle Beach State Park shooting incident

The name of an Horry County police officer involved in a shooting at Myrtle Beach State Park last month has been released as a State Law Enforcement Division investigation of the incident continues.

Chandler J. Mullinax, with Horry County police was involved in the shooting of a man at the state park at 4401 S. Kings Hwy in Myrtle Beach and has been reassigned to administrative duties pending the outcome of a SLED investigation, Lt. Raul Denis, spokesman with Horry County police said.

A man was shot after a confrontation with Horry County Police in Myrtle Beach State Park on June 24.

An officer responded to a 1:14 p.m. call reporting a “person acting suspiciously in different areas of the park,” Denis said the day of the incident.

Horry County dispatchers told officers that a man was seen with a rifle, sitting near a parking area, police said in an incident report.

“Our officer responded and found the car here, confronted the man in the car. He was the sole occupant of the car,” Denis said. “Moments later, our officer discharged his weapon.”

Just after the incident, Denis declined to say why the officer used his gun or how many times it was fired. He said the confrontation was near the car, but not inside it.

The suspicious person was taken to a local hospital, and his condition is unknown.

Mullinax has been with Horry County police since March and has been a police officer in the state since July 2012, and he is in good standing with the department, Denis said.

This story was originally published July 15, 2016 at 1:22 PM with the headline "Officer identified in Myrtle Beach State Park shooting incident."