Investigator Joe Sapinoso

Investigator Sapinoso was shot and killed after being taken hostage when he arrived home from his shift.

He was in uniform and exiting his patrol car when the suspect, who had been involved in a domestic disturbance with Investigator Sapinoso's sister, approached him at gunpoint and disarmed him. Investigator Sapinoso had intervened in the previous incident as a deputy and as her brother.

The suspect handcuffed Investigator Sapinoso with the deputy's own handcuffs. He took him inside his home where he forced the deputy to call his father into the living room. The suspect held both men at gunpoint for several hours during a standoff with SWAT officers. At 0420 hours, the suspect told negotiators he was coming out of the house but then, without warning, shot and killed Investigator Sapinoso and his father. The suspect then surrendered.

Investigator Sapinoso had served with the Greenville County Sheriff's Office for 6 years, and was assigned to the White Collar Crime Unit.

Joe always had a smile on his face and a big heart. He never had an unkind word to say about anyone. He is remembered and respected by his peers for his honorable service to the citizens of Greenville County, South Carolina.

He is survived by his mother and sister.