Estill man charged with murder of Ridgeland couple found in burned car

Jonathan Antonio Nieves, 21, was charged with two counts of murder and possession of a weapon in the commission of a violent crime in the deaths of Shantay Jenkins and Bruce Specks Oct. 3, the release said.

The bodies of Jenkins, 27, and Specks, 33, were found in a burned car in the Purrysburg area of Hardeeville on Oct. 3, but weren't positively identified until Oct. 21 -- five days after mourning family held a vigil honoring the missing couple.

Their bodies were sent to the S.C. Law Enforcement Division for DNA tests to determine their identities, Jasper County Coroner Martin Sauls said at the time.

SLED agents and Sheriff's Office investigators arrested Nieves on Thursday afternoon, the release said. He was taken to the Jasper County Detention Center, where he awaits a bond hearing by a Circuit Court judge.

Jenkins is survived by a 6-year-old son.

Specks is the father of three children, ages 11, 12 and 16.

The story took another tragic turn when days before Specks' funeral, his mother Cynthia Howard was seriously wounded in a hit-and-run crash on Old House Road Oct. 23.

Howard suffered broken legs in the crash and her mother, 73-year-old Jamie Lee Robert, was killed in the crash.

The driver of the other car, Tommy Brown, 53, of Ridgeland, sped from the scene but was stopped and arrested by the Ridgeland Police Department following a chase that hit speeds of up to 90 miles per hour.

He was charged with leaving the scene of a collision resulting in death and leaving the scene of a collision resulting in great bodily injury, according to Ridgeland police.

This story was originally published January 8, 2016 at 9:52 PM with the headline "Estill man charged with murder of Ridgeland couple found in burned car."