A woman is out of the hospital after surviving a shooting that killed her husband.
The deadly shooting happened Wednesday inside Budiman’s Smokeshop & Art Gallery on Cherry Road in Rock Hill.
Layana Thabet, 32, said Monday that her husband, Emad Thabit, 36, saved her life by stepping in front of her.
2 killed, 1 hurt in shooting at Rock Hill smoke shop, police say
He was the most amazing father to their six kids and the best husband, the woman said.
She said he always put others before himself and that’s what he did Wednesday night when he shielded her from bullets.
The gunman, Zachary East Elias, shot her about seven times.
She said she shouldn’t be alive, but prayers saved her.
Her husband died from gunshot wounds.
An employee at the store, Celci Johnson, 27, was also shot and killed.
The community is coming together to help the victims.
Workers at Richie’s Italian Bistro in Rock Hill said Monday they are taking gifts and cash donations.
They’ll also donate 20% of all sales Thursday to the survivors.
“It was traumatizing and now is the time to come together as a community and we need to help them whether we know them or don’t,” said Kayla Stanek, manager of Richie’s Italian Bistro. “We need to make sure their families are taken care of, and they’re taken care of. That could have been any of us.”
Donation recommendations:
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For a 15-year-old girl; size medium or large 13 in pants. She loves arts and crafts.
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For an 11-year-old boy; size 12 clothes. He loves Pokémon.
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For an 8-year-old girl; size 9 in clothes. She loves dinosaurs, catching bugs and arts and crafts.
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For a 2-year-old boy; size 5/6. He loves cars and trucks and anything outdoors.
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For a 10 pound, 2-month-old girl; wears 3-month-old clothes. Needs diapers and blankets.
GoFundMe: In loving Memory of Emad Thabet
SLED investigates
After the smoke shop shooting, Elias, who was armed, drove off which prompted a pursuit with the Rock Hill Police Department, state authorities said.
The truck he was driving crashed on Cherry Road near the Catawba River.
An officer fired a shot, but no one was hit, said officials with the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division.
Police charged Elias with two counts of murder, two counts of attempted murder, and possession of a weapon during a crime of violence.
SLED was requested to investigate the officer-involved shooting.
The incident in York County was the 41st officer-involved shooting in South Carolina in 2024. It was the first officer-involved shooting for the Rock Hill Police Department this year, SLED said. The Rock Hill Police Department had one officer-involved shooting last year.