Woman Raped in Greer, Say Deputies
A Greer woman was treated at Spartanburg Regional Hospital Thursday night after being kidnapped and raped by two men, according to Spartanburg County deputies.
Deputies said that the victim said she was walking along Biblebrook Drive toward Sunnyglen Drive when a silver or gray, older-model car pulled up next to her. She said the two men inside the car asked her for directions.
The woman told deputies that when she walked up to the car the men pulled her inside the car. She said that the men drove to a dirt road off of Biblebrook Drive, raped her and then drove back to Biblebrook Drive where they put her out of the car.
The woman walked home and called 911.
The alleged assailants were driving a gray or silver older model, four-door Honda, according to the victim. According to Greenville News staff writer Anna Lee:
The woman told investigators that the men were between 25 and 35 years old. One was wearing a gray sweatshirt and the other a long-sleeved yellow shirt. Both wore black tobaggons.
“Tobaggons”? Since I couldn’t find that word in any mainstream or pop culture dictionary, let’s go with Fox Carolina’s report that the men wore “black stocking caps.” But tuck that away for future reference: “tobaggons” is Greenville News-speak for stocking caps.
Please call Spartanburg Crime Stoppers at 58-CRIME if you have any information about this attack.
Greenville Deputy Stops Violent Robbers with Hot Lead! Greenville News Not Happy
Looks like the Greenville deputies bagged a couple of bad guys last night, although to read Paul Alongi’s version of the events on GreenvilleOnline you’d think the cops were trigger happy:
A man suspected of robbing a convenience store on Easley Bridge Road was shot twice tonight during a confrontation with a Greenville County sheriff’s deputy, authorities said.
He is expected to survive, said Lt. Shea Smith, spokesman for the Sheriff’s Office.
The man was one of two people suspected of robbing a Citgo convenience store at 784 Easley Bridge Road, Smith said.
A deputy on patrol was near the store when he saw two men wearing ski masks come out, Smith said, and chased them behind the store. That is where shots rang out, he said.
Both men got into a car which crashed a short distance away, Smith said.
Alongi left out an important detail in this shooting however:
GREENVILLE, S.C. — Greenville County deputies said that a man involved in a robbery on Tuesday night was shot, after he pulled a gun on the deputy.
Investigators said that two men robbed the Corner Mart on Easley Bridge Road, and got away with cash.
Officials said that a deputy saw the two masked men running to a getaway car near the Corner Mart. They said the deputy chased the pair, and shot the driver of that car. They said the driver and passenger crashed their car into a tree on West Street.
Both men were arrested.
Seems to me that a slight omission in a story can completely change what readers infer. Maybe Alongi doesn’t realize that his wording can lead people to believe that the cops just gunned down some possibly innocent suspects whereas the real story is that the thugs pulled a gun on the deputy.
Or maybe as usual The Greenville News has a political interest in painting the cops as jack booted fascists.
Vandals Cause $10,000 in Damage at 8 Greer Homes
Eight homes in Greer were targeted by vandals Saturday, causing more than $10,000 in damages. Mailboxes and cars are among the damaged property, according to the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office.
Responding deputies observed that a mailbox with an attached pole had been thrown through the rear windshield of the car. Deputies were able to locate an address from the mailbox that led them to the owner’s home, who was also a victim of malicious damage to the mailbox. During the investigation, deputies discovered that several other cars and mailboxes had been damaged on other area streets.
The vandalism occurred on Windward Way, Crosswinds Street, Bransfield Drive, Silverleaf Street, and Hedgewood Terrace, and was reported around 7 a.m. on Saturday.
Incidentally, this vandalism spree in Greer coincides with a Greenville News report that crime in Greer was down 10 percent in 2009.
Of course, once you wade through the Greenville News spin you’ll find that crime didn’t actually drop, it’s just that Greer Police didn’t have the resources to pursue as many cases. “Part of this is due to some shortages we’ve experienced and not having the time to do some proactive stuff or police work as much as we were last year,” explained Greer Police Chief Dan Reynolds.
Greenville News Libels Congressional Candidate Ilario Pantano
The political slant of The Greenville News is obvious for all to see, but rarely gets so blatant as this attack on North Carolina congressional candidate Ilario Pantano:
The headline for the piece is “Ex-Marine Accused of Murder Now Running for Congress.” Scintillating but false. It would be more accurate to say that Pantano was acquitted of murder … in 2005. But here’s how GreenvilleOnline.com reports the story:
WILMINGTON, N.C. — A former Marine once charged with murder in the deaths of two Iraqis is running for Congress in North Carolina
Ilario Pantano announced his candidacy Thursday in Wilmington. He is seeking the Republican nomination. The 35-year-old Pantano will challenge Democratic Rep. Mike McIntyre for North Carolina’s Seventh Congressional District.
Pantano shot two men in Mahmudiyah, Iraq, in 2004 and hung a warning sign on their corpses. A Marine general decided in 2005 not to bring Pantano to trial, following the advice of an officer who presided over the military equivalent of a grand jury hearing.
Now one could point out that this is an AP report, but look at the difference between GreenvilleOnline’s AP piece and the same piece from The Atlanta Journal-Constitution:
WILMINGTON, N.C. — A former Marine cleared of wrongdoing in the deaths of two Iraqis is running for Congress in North Carolina.
Ilario Pantano announced his candidacy Thursday in Wilmington. He is seeking the Republican nomination. The 35-year-old wants to challenge Democratic Rep. Mike McIntyre for North Carolina’s 7th Congressional District.
Pantano shot two men in Mahmudiyah, Iraq, in 2004 and hung a warning sign on their corpses. He claimed self defense and a Marine general decided not to bring him to trial.
The subtle difference in the text of the GreenvilleOnline piece works to paint Pantano as if he’s still thought to be guilty but got off on a technicality. That’s not the case, as forensic evidence proved that Pantano’s version of the incident was the correct account.
But the headline, which each paper running an AP piece chooses itself, is the real tell. In the AJC, the headline reads “NC ex-Marine Announces He’s Running for Congress.”
It’s a big difference.
I can’t think of any reason for The Greenville News to print such a misleading headline and make these minor alterations to the text except as a way to campaign against Ilario Pantano. Is that what a newspaper is supposed to do? Pantano was proven innocent, he was not just let off the hook. Why would The Greenville News want people to think differently?
Three Generic Men in Black T-Shirts Rob Li’l Cricket on White Horse Road
If you own a convenience store on the White Horse you should probably think about closing up before dark. Just putting it out there.
From Greenville News:
Three men armed with guns and wearing ski masks robbed a Li’L Cricket Store on White Horse Road on Tuesday night and fled on foot, authorities said.
All three wore black T-shirts when they robbed the store at 6008 White Horse Road at 8:10 p.m., according to Greenville County Sheriff’s Lt. Scott Wilson.
No shots were fired, and no one was hurt.
He said the three “were dressed in all black” and investigators suspect they had a vehicle nearby.
They were all wearing black t-shirts with their all black outfits? Good to know. Thanks for making sure we get it, E. Richard Walton. It’d be nice to know some more about them though. Were they young? Old? White? Black? Is it too much to ask that a report about dangerous criminals include actual descriptions of the criminals?
But I guess you’ll recognize them from their black t-shirts.
Needless to say, if you have information on this gang of black t-shirters call Crime Stoppers at 23-CRIME.