“Drew was murdered,” said Cayce Police Chief Chris Cowan.

Cowan held a press conference Tuesday afternoon to give more details into the shooting death of Cayce Police Officer Drew Barr. Barr was killed around 3 am. Sunday responding to a domestic disturbance, man-with-a-gun, call at 118 Rossmoore Dr. in Cayce. Cowan said a woman, in distress, in the home called for help at 2:48 a.m., from an I-Watch.

Cowan said 36-year-old Austin Leigh Henderson tracked Barr from the second story of the home he barricaded himself in. Cowan said Henderson “made a calculated decision” to shoot and kill Barr. Henderson, Cowan said, fired another shot as Cayce Police officers moved Barr to a patrol car in order to get him emergency help. In all, four Cayce officers arrived. Later, law enforcement agents from the region moved to the scene.

When the first officer arrived, at 2:49 a.m., Cowan said the patrolman encountered a man who was in the front yard of the home. The man was described as a “family friend.” The man said there had been a party going on most of the day and he was leaving because he became uncomfortable with the domestic situation going on in the home.

Cowan also said the shooter’s wife and daughter were put into a closet in the house. “We’re praying for the wife and the child,” he said. “They are victims of domestic violence.”

Cowan also said Barr, as a child, was known to play with fire trucks and police cars in his hometown of Moneta. He loved his home and “he was a servant,” Cowan said.

Cowan also said the Cayce Police Department is receiving assistance from the West Columbia Police Department and other law enforcement agencies as emergency response personnel in Cayce receive counseling and attention.

Also, there have been bogus GoFundMe accounts set up to take money for Barr’s family. The Jason Flynt GoFundMe page – Click for a link- is a legitimate fundraiser for the Barr family, Cowan said.

Cowan said the focus will now be put on Barr’s family, honoring Barr’s memory and the police department.