Tow truck drivers honor Steven Hughes, a man who died on the job

COLUMBIA, SC — Friends and family from the community were joined by tow truck drivers from across the state to pay their respects last week tow truck driver Steven Hughes, who was killed during a car repossession attempt.

The funeral procession traveled with over 30 trucks from Lexington to his burial ceremony in Columbia.

Tow truck processions are a way for industry participants to honor one another, says Hughes’ colleague Derrick Armstrong.

“We’re a family, we do this. Whenever someone in the family dies, we do this. It’s nice for everyone to come together like this,” says Armstrong.

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Hughes was open, funny and loved his job, says his girlfriend Michelle Chandler.

“He was loud and pushy, but nice at the same time,” says Chandler. “I think he would have been absolutely thrilled that all the trucks showed up.”

Chandler has worked in the towing industry for years and hopes the attention will help raise awareness of how dangerous the business is for tow truck drivers.

“They all face dangerous situations every day. When you lose someone in a situation like that, they really have to stand up and pay attention,” Chandler says.

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Hughes was also known as the administrator of a Facebook community page with over 46,000 followers.

Siblings Raheem Jackson, 20, and Essence Jackson, 19, were charged with murder in connection with the shooting. Hughes was in the process of seizing a car from a home on Fairmont Drive.

According to the Richland County Sheriff’s Department, the car did not belong to either of the two people accused of murder.

The sheriff’s department has declined to issue an incident report or arrest warrant for the siblings, saying the investigation is still ongoing.

A bail hearing is scheduled for Raheem Jackson tomorrow, while no further information has been released regarding Essence Jackson’s bail hearing.