An Aiken man was captured following the robbery of the Clearwater Dollar General store late Monday.

Quarmaine Marquise Jones, 22, of Aiken, was charged with two counts of assault and battery  and one count of strong armed robbery.

Late Monday, a man with a gray hoodie came into the Dollar General store and demanded money. During this incident, the victims were physically assaulted by the subject when he struck them in the face while demanding money. The suspect fled the incident location prior to deputies arriving on scene, according to a press release.

The Aiken Bloodhound Tracking team and investigators were called to the scene to assist with the search of the suspect. A deputy patrolling the perimeter spotted a person matching the description of the suspect on Augusta Road. The suspect fled when the deputy attempted to make contact with him.

After a short foot pursuit, the suspect was caught near the 3800 block of Augusta Road. The Bloodhound Tracking team tracked the suspect to where he was being detained by deputies and recovered the stolen funds. The suspect was taken into custody and transported to the Aiken County Detention Center.

One victim was treated on scene by Aiken County EMS and the second victim was transported to an area hospital for treatment where she has since been released.

This week’s edition of The Jail Report features a look at an outrageous assault by an employee on a customer at Augusta’s Ross Dress for Less store. Police say employee ShaQuille Wheeler (pictured) attacked a woman while the customer was holding a child in her arms. You won’t believe what name Wheeler called the customer.

In addition, here is a look at the other crazy crimes reported in this week’s issue of The Jail Report. The issue is hitting stands now.

To see the front page, click here: http://thejailreport.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/Cover-Issue-634.jpg

Aiken County

* Gloverville Man Calls 911 to Chat

* Death Penalty Trial Set to Begin in Cop Killing

* Tin-Foil Shoplifters Caught Despite Tricks in North Augusta

* Warrenville Man Drags Girlfriend Around by Hair

 Richmond County

* Motel Owner Wrongly Arrested For Renting Rooms at Condemned Motel

* Augusta Man Cuts Off Girlfriend’s Clothes & Threatens Her

* Suspect’s Hiding Place Given Away By Fur

* Assault at Ross Dress for Less: Employee & Mom Jailed for Unprovoked Attack on Customer

* TV Anchor Accepts Deal in Court

 Edgefield County

* Charges Upgraded to Murder in Death of Westside Woman

 Columbia County

* Martinez Man Peeps on Little Girls After Their Mom Leaves

* Sex Offense Suspect Gets Rowdy With Deputy At Jail

 Columns

* Publisher Greg Rickabaugh: Here’s Proof That Posting Shoplifting Arrests Reduces Crime

* Drug Counselor Billie Hullum: Time Spent in the Desert Can Be Difficult & Painful

* Sheriff Richard Roundtree: Question: Can’t You Stop Jerks from Parking in Fire Lanes?

* Attorney Jeffrey E. Johnston: That Text Can Wait, Says the Georgia Legislature

 Dumb Crooks USA

* Virginia Burglar Found Naked in Tanning Bed

* Chainsaw-Throwing Thief Caught After High Speed Chase

* Woman Arrested in Boston Marathon Scam for Claiming Foot Injuries in Bombing

Other Features

* Fun with Captions

* Jokes

* Cartoon

* Word Find

* Wanted Page

* Quote of the Week

* Comedy Corner

$3,000 is now being offered for information leading to an arrest of the men responsible for an attempted kidnapping in Grovetown.

The Columbia County Sheriff’s Office is asking for your help identifying the suspects pictured here. Officials say the two photos were taken in the Grovetown Walmart prior to the attempted kidnapping last Thursday.

Deputies say the suspects tried to kidnap a man in broad daylight in his front yard in Tudor Branch on Hawksmoor Way. That led authorities on a high-speed chase. In the process, the suspect struck the deputy’s vehicle with a Chrysler 200, which ended the chase.

If you recognize the people in the photos, please contact the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office at 706-541-2800. Individuals can remain anonymous.

A Martinez mother was drunk when she swerved into another lane and caused a wreck that ejected two children from her car, authorities said.

Kelly Nicole Pride, 34, was arrested last week and charged with DUI, serious injury by vehicle, reckless driving, endangering a child while DUI and more in connection with the Nov. 5th wreck. Two girls, ages 7 and 14, were ejected through a rear hatch back window and had to be taken to the GRU Hospital Trauma Center, a report says.

Pride was rounding a curve on Blue Ridge Drive  at 12:40 a.m. Nov. 5 in a Jeep Liberty when she crossed the center line, striking a Jeep Grand Cherokee driven by 43-year-old Daffaney Williams of Evans. The collision caused the suspect’s vehicle to strike an embankment.

One of the children ended up in the ditch and the other on the shoulder of the road, a report says. Sheriff’s Capt. Steve Morris said the 14-year-old girl suffered serious injuries while the younger girl’s injuries were less severe.

An investigation led to the charges last week against Pride and she was booked into the Columbia County Detention Center. Some of the charges also accuse her of having no seat belt on her passengers and driving too fast for conditions.

An Aiken County man has been charged with causing great injury to a child, and the child’s mother says the suspect permanently blinded her infant son by shaking him.

Heyward Martin III, 32, of Jackson, was arrested Wednesday. He remains in jail under the felony charge.

Sheriff’s Capt. Eric Abdullah could not immediately provide information on the arrest Thursday afternoon. But the child’s mother, Melodi Tucker, called The Jail Report to publicly thank investigators and GRU hospital officials for their help after her son Donminick was the victim of Shaken Baby Syndrome on June 10.

A judge finally consented this week to the criminal charge against Martin after a lengthy investigation, she said.

Tucker says the suspect “shook, beat and suffocated” her infant son and submerged him in a sink full of ice water while watching him at an Aiken County home. Tucker says she lived with him, his wife and his step-daughter. She began taking classes in May and left the 5-month-old son with them while she was gone.

She said she returned home June 10 to find Donminick unresponsive. Martin handed her the child facedown and claimed he had suffered a seizure.

Tucker rushed the child to GRU Hospital, where he remained for three weeks. Donminick, known as “Day Day” to family, has since been in and out of the hospital for surgery, therapy and recovery. He is permanently blind.

“We were told that he was shook for at least 20 seconds, vigorously,” Tucker said.

After seven months, he is doing much better, Tucker said. And she is thrilled the investigation finally led to criminal charges.

“I feel relieved,” Tucker said. “I feel he can’t hurt anyone else. I feel my son is finally getting justice.”

Tucker said Martin is a life-long friend who she trusted. “Only God knows why he did it. I don’t know what came over him to do something like that to a baby,” she said, crying. “It really breaks my heart. But I am glad that he got arrested.”

Investigators have pictures of a cell phone thief after the dummy took smiling selfies on the stolen phone, photos that uploaded automatically to the victim’s iCloud account.

The thief came into a Martinez tattoo shop owner Jan. 6 and talked with the owner in the waiting room. When the owner stepped back into a tattoo room to prepare a chair, the lady grabbed the owner’s $500 cell phone from the waiting room and bolted out of the store.

The owner followed the woman outside and saw her and a man driving away in a burgundy sedan, authorities said.

But the victim was able to turn over these images to Columbia County authorities when they appeared on his iCloud account from his stolen phone.

How would you feel if someone grabbed your phone and ran, and then took a smiling selfie? Let’s help stop this dim-witted dame. If you recognize her, call the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office at 706-541-2800.

The assistant manager for an Augusta Walmart was arrested Friday for smuggling out four iPhones from the electronics department.

Kevin Clay, 41, of Jonesboro, was caught on video stealing the new iPhones at the Dean’s Bridge Road location. He was turned over to sheriff’s deputies by a loss prevention officer. Clay was charged with felony theft by taking and remained in jail Monday under a $5,700 bond.

Clay was tricky in his efforts to steal the phones on Jan. 17th, according to a sheriff’s report:

The assistant manager removed two iPhone 6 phones and two iPhone 5s from a locked case in the electronics department. He placed them in a box and hid them in sporting goods on the exercise aisle. Clay later returned and took the box he had placed them in and left the store through the General Merchandise entrance, putting the box in his car.

The loss prevention officer apparently reviewed the video and saw the theft and had Clay arrested on Friday.

The four iPhones had a total value of more than $2,500.

AIKEN, SC — The first day of Stephon Carter’s death penalty trial started off badly as court officials banned all media representatives from the courtroom, a move one legal expert is calling “blatantly unconstitutional.”

As 200 jurors reported to the Aiken County Courthouse for jury qualifications in the cop-killer case, security officials told reporters to wait outside because there was no room for them. The reporters were then strung along throughout the day by court officials with promises of entry into the high-profile trial.

“Representatives from several news agencies remained in the lobby outside the courtroom Monday,” Aiken Standard reporter Teddy Kulmala reported in his day one wrap-up. “Reporters were told Monday morning that space was limited in the courtroom, and to return after 2:30 p.m.

“Just after 3 p.m., the potential jurors returned to the courtroom and reporters were told there was space in the courtroom, and that they could enter during the next break; however, court did not break the rest of the day.”

Aiken County Clerk of Court Liz Godard told reporters that they would designate media space on Tuesday.

Media representatives cannot be banned from any part of trials and space must be made available, according to legal experts. Media attorney David Hudson said their actions on Monday were “blatantly unconstitutional.”

Jury selection is scheduled to last about three days while the entire trial may take a month to complete.

Carter, 22 is accused of gunning down Aiken Master Officer Scotty Richardson and shooting Officer Travis Griffin in 2011.

Carter was a passenger in a Chevrolet Impala that was pulled over on Dec. 20, 2011, by Griffin on Brandt Court after shots were reported at another location a few minutes earlier.

Shortly after the traffic stop, Richardson and Sgt. Tracy Seymour arrived to help. That’s when Carter allegedly got out of the car with his hands in his pockets and pulled out a .38-caliber Rossi revolver and fired.

Griffin was shot in the chest but was wearing a bulletproof vest. Richardson was shot in the abdomen and head, and he died later at MCG Hospital.

Carter was also shot and was hospitalized until Jan. 3, 2012.

At an earlier hearing, Solicitor Strom Thurmond Jr. said other handguns were found in Carter’s black Impala. He said the bullets recovered from Griffin’s vest and Richardson’s body were 38-caliber, matching Carter’s handgun.

Meet the Aiken man who hit and then hugged his girlfriend.

Anthony Cobb, 26, of Crawford Avenue, was arrested last week for criminal domestic violence of a high & aggravated nature. Authorities say he tried to suffocate his girlfriend and then forced her to snuggle with him throughout the night. Weird, right?

Read his arrest story in Jan. 28th edition of The Jail Report, hitting stands now.

Take a look at this week’s front page: http://thejailreport.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/Cover-Issue-635.jpg

 Other headlines from this week’s paper:

* 5 Creepy Crimes Committed Over Craigslist

* Aiken Drunk Driver Falls Asleep in Her Car — in the Middle of Street

* Aiken County Mom Tells How Friend Shook Her Baby & Blinded the Child

* Can Attorneys Find Open-Minded Residents for Jury in Stephon Carter Trial?

* Sheriff Roundtree Talks About the Pink Uniforms Worn by Women Inmates in Jail

* Augusta Man Slaps the Mother of His Child Over Texts

* False Report — Augusta Man Makes Wild Claim About Kidnapping

* Shoplifter Tries to Hide Under Truck in Parking Lot of Martinez Walmart

* Grovetown Woman Held at Knife Point by Spurned Boyfriend

* Dumb Crooks USA

* Attorney Column by Jeffrey Johnston

* Jokes

* And More!

Copies of The Jail Report are sold in local convenience stores for $1. It is published weekly by Rickabaugh Publishing, LLC. Contact us at 706-814-1359.

A repeat offender was killed early Friday in a single-vehicle wreck while trying to outrun Aiken police, authorities said.

Troy R. Kooy, 50, of Aiken, was pronounced dead after crashing on Willow Run Road near Rudy Mason Parkway in Aiken, according to Coroner Tim Carlton.

Kooy was trying to outrun cops in his 2002 Dodge pick-up truck after Aiken police caught him in the middle of a drug deal on Richland and Newberry streets near Playoffs bar around 1 a.m. Friday, said ADPS Capt. David Turno.

Kooy jumped in his truck and sped away, almost hitting responding officers before ramming another patrol car that was just pulling up. The officer in that vehicle had to be treated at a local hospital for back pain, Capt. Turno said.

The high-speed chase only lasted a few minutes when Kooy suddenly left the road, went down an embankment and struck a tree, the coroner said. He was not wearing a seat belt and was driving on a suspended  license. Police had lost sight of him but a S.C. Highway Patrol trooper found the vehicle at the crash site. Officers found drugs on Kooy’s body and they seized drugs on several suspects he was dealing with outside the bar.

“Excessive speed and alcohol use may have been contributing factors” in the crash, Carlton said in a press release.

With his distinctive facial tattoos and long criminal record, Kooy is well-known to police. His crimes in Aiken County date back to the 1980s and he served time in Georgia for an Augusta robbery.

In 2013, he was charged in several Aiken County robberies, including a hold-up of the Dollar General on York Street that was thwarted when a female customer struck him with a bag of laundry detergent. He was also accused in the robbery of the Kent’s Korner on Wagener Road. In that case, witnesses say he reached over the counter when the register was open and grabbed some cash.

His criminal history in Aiken County:

1989: Marijuana possession

1998 – Driving under suspension, marijuana possession

2000: Common law robbery, simple larceny

2013: Strong armed robbery, possession of controlled substances,

2014: DUI, driving under suspension

2015: Driving under suspension

In 2004, he was also charged in Richmond County with robbery and earned a 10-year prison sentence with five years of probation. He was ordered to undergo treatment for drug abuse, according to online records.

Columbia County authorities have arrested the “selfie” girl who snatched a phone at a Martinez tattoo shop and was dumb enough to snap her own picture with it.

Tiffany Sharie Brandon, 21, of Grovetown, was charged Friday with theft by taking.

Investigators got her picture after she took selfies on the stolen phone, photos that uploaded automatically to the victim’s iCloud account. Authorities credit the public with helping identify her from the selfie.

It all started when the thief came into a Martinez tattoo shop owner Jan. 6 and talked with the owner in the waiting room. When the owner stepped back into a tattoo room to prepare a chair, the lady grabbed the owner’s $500 cell phone from the waiting room and bolted out of the store, authorities say.

The owner followed the woman outside and saw her and a man driving away in a burgundy sedan, authorities said. But the victim was able to turn over these images to Columbia County authorities when they appeared on his iCloud account from his stolen phone.

Brandon is being held under a $1,100 bond.

Aiken County Solicitor Strom Thurmond Jr. has released the 2011 dash-cam video of cop killer Stephon Carter shooting at Aiken Officers Scotty Richardson and Travis Griffin during a traffic stop, a release that came following a guilty plea in court Monday.

Video Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xnWwV4hRoSw&feature=youtu.be

Thurmond announced in court Monday that he was withdrawing his intent to seek the death penalty against Carter. Instead, he said he was accepting a guilty plea by Carter in exchange for a life sentence without the possibility of parole as well as 30 years. A jury was seated Thursday and opening arguments were supposed to begin Monday.

Thurmond said he made the decision not to seek the death penalty after consulting with Officer Griffin and the Richardson family as well as law enforcement. He said he wasn’t confident the jury selected in the case would return a unanimous verdict for the death penalty. He also said change in state law could mean the jury could return a less serious verdict that would allow Carter to go free in the future.

In court, Officer Griffin choose not to speak, but the wife, mother and brother of Officer Richardson all spoke as a packed courtroom passed around boxes of tissues.

“As we leave the courthouse today, we have a sense of relief and closure for which we have been longing,” said the Richardson family in a statement. “As you can imagine, there is some disappointment that Scotty’s murderer won’t receive the death penalty for his actions; however, we are at peace with the life sentence without parole. At least this murderer will never have an opportunity to terrorize the streets of Aiken again.”

Carter’s attorney admitted in court that his client was a gang member hanging with the wrong crowd when the shooting occurred. Carter faced the family and spoke briefly before sentencing. According to WRDW-TV, Carter said, “I would like to apologize for taking a way a son, a brother and a father. I admit I was wrong and I accept all responsibility. Once again I’m deeply sorry. … I’m deeply sorry for taking away your friend and I hope, one day, that you will be able to forgive me.”

Pick up this week’s edition of The Jail Report for full coverage.

How did an 82-year-old Augusta woman react when a CVS employee confronted her about the stolen body spray in her purse?

It’s one of many stories in this week’s edition of The Jail Report, hitting stands Feb. 4th. (Front page: http://thejailreport.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/Cover-Issue-636.jpg)

Anniliese Young, 82, of Augusta was ar­rested for shoplifting last week from the CVS Pharmacy on Walton Way. A CVS employee told deputies that she saw the elderly woman take a $7 bottle of Sexual Fantasies body spray and place it in her purse. The suspect then walked out without paying.

The employee stopped the woman outside, and Young turned over the bottle to the worker and began apologizing.

When a deputy arrived, the em­ployee said she wanted to prose­cute Young, and the elderly woman was taken to jail.

Other stories in this week’s edition of The Jail Report:

* Stephon Carter Escapes Death Row with Plea Deal in Aiken Cop Killing

* Will Aiken County Residents Accept Strom Thurmond’s reasoning in last-minute deal?

* Post Office Delivers Pounds of Pot, Leading to 2 Arrests

* Mother & Daughters Attack Woman Inside Asian Restaurant in North Augusta

* Roundtree’s Column: Sheriff is Asked About the Law on Exhaust on Cars from the 60s

* Attorney’s Column: Jeffrey Johnston Gives a Look at Custody Issues with Older Children

* Augusta Target Employee Out of a Job After Gaming Thefts

* Senior Citizen Attacks Boyfriend with Hammer in Augusta

* Driver Punches Edgefield County Deputy, Flees Arrest

* Grovetown Teen Gets Stuck in Mud While Damaging Future Church Site

* Wife of Dog-Humping Dad Jailed After Drug Accusation

* Grovetown Man Videos Girlfriend’s Daughter in Bathroom

* Dumb Crooks USA

* Fun with Captions

* Jokes

* & More!

 The Jail Report is sold in local convenience stores for $1.

Columbia County authorities need your help identifying these two suspects.

They are responsible for three school burglaries: Evans High School on January 15^th. Evans High School again last night along with Lakeside Middle School. Items stolen include cell phones, concessions items, laptops, cash and several ROTC drill team sabres.

One is a white male and the other is a white female wearing a Lakeside High School sweatshirt. Recognize them, or know who is responsible for the thefts? Please call the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office at 706-541-2800.

A mother and her teenage daughter have stepped forward to accuse an elderly relative of sexually abusing each of them as children, according to Aiken County authorities.

Charlie Miller Jr., 67, of McNair Drive, North Augusta, was charged this week with eight felony sex crimes.

According to warrants, Miller is accused of raping the older woman several times in the 1980s when she was 11-13 years old and he was in a position of authority in her family. In the other case, Miller is accused of digitally penetrating the younger victim when she was 7 years old between 2006-2007.

Four months ago, the older women contacted Aiken County authorities and said her teenage daughter revealed that Miller had touched her inappropriately a decade ago. That sounded too familiar to the mother, who revealed that Miller had forced sex on her at least three times as a child.

A lengthy investigation led to the criminal charges on Wednesday. Miller is charged with four counts each of criminal sexual conduct with a minor, and lewd acts on a minor.

Sheriff’s Capt. Eric Abdullah said victims of old sex crimes can step forward no matter how much time has passed.

“We would love for any person of a crime to come forward to try and seek assistance through law enforcement,” Capt. Abdullah said. “That way, we can record and investigate it thoroughly with their help and try to seek charges if there is sufficient probable cause.”

Miller has no other criminal record in Aiken County, according to an online search. He is being held in the Aiken County Detention Center.

A bizarre shooting outside the Auto Zone in Aiken has led to charges against two Edgefield County men.

Aiken police say the suspects modified a 12-gauge shotgun shell and fired it at another man using a flare gun. “The round struck the vehicle the victim was sitting in, but did not hit the victim,” Aiken Detective Jeremy Hembree said.

Tanner McCary, 20, of Edgefield (left), was charged Saturday with discharging a firearm in city, assault & battery and disorderly conduct. Corbin Griffith, 18, of Trenton (right), was charged Saturday with discharging firearm into city, assault & battery, disorderly conduct and marijuana possession.

“Mr. McCary was the driver and Mr. Griffith was the front seat passenger,” Detective Hembree said.

The motive? Apparently, Griffith had an issue with the victim communicating with a female friend. “The victim was led to believe he was meeting the female” at Auto Zone, Detective Hembree said.

Oddly enough, the female friend was also arrested. Valerie Walters, 17, of Augusta, was charged with minor in possession of beer, disordery conduct and open container.

A Martinez pair wanted in a rash of school break-ins in Columbia County was busted Sunday night after trying to burglarize a North Augusta business, authorities said.

Hyun Joo Kim, 20 (pictured in her mugshot and from school surveillance) and a 16-year-old boy were both caught during an attempted burglary at a tuxedo rental store in North Augusta. Authorities say garbage collectors spotted them on a roof of The Shoppes of North Augusta, where the “Gents Formal Wear” business is located. Public safety officers caught them and then called Columbia County authorities.

“The suspects matched the male and female suspects from recent burglaries at Evans High School and Lakeside Middle School,” sheriff’s Capt. Steve Morris said.

Items stolen from the schools include cell phones, concessions items, laptops, cash and several ROTC drill team sabers.

After the pair’s arrest, investigators recovered several items from the suspect vehicle that were taken from the school burglaries and a burglary that occurred last week at Mystic Vapors on Belair Road, Capt. Morris said. Additional searches were conducted at their homes where more property was recovered.

Both suspects are being detained in South Carolina. Authorities say they were friends and were not dating.

The 16-year-old is a juvenile and was not named in a press release.

Columbia County authorities say a man and woman recently stole a 42-inch LED Vizio television and 2 Boost Mobile cell phones from the Grovetown Walmart.

The man has been identified as Ian Eugene Dalbert, Sr and the sheriff’s office currently has a warrant for his arrest. They need your help finding him. He is driving a silver 2002 Honda Accord, Ga tag / PSL 7710.

Sheriff’s office do not know the identity of the woman, pictured here. The couple are also suspected in another felony shoplifting case.

Let’s help authorities stop their stealing spree!  If you know Dalbert’s location or the identity of the woman, please call the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office at 706-541-2800.

The victim of an aggravated battery at Maxwell House Apartments in Augusta has died.

Matilda Lorraine Jenkins, 58, died late Tuesday at Georgia Regents Medical Center Shock Trauma ICU. She was was found unresponsive at 1002 Green Street on Feb. 8 with visible head injuries that were consistent with being brutally assaulted.

Authorities charged 57-year-old David Maurice Kyler with aggravated battery after the incident. No additional charges will be made until the initial findings of the autopsy are known, authorities said.

A Richmond County deputy was fired and arrested after allegations that he handcuffed and beat a 12-year-old boy as a disciplinary technique.

Authorities say Deputy Alton Walker was at a friend’s home on Anne Street to help discipline a 12-year-old boy. That is where the uniformed officer allegedly handcuffed the boy to a basketball goal and struck him several times in the face and once in the chest, sheriff’s Lt. Allan Rollins said in a press release. He pulled out his Taser and tried to scare the boy.

“The Taser never made contact with the juvenile,” Lt. Rollins said. “Deputy Walker is also accused of striking the juvenile several times on his legs with his ASP baton but the only visible marks observed on the juvenile were to his wrists. The boy was checked at the scene by EMS.”

Deputy Walker was not related to the juvenile. He was off duty at the time but wearing his uniform.

Based on this incident, Deputy Walker was terminated from the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office, effective immediately.

Walker has been charged with felony false imprisonment and child cruelty. “Because Deputy Walker was representing himself as a Richmond County deputy, the warrants had to be signed by a Superior Court judge, which was done so this morning,” Lt. Rollins said.