RICHLAND COUNTY, S.C. — A Columbia Police officer who has been with the department a little over a year has been terminated and arrested following a Saturday morning incident in the Dentsville area.
The Richland County Sheriff's Department said deputies were called to an apartment in the 100 block of Roper Pond Circle around 7:30 a.m. regarding a domestic incident. The sheriff's department said investigators later determined that 30-year-old Efrain Galdamez had been in an argument with the victim when he attempted to choke her, leaving minor injuries around her neck.
Galdamez was charged with third-degree domestic violence and taken to the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center. According to the sheriff's department, police confirmed Galdamez had been with the department since January 2023 and was fired following his arrest.