COLUMBIA, S.C. -- While 'root doctor' Edward R. Harkless lay dead on the bloodstained floor of his home, his wife and four other people were held hostage for two hours before three killers methodically shot them Sept. 29, authorities said Tuesday.
Frankie Harkless, 39, and Fletcher Felder, 57, survived the shootings in the house, filled with voodoo literature and other occult items, and identified their assailants through mug shots.
Richland County Sheriff Frank Powell summoned reporters to his office to discuss previously undisclosed details of the case.
The sheriff said between $40,000 and $60,000 -- not $250,000 to $500,000 as police earlier thought -- was taken from a safe in Harkless' fortress-like home and investigators believe robbery was the sole motive behind the slayings.
Killed in the robbery were Harkless, 62, a well-known 'root doctor' who used strange herbs, potions and chants in his practice of black folk medicine; Maxlinia Lykes, 27, who lived in the house along with Mrs. Harkless and the couple's two children; Ralph Felder, a 33-year-old part-time chicken and goat farmer from Salley, S.C.; and Leroy Hemphill, who drove a truck for a Chester, S.C., paper firm.
Powell said the assailants held their victims at gunpoint for about two hours before herding them into the rear of the house. The five people were forced to kneel with their hands against bedroom and bathroom walls, then were shot from behind. Police have arrested three suspects and Powell said no other gunmen were being sought.
Frank Emmanuel 'Frank-O' McDowell, 26, was arrested Monday in Charlotte. Powell said McDowell, a Charlotte resident, waived extradition and would be returned to Columbia later today.
Charles 'Bo-Left' Livingston, 32, of West Columbia, was arrested Oct. 2 and has been held without bond at the Richland County Detention Center on four counts of murder. William James 'Blood' Stroman, 43, was arrested Oct. 19 in Charlotte and refused to waive extradition to Columbia. A hearing is set for him Friday in Charlotte.
