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In October 2017, Sheriff’s Office deputies took a report of a burglary that occurred at a Spanish Wells Plantation, Hilton Head Island home. The homeowners reported that an unknown subject or subjects entered the residence stole over $50,000 in jewelry during the burglary. Sheriff’s Office investigators responded to the home and processed for forensic evidence, which included swabbing various items for DNA that were likely handled by the subject(s).
 
Investigators submitted the evidence they collected from the scene to the Sheriff’s Office Forensic Services Laboratory for examination. Following the examination, DNA analysts found that the same unknown male DNA profile was present on a few of the evidentiary items submitted by investigators. When analysts entered the unknown male profile into the DNA database, it matched the known DNA profile of 47-year-old Stephen Wilson, who had been arrested in March 2018 for a residential burglary in Hilton Head Plantation.
 
Armed with the report that DNA evidence collected from the October 2017 Spanish Wells Plantation burglary match Stephen Wilson, Sheriff’s Office investigators met with a Beaufort County Magistrate on December 3^rd. After hearing the facts of the case, the magistrate issued a warrant for Wilson’s arrest for Burglary 2^nd Degree.
 
Yesterday, Sheriff’s Office deputies were able to locate and arrest Stephen Wilson in Beaufort for the active Burglary 2^nd Degree warrant. Wilson was transported to the Beaufort County Detention Center and incarcerated without incident. This morning, Wilson was released from the Detention Center on his own recognizance following his bond hearing for the burglary charge.
 
We appreciate your partnership and continued commitment to the safety of our community.