(WBTW) — A man is facing charges after a 24-year-old was killed when a jon boat hit a dock on the Intracoastal Waterway last month, according to the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources.
SCDNR arrested Matthew Brown, 26, of Horry County, on Tuesday and charged him with felony boating under the influence resulting in death and obstruction of justice. He posted bonds totaling $25,000 and was released from the J. Reuben Long Detention Center, online jail records show.
The incident happened on June 18, SCDNR said. The Horry County Coroner’s office said Jacob Williams was thrown from the boat as it hit a dock in the Peachtree Landing area near Burcale Road.
Brown owned the boat, and there were three other people on board when it crashed into a floating dock platform near Peachtree Landing and then hit the walkway side of the dock, according to a DNR report obtained by News13.
After the crash, the report said the remaining people on the boat turned it around and began looking for the missing passenger. A relative of the dock owner was outside when the crash happened and call 911.
According to arrest warrants obtained by News13, Brown initially lied to police, saying one of the passengers was driving the boat when it crashed. The passenger was then detained until Brown admitted to police that he was the one operating the boat.
Brown suffered injuries to his shoulder and wrist and had cuts on his right side near his waist, the SCDNR report said. Two others on the boat were not hurt.
The report also said the water was calm at the time of the crash and that Brown had more than 100 hours of experience operating a boat
Caleb is a digital producer at News13. Caleb joined the team in January 2023 after graduating from Liberty University. He is from Northern Virginia. Follow Caleb on X, formerly Twitter, and read more of his work here.
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