NEWBERRY, S.C.; November 9, 2026 – A man will spend the next 45 years behind bars after pleading guilty Monday to the 2025 murder of a woman along I-26 in Newberry County, 8th Circuit Solicitor David M. Stumbo announced Monday afternoon.
Wilfrido George Luna pleaded guilty Monday to murder in connection with the August 18, 2025, shooting death of 52-year-old Rose Helen Fernandez Kewlani, a West Columbia woman and mother of two daughters. Luna was sentenced to 45 years in prison, to be served day-for-day with no possibility of parole under State law.
On the morning of August 18, 2025, Luna and Kewlani were traveling in her white GMC Acadia when the vehicle stopped along the westbound Exit 82 off-ramp of I-26 near Prosperity. A family traveling home to Tennessee witnessed Luna emerge from behind the SUV and begin firing at Kewlani, who desperately tried to escape by running around the vehicle and taking cover behind a traffic barrel.
Kewlani eventually ran toward a tractor-trailer driven by Joshua Wynn, who had stopped after witnessing the incident. She climbed into the cab and begged Wynn for help, telling him she had already been shot. Luna followed her into the truck with a gun and told her, “Let’s go.” Wynn ordered both of them out and called 911.
Luna initially walked away but returned after his gun jammed and he reloaded it. Fearing for his life, Wynn fled the truck, leaving Kewlani inside. Dash camera footage captured Kewlani begging for her life before another gunshot rang out. She managed to exit the opposite side of the truck before collapsing in the grass between the exit ramp and the interstate.
Luna fled the scene on foot, crossing I-26 and disappearing into the woods near Kiblers Bridge Road. Deputies, Newberry police officers, and a state probation agent established a perimeter near the Mid Carolina Country Club, where Luna was spotted approximately 25 minutes after the initial 911 call. Luna climbed into a patrol car and attempted to put it into gear before officers removed him at gunpoint and took him into custody.
Forensic testing by the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) identified Luna’s DNA on multiple areas of the murder weapon, while gunshot residue was recovered from his hands and clothing. Luna later admitted to investigators that he shot Kewlani.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant Solicitor Bret Price and Assistant Solicitor Whitney Taylor, with assistance from 8th Circuit Investigators Jeremiah Sinclair and Blake Moore an 8th Circuit Victim Advocate Mary Winnington.
Solicitor Stumbo praised the work of the Newberry County Sheriff’s Office, Newberry Police Department, SLED, and South Carolina Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services, particularly NCSO Capt. Brian Smith and Victim Advocate Samantha Massingale, in securing the conviction and lengthy prison sentence.
“This was a cold-blooded and merciless act of domestic violence against a victim who was desperately fighting for her life,” Solicitor Stumbo said. “While no sentence can bring Rose back to her two daughters, today’s outcome ensures that the violent criminal responsible will no longer walk the streets to be a danger to our community. I am grateful for the tremendous teamwork of our multiple law enforcement partners, and hope this family can find some measure of peace knowing that justice has been served.”