Man accused in West Ashley robbery was murder suspect, supposed to be on house arrest

A 22-year-old man accused in an armed robbery last month in West Ashley was supposed to be on house arrest while awaiting his own murder trial, court records show.

When he posted a $100,000 bail in early May, Darnell Seagers was told to stay in his mother’s home in North Charleston. Someone should be there at all times to ensure that he stays put, Judge Thomas Hughston ordered.

Some exceptions: visits with his doctor and his attorney.

But police said Seagers, already a felon, was out on his own the night of Aug. 30. That’s when detectives said he approached a man around 8:45 p.m. at 1755 Ashley Hall Road and revealed a pistol.

The man was assaulted and robbed of his money, cellphone and cigarettes.

Bail conditions for violent offenders have come under scrutiny recently.

A judge last week imposed a moratorium on placing more offenders on electronic monitoring. Testimony revealed one case in which a murder suspect on house arrest was spotted on Charleston’s streets by his alleged victim’s family.

Seagers wasn’t fitted with such a device but was supposed to be under close watch at his mother’s house on Ranger Drive. Federal marshals arrested him Tuesday on Bridgeview Drive and hauled him back to the jail.

The Post and Courier’s attempts to contact his mother were not successful.

His rap sheet with the State Law Enforcement Division shows felony convictions for possessing a pistol in 2007 and for criminal conspiracy in 2007. He also was arrested in October 2010 on a charge of armed robbery, which was later dropped.

Seagers’ arrest in the slaying came in September 2011, when authorities charged him with the Aug. 28, 2010, shooting death of 20-year-old Travis Antwan Anderson.

Affidavits say Seagers was with Anderson on the night of the slaying and that Anderson was using Seagers’ cellphone.

But because Seagers told police that he had no contact with Anderson that night, he was arrested soon after the shooting and charged with obstruction of justice.

After further investigation implicated Seagers in the shooting, that charge was dropped in favor of the murder count.

He’s now back behind bars as he awaits his murder trial in November.

Reach Andrew Knapp at 937-5414 or twitter.com/offlede.