A 28-year-old South Carolina man, Zachary Elias, allegedly killed two people and injured another in a 2024 shooting. His defense attorney blamed his client’s alleged killings on a drug-laced chocolate bar, to no avail.
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As reported by The Herald, the incident occurred back on December 4, 2024. At a Budiman’s store located on Cherry Road in Rock Hill, three people were shot, allegedly by Elias. Two of them were killed: 27-year-old Celcei Johnson, an employee at the store, and 49-year-old Emad Thabet Saadalla, a customer.
Saadalla’s wife, meanwhile, was injured but managed to survive the shooting.
According to York County prosecutor Kevin Brackett, Elias, who was a Budiman’s regular, had allegedly purchased THC gummies and a drug-laced chocolate, referred to as a “magic mushroom chocolate,” earlier in the day. This purchase reportedly took place earlier in the day, before the shooting.
Allegedly, armed with a rifle, as shown in a video played in court, Elias entered the store while firing the gun, saying, “Where’s the mushroom man?” He also claimed, according to the video, to being “Jesus Christ,” adding, “They wrote the book about me.”
Zachary Elias was arrested and charged with two counts of murder, two counts of attempted murder, and other firearm charges.
Chocolate Defense
As reported by WSOC, Alexandra Benevento, Elias’s defense attorney, blamed the chocolate bar for her client’s alleged actions. She argued in court that the drug psilocin was found in Elias’s body, a drug found in hallucinogenic mushrooms.
According to Benevento, the drug entered his client’s body after he consumed the store’s chocolate, even though the drug isn’t listed on the package. An expert argued that the consumption of the drug led Zacary Elias into an involuntary psychosis, which then led to the shooting.
However, Brackett argued that Elias had willingly consumed the chocolate to escape reality and get high. He said in court, “He paid $32 a bar, not so he could have some chocolate, but that so he could alter his outlook on reality.”
The defense asked Circuit Judge Bill McKinnon to release Elias on bail. However, after hearing the prosecutors and the victims’ families, McKinnon denied the defense’s request. Elias will remain held at the York County Jail. His trial has yet to be scheduled.