CONWAY, SC (WMBF) - A quiet December afternoon in one Conway neighborhood was disrupted by gunfire and a truck slamming into a home with the victim inside. Dwayne Gaghum, 53, was shot in the head while behind the wheel, and within minutes, dozens of people were gathered around the crime scene.
Neighbors started running to call 911, telling the operators they heard shots fired on Hemingway Street and then saw a truck ram a house on Durant Street. One witness said they could tell Gaghum wasn't moving and she was worried he was dead.
Conway Police Sgt. Dale Long was one of the first to respond and remembers he knew right away the two events were linked and had to push back a crowd of people already gathering around crime scene.
"I would conservatively estimate there was close to 100 people that were on sidewalks, pushing into the street looking at what was going on," he remembers. "Not every day you see something like this happen."
Gaghum's stepson was one of those people at the crime scene.
"I seen Dwayne, he was slumped over on the side of the door," Michael McCracken told us at the time of the incident. "You didn't know if he was shot or not, it was horrific, there was blood everywhere."
Sgt. Long says even though it happened on December 27, the case has already gone cold with no tips from the public to help detectives solve Gaghum's murder.
"We need leads; we need any kind of lead we can get. We're at a loss for what was the motive, why did it happen, exactly how did it happen," Sgt. Long says.
Here's what police say they do know: Gaghum was in his truck when he was shot in broad daylight; several people heard gunshots, but no one saw anything out of the ordinary.
Investigators are still trying to figure out exactly where Gaghum's truck was on the road when he was shot, how far the truck traveled before crashing, and if anyone would've had a reason to kill the guy who was known as a handyman and mechanic.
"We haven't developed anything, haven't been able to find no enemies or no one that felt slighted by deals or anyone who said they were out to get him," Sgt. Long says about the investigation so far. "We're very puzzled by why he ended up being the person shot that day."
McCracken told us Gaghum's family also doesn't understand who would target him, saying, "I can't believe that someone would shoot at him or shoot him period. It doesn't make any sense."
Sgt. Long is hoping someone, out of the dozens who gathered at the scene, will come forward with a tip that could break this case and put the shooter behind bars.
"It's happened so recently that we don't want it to get to a point where everybody starts forgetting everything," he said, adding, "What you maybe consider inconsequential may be the small piece of the puzzle we're looking for."
Anyone who may have information about Dwayne Gaghum's murder should call Conway Police at (843) 248-1790 or (843) 488-8477. You can remain anonymous.
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