Two Hero Soldiers Killed While Protecting Woman from Alleged Gunman at South Carolina Bar

Two South Carolina soldiers are being hailed as heroes after their attempts to protect a woman from a gun-toting man at a bar early Sunday cost them their lives, police said.

Staff Sgt. Charles Judge Jr., 40, and 29-year-old Sgt. First Class Jonathon Prins were fatally shot at the Frayed Knot Bar & Grill in Lake Murray while trying to stop 25-year-old Joseph Mills from allegedly attacking a woman, NBC News reports.

“[The men] were acting as good Samaritans when they were shot,” Capt. Adam Myrick of the Lexington County Sheriff’s Department told NBC.

Prins and Judge were enjoying a night at the bar when Mills allegedly, “physically assaulted a female companion and was physically separated from her by several bar patrons,” NBC reports, citing arrest warrants.

Then, Mills allegedly pulled out a handgun and fired, shooting Judge twice and Prins three times, according to NBC.

Mills, of Little Mountain, was “arrested without incident” later in the afternoon and charged with two counts of murder for fatally shooting the soldiers, police said in a statement.

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He is being held at Lexington County Detention Center, police said.

He was denied bond at a hearing on Monday and apologized for the shooting, The State newspaper reports.

“I’m very sorry about what happened. I never meant for it to happen like that,” he reportedly said. “I was being lynched by eight people because I was chasing a girl who grabbed drugs off the seat and took off running.”

Officials at the club shared the news in a Facebook post on Sunday, noting that the hotspot would be closed for the day.

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“A criminal situation that originated elsewhere, was brought onto our property when a female victim was trying to escape her male attackers,” officials wrote in the post. “Tragically, two good Samaritans lost their lives trying to help the victim.”

In a Facebook post, the 218th Leadership Regiments 1st BN Engineers mourned Judge.

“It is with a heavy heart we say goodbye to SSG Charles A Judge JR,” officials wrote. “You will be truly missed by so many!! RIP Judge, see you on the other side brother!”

Prins’ mother told KLTV that her son was a selfless man.

“If there was a picture of someone with true integrity, courage, bravery, honor, dedication to his fellow mankind I would be his,” Lesa Dennis said.

A GoFundMe page created for Prins’ family described the 29-year-old as a married father of three.

Loved ones of Judge set up a GoFundMe account for the man’s family, and noted that Judge had two children.