Testimony begins in Chester County trial of soldier accused of killing grandparents
CHESTER, SC (QUEEN CITY NEWS) — 24-year-old Gene Alexander Scott sat through testimony in a Chester County courtroom as his double murder trial got underway Tuesday.
A Chester County judge called the room to order at 11:38 a.m. Tuesday morning with 16 jurors, made up of 11 women and five men.
The Chester County solicitor’s office started with opening statements, and the defense followed.
Scott took extensive notes as authorities who worked on the June 2020 homicide scene began making their case. And even as Scott heard himself on the 911 call and body camera video, he showed no emotion.
Authorities say Scott said he visited his grandfather for Father’s Day in 2020. When he arrived, he said he accidentally locked his phone and keys in his car and figured he would call a locksmith when he left.
Authorities say Scott’s initial written statement says he walked up to the door, opened it, and saw his grandparents had been shot. He then turned around, threw up, shut the door, and tried to yell through his car window for Siri to call 911.
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He says the last time he saw his grandparents was June 10.
A Chester County deputy says he did not see any vomit where Scott claimed he threw up.
Eventually, he flagged down a neighbor and they called the police.
“He’s standing there… He cries… or tries to cry. And he says that his grandparents have been killed and proceeds to tell me that they were shot execution-style with their hands on their heads, and it looks like they begged for their life, and what mags they use or the shell casings,” she said.
Prosecutors argue Scott killed his grandfather for his retirement and investment savings so he could start a tactical business.
In her opening statement, Deputy Solicitor Candice Lively claims Gene Rogers withdrew $120,000 from his savings and gave $86,000 to Scott for the business in January 2020. But by June, she says Scott only had three dollars of it left.
One thing that stood out to a Chester County deputy was Scott asking how many murders the department had covered that year, and what was the success rate, and he continuously asked to leave the scene.
The Chester County Sheriff’s Office did not find a weapon on the scene until the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division began its investigation. A SLED agent testified that a handgun was found in the center console of Scott’s blue Mustang, – which his grandfather bought for him.
Several witnesses testified on day 1 of Scott’s trial.
Jurors are back tomorrow at 9:30 a.m.
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