Chase ends in jail
A local man’s attempt to escape Colleton County Sheriff’s deputies ended in a trip to jail on April 21. A deputy reportedly spotted a 2007 Honda Accord driven by Jermaine Allen Brown, 28, driving erratically through town. He attempted a traffic stop at Edgewood Street, but the driver continued to accelerate on Hampton Street, the deputy said. By Smoak Road, speeds had increased to 80 mph and a Walterboro police officer had joined the chase. The driver reportedly continued on Charleston Highway at 100 mph in the opposite lane of travel, passing an 18-wheeler at 120 mph. When the vehicle reached ACE Basin Parkway, the driver lost control, spinning 360 degrees and hitting a tree, causing heavy damage to the back of the car. But he didn’t stop. The chase continued to Hope Plantation Lane, jumping the railroad tracks at 70 mph, the deputy said. When the driver attempted to turn into West Bank Landing, he apparently hit another tree, ripping off the front passenger-side tire of the vehicle. The driver ran. Walterboro Police K-9 Officer Hydro arrived and began tracking the suspect. After about two miles, Hydro found Brown lying on a hunting club road near the woods, the deputy said. Brown was charged with driving under suspension, first offense; open container of beer or wine in a moving vehicle; and failure to stop for a blue light, first offense.
Car chase,
shots fired
A man reported his car was forced off the road on Green Pond Highway April 14. He also alleged the driver of the other car fired three shots at him.
He reported he was in an on-going dispute with a man he told officers was sleeping with his wife. He apparently saw the man’s car in his yard and decided to chase it. The vehicles stopped in a parking lot where a Walterboro police officer was parked. The officer told the suspect to go home.
Instead, he decided to go to Beaufort and while enroute, the victim’s car supposedly came up behind him, fired three shots and rammed the suspect’s car, causing him to wreck in the ditch, he told officers.
The police officer’s account of the incident differed. The man was charged with first-degree assault and battery and taken to jail.
Man fails to pay for lunch
City police arrested a man for shoplifting after he was found inside a convenience store eating shoplifted items. When officers arrived, the man was enjoying an ice cream cone, a Yahoo, Gatorade, a cupcake and two bags of potato chips, none of which he had paid for.
Backhoe found
A reported would-be backhoe thief didn’t count on GPS.
Apparently, a company installing fiber optic cable in the Round O area equipped their heavy equipment with GPS trackers. On April 15 about 7:30 a.m., one started moving.
An employee watched as the backhoe traveled, coming to rest in the woods near Providence Methodist Church. He called the Colleton County Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies found the backhoe, estimated at $75,000 in value.
After-storm
break-in
Between April 14-15, someone reportedly pried open the front door of the Stop and Go, which was closed after Monday’s tornado.
Missing were Salem cigarettes, Midnight Money and Gold Rush lottery tickets and change from the office. The cash drawer attached under the counter was ripped out.
Fire at Druid Hills
Walterboro Fire Department and city police responded to a fire under the stairs at Druid Hills on Beach Road on April 10.
Residents reported someone was welding the stairs earlier that day which may have contributed to the fire.
Car stolen
at Walmart
A woman left her car unlocked with the windows down and the key on the seat while going shopping in Walmart on April 5. When she returned a short time later, the car was gone.
Fabric softener sprayer
Walterboro Police were dispatched to an odor investigation on April 4 at Magnolia Village. Tenants said they could smell a strong bleach-like smell coming from one of the apartments.
Officers found a tenant walking around the apartments, spraying an unknown liquid on other people’s property and the general vicinity.
The liquid was finally identified as fabric softener.
None of the tenants wanted to press charges.
Car chase
Walterboro Police attempted to stop a reportedly stolen white Lincoln Town Car on April 6. The car stopped at Gerideau and Black streets, let out a passenger, then sped away toward Hampton Street.
Officers in pursuit said the car disregarded the traffic light at Robertson Boulevard and Hampton Street, heading out of town on Charleston Highway. Speeds reached over 100 mph, and the driver could not stay in his lane.
The vehicle chase ended when the suspect turned onto the dead end at Price’s Bridge Road, where he attempted to flee on foot.
The suspect was quickly surrounded and arrested.
Home shooting
Someone allegedly shot into a home on Nomad Lane in Walterboro on April 19.
A bullet went through the front window, passed through a television and then into the wall through a picture frame.
The resident said he believed the shot came through the woods from Green Pond Highway. However, none of the residents there heard the shot. One resident, however, did find two shell casings which he gave to deputies.
Couple shoots at dog
A Waterford Street resident reported a man and woman apparently shot at her golden retriever.
When confronted by the resident, the man said he shot at her dog, the victim reported. The victim’s roommate said he saw the gun, but couldn’t give a description of the suspect.
The dog was scared but not injured.
St. Peter’s Church broken into
A woman reported someone broke into St. Peter’s Church, 4113 Charleston Hwy., on April 20. She told officers she left the previous night and all was fine. When she arrived the next morning, she found a door open and a window shattered, apparently with a cement block.
Nothing appeared stolen, but draws were left open and the lights left on.
Two push pregnant woman through glass door
Two suspects reportedly pushed a woman, who is nine months pregnant, through a glass storm door on April 20 on Cox Street. The woman was treated for cuts and admitted to Colleton Medical Center to monitor her baby.
