A third inmate at same SC prison has died in less than two weeks, officials say

For the third time in less than two weeks an inmate at a prison in Columbia has died, according to the South Carolina Department of Corrections.

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And in all three instances, the deaths of the inmates being held at Broad River Correctional Institution are being investigated as suspected suicides, the S.C. Department of Corrections officials said in news releases.

Anthony Nicholas Argoe, 64, is the most recent Broad River inmate to die, according to a news release. Argoe died at the prison Sept. 5, S.C. Department of Corrections officials said.

Argoe was unresponsive inside his cell when he was discovered, according to the release.

His death followed the late August deaths of fellow inmates Glenn Richard Brown Jr., and Quintavis Antonio Toomer, the S.C. Department of Corrections said.

Recent deaths are suspected suicides

There was no word that there was any connection between the deaths — other than that the men were inmates at the same prison and the timing.

On Aug. 26, Brown was found unresponsive in his cell and died at Broad River Correctional Institution, officials said. On Aug. 27, Toomer was unresponsive when he was discovered inside his cell at the prison where he died, according to the release.

None of the three inmates had a cellmate, officials said.

No causes of death have been announced, but officials said that autopsies will be performed.

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The deaths are being investigated by the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division, the Richland County Coroner’s Office and the S.C. Department of Corrections Inspector General’s office.

Why he was in prison

Broad River Correctional Institution is a male-only close (high-security) and medium-security facility “designed primarily to house violent offenders with longer sentences, and inmates who exhibit behavioral problems,” according to the S.C. Department of Corrections.

It’s at 4460 Broad River Road in Columbia, not far from the junction of I-26 and I-20.

Argoe was serving a life sentence following a 2023 murder conviction, Dorchester County court records show.

The 1st Circuit Solicitor’s Office said that in June 2019, the Summerville man killed his 55-year-old wife by stabbing her multiple times with a 19-inch butcher knife, WCSC reported. The solicitor’s office said that the knife was found in the right side of the victim’s neck, according WCSC.

Argoe was appealing his conviction when he died, court records show.