LEXINGTON COUNTY, SC (WFXG) –
Authorities have charged a Columbia man with the murder of his mother, Regina Arroyo of Barnwell.

An arrest warrant confirms that Terry Lee Self Jr. is charged with murder. Self is accused of killing his mother last December.

According to Lexington County authorities, Arroyo’s body was found by a canoeist in the Edisto River on December 3.

“Investigators confirmed that the suspect and his mother were at the suspect’s home and left together after an argument,” said Lexington County Sheriff Jay Koon.

Sheriff Koon confirmed that the evidence in the case indicates that the suspect strangled Arroyo.

“After killing Ms. Arroyo, Self dumped her body into the river and disappeared,” Sheriff Koon said.

Lexington County authorities said detectives have been working on the missing person case for seven months, trying to find the person responsible for Arroyo’s death.

“We hope we can provide some sense of closure to our family’s relatives and friends,” said Sheriff Koon.

Self is being held at the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center in Richland County on charges unrelated to this case.

Lexington County investigators arraigned Self on Monday, July 1, and brought him before a justice of the peace, who denied him bail.

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