Warnings of a Beaufort County ‘serial killer’ on social media are a hoax, police say

Police are asking residents to verify with “official sources” before sharing information on social media after a false post circulated about a serial killer in Bluffton, according to the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office.

The post, which has been shared numerous times via Snapchat, a photo messaging app, warns of a serial killer and details a failed abduction attempt in Bluffton in which a friend of the post’s writer was “almost taken.” The post warns women that the abductor targets women who are driving alone. It alleges he hits their car and, when they pull over, he “takes them.” The post claims there have been multiple disappearances in the area, but the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office is denying those claims and branding the post a hoax.

“The Sheriff’s Office has not received any complaints that would substantiate the post in any way,” officials said in a statement on the agency’s Facebook page.

The post, sheriff’s office officials said, has been shared along with the same photo of a white man in a white t-shirt in other parts of the state.