Sheriff: St. Helena Island mother, daughter killed after ex-boyfriend broke into home
A mother and daughter died defending themselves from an armed intruder — the daughter’s ex-boyfriend — at their St. Helena Island home last week , according to new details released by the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office.
Robin Saunders, 55, her 22-year-old daughter Kalila Saunders, and Jaquan Sanders, 24, of Shell Point, died in the Jan. 26 shooting on Eddings Point Road.
On Friday, authorities revealed that Sanders was Kalila Saunders’ estranged boyfriend. He had come to the Saunders home, they said, armed with a pistol, and forced his way into the residence.
The preliminary Sheriff’s Office investigation “strongly indicates” that one of the two women, either Kalila or Robin, exchanged gunfire with Sanders “in defense of themselves and their home.” Forensic analysis may provide additional details, the Sheriff’s Office said.
Deputies responded to the Saunders’ residence at 11:30 a.m. after Robin Saunders called saying that a man she knew was breaking into the home, according to the sheriff’s office report.
The first deputy who arrived found fresh damage to the door. When he entered, he discovered Sanders lying unresponsive on the floor of the upstairs hallway with a pistol in his hand. In a bedroom, he found Kalila and Robin Sanders on the floor. A pistol that belonged to Kalila was found on the bed nearby.
The deputy rendered aid but EMTs who arrived later determined Kalila Saunders and Jaquan Sanders were dead. Robin Saunders was transported to Beaufort Memorial Hospital and died a short time later.
Although the case remains under investigation, the Sheriff’s Office says, there are no indications that anybody else was involved in the shooting. Two different pistols, which were different calibers, were recovered. Bullets and casings consistent with those calibers were recovered from the residence, the Sheriff’s Office said.
This story was originally published February 5, 2022 at 10:57 AM.
