Shirtless man seen on video in home invasion goes to prison, SC prosecutor says

A man is going to prison after he was convicted of breaking into an elderly couple’s South Carolina home, according to the 5th Circuit Solicitor’s Office.

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On Aug. 20, a Kershaw County jury convicted Thomas Emory Vella Jr., of first-degree burglary, the solicitor’s office said Monday in a news release.

Judge T.W. McGee sentenced Vella to 27 years in a South Carolina Department of Corrections prison, according to the release.

The home invasion happened Sept. 29, 2023, in the Camden area of Kershaw County, the solicitor’s office said. Surveillance footage showed a shirtless Vella arrive at the elderly victims’ home shortly after 1 a.m. and immediately attempt to enter through the couple’s back door while they slept inside, according to the release.

Witnesses said that another door, outside the camera’s view, was unlocked and that items were missing from inside the home, indicating that Vella succeeded in his attempt to get inside, the solicitor’s office said.

Because Vella was not wearing a shirt it allowed the Kershaw County Sheriff’s Office to connect him to the home invasion, according to the release. Investigators saw tattoos visible on Vella’s exposed torso and used that to identify him, resulting in his arrest in Charleston, the solicitor’s office said.

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The 43-year-old was arrested Nov. 3, and his $50,000 bond was never posted, Kershaw County court records show.

This was not the first time that Vella has been arrested, and that was used against him during sentencing, according to the release. McGee noted Vella’s significant criminal record — including prior robbery, assault and sex offenses in North Carolina — as well as the danger he poses to the community, the solicitor’s office said.

Vella is currently an inmate being held at Kirkland Reception and Evaluation Center in Columbia, prison records show.

The Kershaw County Sheriff’s Office led the investigation.

Assistant Solicitor Michael Bradbury prosecuted the case for the solicitor’s office. Public defender Tivis Sutherland was listed as Vella’s attorney, court records show.