Charges expected against Lexington County deputy, dozens of devices seized

COLUMBIA, SC (WIS) – Thirty-five devices were seized from a Lexington County representative in South Carolina in August, according to a federal document filed Thursday.

Criminal charges against Rep. RJ May, R-Lexington, are expected within the next three months, according to the unsealed federal filing. It is unclear what charges are likely to be brought against May, who has served in the South Carolina legislature since 2021.

The filing shows Homeland Security Investigations agents seized devices such as cellphones, hard drives and USB drives from Republican lawmakers on Aug. 5

May, a conservative who previously served as vice chair of the South Carolina Freedom Caucus, has been part of an effort to push the Republican Party further to the right in South Carolina. He is running unopposed in the general election for S.C. House Seat 88, representing Lexington County.

The filing is a request from the U.S. Attorney’s Office asking for more time to process the seized evidence. According to the documents, May’s attorney, Dayne Phillips, agreed to the U.S. Attorney’s request.

As part of the criminal investigation, officers confiscated these devices:

• A Lenovo laptop
• An Amazon tablet
• Four cell phones
• Four hard drives
• Two DVD-Rs
• 19 USB sticks

WIS News 10 reached out to us Phillips on Friday AAnd he made no comment.

Feel more informed, prepared and connected with WIS. For more free content like this, subscribe to our Email newsletterAnd Download our apps. Do you have any feedback that can help us improve? Click here.

Copyright 2024 WIS. All rights reserved.