On the morning of Wednesday, November 12, 2025, 36-year-old Xavier Lenton Hall was found in a home on the 1200 block of Aldrich Street in Aiken, South Carolina, with a fatal gunshot wound. Officers from the Aiken Department of Public Safety responded at about 3:18 a.m.; despite lifesaving efforts he was pronounced dead at 4:45 a.m. Hall was not a resident of the house where the shooting occurred and several other people were inside at the time.

Investigators say the homeowner was taken into custody for questioning and later released; that person is reportedly cooperating and the inquiry is examining the possibility of self-defense. No arrests or charges have been announced. The Aiken Department of Public Safety, the Aiken County Sheriff’s Office and the Second Judicial Circuit Solicitor’s Office are jointly handling the investigation, and an autopsy has been scheduled.

Born October 12, 1989, Hall pursued a culinary career after attending Florence-Darlington Technical College and is remembered as a family man who loved cooking, fishing and time with loved ones. Does anyone who knew Xavier or was in that neighborhood the morning of November 12 have information to share with investigators?