Girl, 15, Reports Kidnapping Attempt in Taylors
Deputies with the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office are investigating a reported kidnapping attempt.
The 15-year-old victim told deputies a man tried to force her into his vehicle while she was walking on East Belvue Road near Weehawken Circle Monday at about 9:30 a.m. The teen normally catches a bus from Wade Hampton High School to another facility, but said she was walking home because she felt ill.
The victim says the suspect drove alongside her in a red Volvo, opened the door and tried to pull her into the vehicle according to the incident report.
She tells GCSO she was able to break free and run home to call for help. Lt. Shea Smith says the teenager suffered minor injuries. The incident report says she suffered a scratch on her right cheek, bruising to her left arm and scratches on her upper chest she says she received while trying to break free of the man who grabbed her.
The suspect left in his car and drove in the direction of Rutherford Road.
A forensic sketch of the suspect is not available at this time. Investigators say he is described as “a Hispanic man with a thin mustache. He was wearing a black baseball hat, white t-shirt and blue jeans at the time of the attack.” The vehicle was an older model red, 4-door Volvo.
As always, please call Crime Stoppers at 23-CRIME if you have any information.
Terrence Dale Williams Jr. Kills Himself to Avoid Prison
Terrence Dale Williams was about to be picked up by police in connection with a string of armed robberies of pizza delivery workers. Like an old school gangster he was never taken alive:
GREER, S.C. — Police say a man accused of holding up three pizza delivery drivers in South Carolina shot and killed himself as sheriff’s deputies surrounded him.
Multiple media outlets reported that 27-year-old Terrence Dale Williams Jr. of Greer shot himself in the chest Thursday night as Greenville County sheriff’s deputies closed in on his car.
Deputy Matthew Armstrong says it appeared Williams was about to get out when he shot himself before officers could intervene.
Armstrong says deputies did not fire at Williams and he didn’t shoot at them.
Sheriff Steve Loftis has asked the State Law Enforcement Division to investigate.
Williams was named in warrants in armed robberies of three pizza deliverers since Jan. 18.
Deputies got a tip he was in Taylors and went to arrest him when the shooting occurred.
Seems extreme but the way I read South Carolina law he was going to get a minimum of 10 years per robbery which is a long time since he just pulled a “string” of robberies. Am I mistaken on this? Maybe one of those anonymous lawyer friends of Bobby Caples can take time out of threatening people with frivolous lawsuits to let me know.
WYFF has details:
“Greenville County deputies received information that Williams was at a family member’s house on Lauren Wood Circle in the Taylors area,” said Matt Armstrong, public information officer of the Greenville County Sheriff’s Office.
He said deputies arrived at the scene at about 7:05 p.m. When they recognized the vehicle in the home’s driveway as the one for which they had been searching, they approached the car and ordered Williams to step out of the car.
“Investigators heard a fire arm discharged,” Armstrong said.
He said deputies did not fire any shots.
Armstrong said the sheriff has asked the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division to run a parallel investigation to make sure that there are no doubts about what happened to the alleged robber.
All the robbery incidents occurred within the last week and a half.
Pizza delivery workers all over the state just breathed a sigh of relief. It’s just too bad Williams didn’t think about how bad he didn’t want to go to jail prior to robbing innocent people.
Thief Pillages Gym on Wade Hampton Blvd.
People working out at a local gym on Jan. 6 returned to the locker room to find their belongings ransacked by a thief who slipped past security. The thefts occurred at Z-X Fitness, formerly Peak Fitness, on Wade Hampton Boulevard.
According the reports, the thief took the cards and used them at several local businesses. “These individuals, they work around the system,“ says Deputy Matt Armstrong with the Greenville Sheriff’s Office. “They know what kind of businesses to target, or vehicles to target. They acquire the cards, and they they go use them right away before the victim cancels the card.“
Surveillance cameras did catch a good shot of the thief, but not before ripping off at least three victims.
More than a week later, Greenville County Sheriff’s Office deputies are still searching for the thief. If you have any information, please call Crimestoppers at (864) 23-CRIME.
Man Attacked Behind Chick-Fil-A in Taylors
A man was reportedly assaulted Monday evening while walking behind a Chick-Fil-A on Wade Hampton Blvd. in Taylors.
The Greenville County Sheriff’s Office says the assault happened around 7:30 behind the Chick-Fil-A, located at 2801 Wade Hampton Boulevard. A Sheriff’s Office spokesman says that the man appeared to be walking from a nearby trailer park when he was attacked by a man.
The assailant is described as “a black male wearing a “Starter” jacket,” according to News Channel 7. He fled in a 1989-1990 Toyota Camry.
Armed Robbery at Willis Grocery In Taylors
A Taylors convenience store was the target of an armed robbery Friday afternoon. Two men demanded cash from the clerk at Willis Grocery on East Lee Road before fleeing on foot, deputies said. News Channel 7 reports:
Deputies began searching the area, and put nearby Brook Glenn Elementary on lockdown. The men have yet to be found.
Deputies have not released a detailed description of the suspects yet.
Armed convenience store robberies are such a common occurrence in Greenville lately, it might be more newsworthy if we stuck to reporting when they don’t happen.