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Aiken County Man Kisses Special-Needs Teen After Booze

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An Aiken mother and her boyfriend were accused Monday of providing alcohol to the mother’s 16-year-old daughter and a female friend.

Even worse, the friend told police that the mother’s boyfriend touched and kissed her belly without her consent. She claims he was trying to have sex with her before she fought him off. According to the victim’s father, she is a special needs student.

   (This is one of the stories in this week’s Jail Report, sold in local convenience stores. Cover: http://thejailreport.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/Cover-Issue-708.jpg)

An investigation by Aiken Public Safety into the July 3rd party led to charges against 44-year-old Thomas Dunbar (pictured) of assault & battery as well as two counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor. Deborah Ergle, 43 (pictured), was charged with one count of contributing to the delinquency of a minor. She cannot be legally charged for providing alcohol to her own daughter, only the friend.

According to Lt. Jake Mahoney, the underage drinking took place at Ergle’s home on Palm Drive in Aiken. Dunbar, of Ridge Spring, also drove over and joined the party.

After alcohol had been consumed, Dunbar is accused of touching the victim. Police say the original complaint involved criminal sexual conduct, but an investigation revealed Dunbar’s actions “did not rise to level of criminal sexual conduct,” Lt. Mahoney said.

The victim’s father called The Jail Report on Tuesday, saying he was upset about the lack of sex charges against Dunbar since he was trying to have sex with his daughter.

The father says his daughter was just supposed to be celebrating the Fourth of July with her friend and her mother (Ergle). But Dunbar came over and that’s when the alcohol started flowing and the sexual advances started, he said.

His daughter has a low IQ, but she took karate for four years and was able to fight off Dunbar and leave the house. Ergle’s ex-husband lives nearby and took the girl to the police station to file a complaint.

The victim’s father said his daughter has been forever changed by the experience.

“I wanted him to be on the sex offender list,” he said. “And that’s gone now.”

The post Aiken County Man Kisses Special-Needs Teen After Booze appeared first on AugustaCrime.com - Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken County Jail - Reports & Mugshots.

Aiken Waitress Adds Extra to Customer Tips, Police Say

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If you dined at Aiken’s Travinia Italian Kitchen and Wine Bar in the last couple of weeks, you might want to check your credit card bill. An employee was arrested last Thursday for bumping up her tips on credit transactions, police say.

credit cardBrandy Skinner, 39, of Saluda, was charged with five counts of credit card fraud, the report said.

(This is one of many stories in this week’s Jail Report, sold in convenience stores. Cover: http://bit.ly/1MxElJn)

The manager said he had an employee that he suspected of committing fraud after receiving complaints from customers that the tip charged on the credit card was more than what was entered.

Skinner allegedly started off small adding $1 to $2 to bills and then increasing amounts to $5 to $10 extra.

The officer contacted five of the seven victims and learned from the manager that Skinner was scheduled to arrive at work Thursday afternoon. She was taken into custody in the parking lot. She claimed that she did not purposely add the extra money to the bills.

In fact, she said she was the victim of a conspiracy by the management at Travinia. She said they were trying to get her in trouble because she knew too much about other employees’ personal lives.

The post Aiken Waitress Adds Extra to Customer Tips, Police Say appeared first on AugustaCrime.com - Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken County Jail - Reports & Mugshots.

Hephzibah Man’s Death Ruled a Suicide

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The suspicious death investigation on Berthoud Pass off Willis Foreman Road in Hephzibah has been ruled a suicide, the coroner says.

The call was received at 10:25 p.m. on Monday after someone asked authorities to conduct a welfare check on an elderly man living alone on the 1200 block of Berthoud Pass. The victim was pronounced dead at the scene at 11:10 p.m. Monday.

An autopsy was delayed until Wednesday because the GBI Crime Lab was full. Once it was completed, authorities said that “suicide has been determined.”

“The identity of the victim is being withheld due to trying to locate any family,” Coroner Mark Bowen said in a press release. “The victim died from a gunshot wound to the head – self inflicted.”

The post Hephzibah Man’s Death Ruled a Suicide appeared first on AugustaCrime.com - Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken County Jail - Reports & Mugshots.

Grovetown Teen Beats Up Cops in Columbia County Jail

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A Grovetown teenager who is awaiting trial for molesting children has injured multiple officers this week inside the Columbia County Jail, including one deputy who was sent to University Hospital.

Matthew Timmerman 2Matthew Timmerman, 19, was charged this week with two counts of willful obstruction of an officer, adding to a long list of crimes that include sexual battery against a child and enticing a child for indecent purposes.

The teen is accused of punching Deputy Kevin Roberson in the face Sunday night and struggling with several deputies who responded to the incident. Deputy Roberson went to the hospital with an injury to his right wrist. On Tuesday, he became violent again and officers were trying to put him in a restraint chair when he kicked Sgt. Travis Smith in the face.

“Sgt. Smith sustained a hard blow to the left side of his face and his face has already beginning to swell,” a sheriff’s report says. “He also had an abrasion to his right wrist with a small open cut.”

Timmerman is a feisty youth with an Anarchy tattoo on his left arm, he shaved the Anarchy logo into his hair while in jail.

The teen has been in jail for 281 days after his October arrest last year for allegedly grabbing a girl’s breasts and touching a boy’s penis, authorities said. The teen’s grandfather told authorities the boy had even “stuck his finger in a horse’s vagina” and made sexual comments to his own mother.

A relative of the suspect told authorities that Timmerman may have been molested as a child and was forced to have sex with relatives, the sheriff’s report says.

The post Grovetown Teen Beats Up Cops in Columbia County Jail appeared first on AugustaCrime.com - Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken County Jail - Reports & Mugshots.

Woman Poses as Deputy at Grovetown Hotel

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A local woman was charged Wednesday with impersonating a police officer at a Grovetown hotel after she flashed a badge at employees, authorities said.

Ashley Nicole Johnson, 30, of Thomson, was apparently trying to figure out how her car disappeared from the parking lot at Travellodge Inn & Suites. She thought it was stolen and asked the hotel to view their surveillance video.

“She said she was an undercover officer and flashed a hat badge,” said sheriff’s Capt. Steve Morris, explaining that hats worn by deputies often have a badge attached to them.

As it turns out, the woman’s car wasn’t stolen. It was repossessed.

And Johnson wasn’t a police officer. Capt. Morris is not sure how she got the CCSO hat badge.

But the Thomson woman didn’t need a ride home since the hotel called the sheriff’s office and they arrested her for impersonating an officer, Capt. Morris said. She was also found with a gun and charged with weapon possession.

She has since been released on bond.

 

The post Woman Poses as Deputy at Grovetown Hotel appeared first on AugustaCrime.com - Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken County Jail - Reports & Mugshots.

Shocking Discovery: Horses Drinking Mud in Aiken County

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Three horses were found in terrible shape in Wagener, leading to charges last week against a mother and her son for ill treatment of animals, according to authorities.

(This is one of many stories in this week’s Jail Report, sold in convenience stores. Cover: http://bit.ly/1MxElJn)

Marjorie Sheil, 53, and Richard Sheil, 35, were cooperative with animal control officials after the discovery of their three Arabian mix horses, according to Paige Bayne with Aiken County’s Code Enforcement Division.

A local resident was on Brown Pond Road on July 17th and noticed a horse running at large with a broken tether. When authorities tried to locate the property owners, they stumbled upon the other horses being stored in a horse trailer, confined to a very small area with no drinkable water.

“It was mud that they were drinking from,” Bayne said. “The condition wasn’t conducive to what we found humane. … It could have turned out worse if it wasn’t addressed.”

The county seized the three horses and arrest warrants were issued for the Sheils. The pair was booked into the jail last Tuesday, and the horses are improving.

The Sheils have been cooperative and are working to get the horses back, Bayne said. They even transported them to the county’s facility.

The county will require the mom and son to get fencing and a better setup to care and house the horses before they can get them back, Bayne said.

The pair had recently moved to the area from another part of the state.

The post Shocking Discovery: Horses Drinking Mud in Aiken County appeared first on AugustaCrime.com - Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken County Jail - Reports & Mugshots.

CCSO: Stranger Molests Young Girl at Grovetown Walmart

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A man approached an 8-year-old girl at the Grovetown Walmart on Thursday afternoon and touched her inappropriately, authorities said.

Columbia County authorities are asking for your help in identifying this man, who is pictured here as he allegedly followed the girl about 2:45 p.m. Thursday, authorities said.  Surveillance images also show the truck he was driving: A 2000’s model Dodge 1500 extended cab, blue with tan trim and silver tool box.

The girl told her mother that the man “spoke to her and touched her in an inappropriate manner,” according to a sheriff’s report. The mother found the man and confronted him before alerting store employees. The other did not know who the man was.

If you recognize the man, please call the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office at 706-541-2800.

The post CCSO: Stranger Molests Young Girl at Grovetown Walmart appeared first on AugustaCrime.com - Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken County Jail - Reports & Mugshots.


Hephzibah Man Rapes Girl, 4 Months After Prison Release

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A violent offender who was released early from prison in April on a robbery conviction has been arrested again, this time accused of raping a 14-year-old Augusta girl.

Chauncey

Chauncey Bryant, 25, of Creekview Drive, Hephzibah, allegedly raped the girl Friday while she was visiting her godmother at the residence where Bryant also lived, according to a sheriff’s report. She said she was in a bedroom at 4:30 a.m. Friday when Bryant came in, removed her clothes and forced himself on top of her before raping her without a condom.

When he was done, Bryant put his clothes on and left. The girl immediately called her mother, and the mother took her to GRU Hospital where investigators took her statement. Bryant was arrested later in the day.

In November, Judge Carl C. Brown Jr. sentenced Bryant to 12 months in prison for a bloody assault and robbery of an elderly man at the McDonalds on Tobacco Road. In that case, Bryant attacked a 69-year-old stranger in May 2014 as the man left the restaurant, knocking him to the ground and trying to get the victim’s wallet.

A customer saw the beating, ran outside and pushed Bryant off the man. Bryant ran. When officers arrived they saw the victim had cuts on his arms and neck and he was covered in blood.

They didn’t have to look far for Bryant. He was sitting outside on the other side of the McDonald’s eating a fish sandwich, the report said.

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Bryant was arrested and charged with criminal attempt – robbery by force. A judge ordered one year in prison and six years of probation. But after serving less than five months at the Jackson County Correctional Institution, Bryant was released on April 3, 2015.

Before that case, judges had gone light on the criminal, repeatedly giving him probation. He got probation for a 2008 felony theft arrest, a 2009 felony theft case, a 2010 felony obstruction offense  and a  2014 marijuana charge.

(Personal photos taken form the suspect’s Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/chauncey.g.bryant?fref=ts)

The post Hephzibah Man Rapes Girl, 4 Months After Prison Release appeared first on AugustaCrime.com - Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken County Jail - Reports & Mugshots.

Warrenville Man Accused of Child Sex Crimes in Georgia

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An Aiken County man was locked up in Georgia on Friday for child sex charges and he’s being held as state investigators launch a wider probe into crimes in other states.

Robert Bossick, 57, of Warren Road, Warenville, is being held in Richmond County on charges with aggravated child molestation, sexual exploitation of children and criminal attempted felony. The jail has a hold on him with no possibility of release at this time.

According to a spokeswoman with the GBI’s Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force, the case remains under investigation.

“This is a sensitive investigation,” Special Agent in Charge Debbie Garner said Monday. “We are not going to release additional information” until the case is resolved.

Bossick’s arrest came with the assistance of a Richmond County investigator as authorities followed up information provided through the task force.

If you recall, the same GBI task force helped organize Operation Mayday, which resulted in the arrests of 22 people in May. Those arrested, ages 19-52, were accused of traveling from areas around Augusta and from South Carolina with the intent to meet a child for sex. They were all charged with criminal attempt to commit child molestation.

“Operation Mayday” was an undercover investigation coordinated by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation’s Child Exploitation and Computer Crimes Unit (CEACC), the Georgia Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force, and the Richmond County Sheriff’s Office.

The mission of the ICAC Task Force program is to assist state and local law enforcement agencies in developing an effective response to cyber enticement, child pornography cases and child sex trafficking.

 

The post Warrenville Man Accused of Child Sex Crimes in Georgia appeared first on AugustaCrime.com - Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken County Jail - Reports & Mugshots.

Augusta Woman Kidnaps Neighborhood Toddler & Holds Her at Knifepoint

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Deputies had to kick in two doors at Fox Den Apartments on Saturday to retrieve a 2-year-old girl that was being held at knifepoint by a neighbor.

Camylia Booker, 27, was arrested on multiple felonies after the bizarre incident at lunchtime Saturday at 314 Fox Trace Drive in Augusta.

(This is one of many stories in this week’s Jail Report. Cover: http://bit.ly/1HqFFFS)

The child’s mother had apparently left her daughter with other neighbors and the girl somehow ended up with Booker, according to witnesses.

Booker would not give the child back to her mother, claiming the child was being abused and she was protecting her. Authorities say that isn’t true.

Someone called police and while officers were responding, two other neighbors went to Booker’s residence to get the child. They saw that the suspect was holding several knives and Booker lunged at them when they tried to take the girl, a sheriff’s report says.

The women were allowed to leave just as police were arriving. Deputies saw the suspect with a knife in one hand while holding the hand of the child with the other.

At this point, a large crowd had gathered outside and screamed that the woman had taken the child without permission. But Booker closed the door and locked the deputies out, moving herself and the girl to a back bedroom.

So the deputies kicked in the front door and then kicked in a rear bedroom and grabbed the suspect.

The child was taken to the hospital and later turned over to a grandparent, according to witnesses.

But Booker’s actions didn’t stop. Authorities say she was uncooperative at the jail, becoming hostile and kicking at officers as they tried to put her in a restraint chair. She spit in the face of three officers, leaving officers to put a facial mask on her.

Booker was charged with kidnapping, three counts of aggravated assault and three counts of obstruction on an officer.

The suspect’s family told neighbors that Booker is supposed to be on medication for a mental issue.

 

The post Augusta Woman Kidnaps Neighborhood Toddler & Holds Her at Knifepoint appeared first on AugustaCrime.com - Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken County Jail - Reports & Mugshots.

Columbia Co. Woman Loses $1,000 in Jury Duty Scam

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A Columbia County woman lost over $1,000 in a jury duty scam, authorities said.

The 66-year-old Grovetown resident got a call two weeks ago from someone claiming to be a lieutenant with the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office.

“We’ve got a warrant for your arrest for failure to appear for jury duty on July 16th,” the man said.

The woman said she had never received a letter. So the man gave her three options:
1. Spend 24 hrs. in jail.
2. Pay $995 and get an appointment with the Sheriffs Office.
3. Pay $1,900 and everything would be forgotten.

The woman said she selected the second option and the man instructed her to go to Walmart to send the $995. She sent the money through Billpay for $995.00 plus $3.95 for a fee to do the transaction.

After the man received the money, he gave the woman an appointment for July 24th to be at the Sheriffs Office.

The woman told authorities that she thought the call was real. She said her and her husband even heard radio traffic in the background. And a female voice spoke to the man and he said that he would send a unit to the woman’s house. So they through the man was calling from a law enforcement operations center.

The scam has been picking up recently in this area with multiple reports.

Local officials who are in charge of jury services say they will never call and ask for money or personal information over the phone. So don’t give out your information.

Authorities give this advice: hang up on the scammers, try to get the number they are calling from and call police with all the information you have.

For more crime news, pick up this week’s Jail Report. Cover: http://bit.ly/1HqFFFS

(Note: The image that appears here is a photo illustration, not a picture of the Columbia County victim.)

 

The post Columbia Co. Woman Loses $1,000 in Jury Duty Scam appeared first on AugustaCrime.com - Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken County Jail - Reports & Mugshots.

Augusta Man Dumped at ER After Fatal Shot to Chest

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An Augusta man was shot in the chest Wednesday and later dumped at the emergency room where he died moments later, authorities said.

Carlton Deon Nipple, 34 (pictured), was shot and then dropped off by someone at GRU Hospital, authorities said.

“Someone dropped him off at the GRU hospital and the person left,” sheriff’s Sgt. Monica Belser said. “They didn’t know who took him there, how he got there or anything.”

But authorities say there is a woman involved, and that one of her baby’s fathers shot Nipple, also a father of one of her children. The Jail Report has been told the fight was over something “very petty.”

Authorities were also called to reports of gunfire on the 1900 block of Barnes Road, which is where authorities believe the shooting likely took place, Sgt. Belser said.

The coroner’s office says Nipple was shot at least once in the chest and was pronounced dead at 3:39 p.m.

Check back for updates.

Note: The Jail Report is looking for a better photo of the victim. If you have one, please email it to publisher@thejailreport.com

The post Augusta Man Dumped at ER After Fatal Shot to Chest appeared first on AugustaCrime.com - Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken County Jail - Reports & Mugshots.

Couple Steals 3 Cell Phones from Grovetown Walmart

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This man and woman stole three cell phones from the Grovetown Walmart on July 26, authorities say.

Authorities say the man was seen on video taking three cell phone boxes off the shelf and walking to a different aisle. He was working with “a larger black female, who is seen wearing a red and white striped dress,” authorities said.

Loss Prevention officers located two of the three cell phone boxes in the stationary aisle, which is a few aisles over from the cell phones. Both boxes were empty.

Wouldn’t it be nice if we all could get free cell phones? Let’s help the sheriff’s office identify them and stop their thieving ways, which make prices rise for the rest of us!

Please call the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office at 706-541-2800 if you recognize them.

The post Couple Steals 3 Cell Phones from Grovetown Walmart appeared first on AugustaCrime.com - Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken County Jail - Reports & Mugshots.

3 Charged in Murder of Augusta Man

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Three men have been charged with murder in the shooting death of an Augusta man this week, which followed a complicated series of events, authorities said.

Marcellus Nipple, 24, (from left), Antonio Rivers, 26, and Brandon L. Jackson, were each charged with felony murder and aggravated assault in the death of 34-year-old Carlton Nipple and aggravated assault. Marcellus Nipple was also charged with firearm possession and firearm possession by a convicted felon.

The murder followed a long night involving fie men, including the victim, three suspects and Sidney Carter III, authorities said. Here is how sheriff’s Lt. Allan Rollins explained the events of Wednesday night:

“Carlton Deon Nipple and Sidney Carter III had been involved in a dispute regarding a female that both had children with.  A short time prior to the incident occurring, Marcellus Nipple and Brandon Jackson purchased the firearm later possessed by Carlton Nipple and fired by Marcellus Nipple.  Carlton Nipple showed up to Sidney Carter’s residence along with Marcellus L. Nipple, Antonio B. Rivers and Brandon L. Jackson armed with a handgun and wanting to fight with Sidney Carter shortly after 3 p.m.

“During a verbal exchange, Carlton Nipple displayed a handgun and was shot by Sidney Carter.  After the shooting Sidney Carter fled on foot and was chased by Marcellus Nipple who began shooting at Sidney Carter.  Marcellus Nipple, Brandon Jackson, and Antonio Rivers then placed Carlton Nipple into their vehicle and transported him to the GRU Emergency Room for medical treatment.

“After dropping Carlton Nipple, Marcellus Nipple, and Brandon Jackson off at GRU ER, Antonio Rivers left the area and disposed of the handgun and vehicle before being located on East Boundary.”

Jail records show the three suspects were arrested early Thursday.

“Initially, Investigators held Sidney Carter pending the completion of the investigation but at this time have ruled that Sidney Carter acted in self-defense,” Lt. Rollins said “No charges will be brought against Sidney Carter at this time for this incident.”

The post 3 Charged in Murder of Augusta Man appeared first on AugustaCrime.com - Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken County Jail - Reports & Mugshots.


Walmart Molester Arrested in Grovetown Case

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The man walked around Grovetown Walmart for nearly three hours and didn’t buy anything last week.

He wasn’t shopping for merchandise; he was shopping for a child, authorities say. And he had done it before.

Now, William Stone Roberts Jr. of Grovetown has been charged with child molestation in the incident last Thursday. He’s being held without bond.

The 32-year-old man followed around an 8-year-old girl for a half hour, waited until her mother wasn’t looking and then put his hands down the back of the girl’s pants, authorities said.

The girl told her mother that the man “spoke to her and touched her in an inappropriate manner,” according to a sheriff’s report. The mother found the man and confronted him before alerting store employees.

Roberts, of Glenn Falls Road in Grovetown, has been identified as the person responsible for two similar incidents – including at a Martinez Walmart – but authorities can’t charge him because he didn’t technically commit a crime in those cases, sheriff’s Capt. Steve Morris said. He was simply asking to pay the mother to spend time with their children, he said.

Sheriff’s officials released the man’s photo last week and quickly identified him in the Grovetown case, but weren’t immediately able to charge Roberts, who is reportedly married with a pregnant wife.

Roberts had shaved his beard and cut his hair, which surprised co-workers when he went back to work.

“We have interviewed him. He acknowledged being in the store with the child. He denied there was any physical contact,” Capt. Morris said.

He has also been tied to an earlier incident that led to the wrongful arrest of serial flasher Chad Stefani, but a judge dismissed the case because there was no evidence of a crime.

Authorities are trying to determine if Roberts is responsible for other similar crimes.

“It seems to be a pattern here, and if anyone else has had contact with him or a suspicious incident of this nature, call us,” Capt. Morris said.

The sheriff’s office can be reached at 706-541-2800.

The post Walmart Molester Arrested in Grovetown Case appeared first on AugustaCrime.com - Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken County Jail - Reports & Mugshots.

Grovetown High Student Makes Bathroom Bomb Threat

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A Grovetown High School student was charged Monday with scrawling a bomb threat message on the bathroom stall.

Itzeder Santmar Pena, 17, was charged with making terroristic threats & acts.

Pena actually reported the bathroom threat to authorities, which was a message on the handicapped stall of the gym lobby restroom that said “boomb threat,” with the first word misspelled. Authorities say Pena acted like he was alerting them to it.

But the student became the suspect and confessed to a sheriff’s investigator that he had written the message, a report says.

The principal evacuated the school as a precautionary measure and a sweep turned up negative results.

 

The post Grovetown High Student Makes Bathroom Bomb Threat appeared first on AugustaCrime.com - Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken County Jail - Reports & Mugshots.

Martinez Man Drags Teen Granddaughter with Car!

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A local man has been charged with dragging his teenage granddaughter with his car Friday and seriously injuring her after an argument over a cell phone.

(This is one of many stories in the new Jail Report. Cover: http://bit.ly/1Nqs0E9)

William Thackston, 77, of Martinez, was charged with aggravated assault after the shocking incident in front of West Lake community on Furys Ferry Road.

According to a sheriff’s report, Thackston picked up his 17-year-old granddaughter from Augusta Christian Schools. In the car, they began arguing because she had purchased a cell phone.

“Her mother and grandfather did not want her to have a cell phone,” the sheriff’s report says. “Her grandfather told her to give him the cell phone or he was going to make her walk home.”

She said fine and said she would call one of her friends to pick her up. Thackston pulled over and the girl tried to get her book bag, but the passenger rear door was locked. She opened up the front passenger door and was going to get the bag when her grandfather pulled off.

The teen started running and trying to get into the car because she was afraid of being run over. She started to fall and grabbed onto the doorframe.

“As she did this, Thackston looked at her and told her to let go,” a report says.

The victim was dragged by the vehicle for 15 feet before letting go. Thackson pulled over, got out and yelled at the teen before driving off, a report says.

The entire incident was witnessed by two West Lake security guards.

Deputies arrived and found the teen “emotionally distraught” with trouble talking. EMS arrived and treated her.

Thackston eventually drove himself to the CCSO substation on Ronald Reagan Drive and told an employee that “the sheriff’s office would be looking for him.”

He told deputies he lef the scene because he didn’t think his granddaughter was injured.”

The post Martinez Man Drags Teen Granddaughter with Car! appeared first on AugustaCrime.com - Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken County Jail - Reports & Mugshots.

Aiken Police Chief Suspended 3 Days for Management Failure

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Aiken’s top cop has just completed three days of suspension without pay for a failure of management, the city manager told The Jail Report.

Chief Charles Barranco will also serve up to six months of probation for a personnel action that City Manager John Klimm said was the result of  “deficiencies in management.”

The new city manager told a local TV station that ADPS employees left their shift and failed to file a report that a woman was in jail. The same woman was later reported missing, even though she was in jail.

Klimm said the police chief notified him three days after an incident, and the family filed a complaint with the public safety department.

“Chief Barranco made me aware of the complaint,” Klimm said.

The city manager notified the city council of his actions in suspending Barranco. The suspension was served Tuesday through Thursday, and he returned to work Friday (Aug. 14).

Barranco did not return phone calls seeking comment, but ADPS released this comment from the chief this afternoon:

“As the Chief of Aiken Public Safety, I have the privilege of leading 135 dedicated public servants who serve our great city and answer some 40,000 calls for service per year. With that privilege, comes great responsibility and I am responsible for every single decision made by this department. One of the core tenets of leadership is to give credit, yet accept responsibility, and the buck will always stop with me.”

 

 

The Jail Report has filed an open records request seeking a copy of the discipline against the chief. Klimm said Barranco had acted professionally in dealing with the suspension and in taking ownership of the mistake and corrective action.

“He’s fixing the problem and will move on,” Klimm said.

The suspension comes less than a year after Barranco was recognized for excellence in law enforcement. Last September, he was given the Strom Thurmond Award for Excellence in Law Enforcement.

Stay tuned…

 

The post Aiken Police Chief Suspended 3 Days for Management Failure appeared first on AugustaCrime.com - Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken County Jail - Reports & Mugshots.

Martinez Man Rapes Woman & Chases Her to Circle K

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A Martinez man has been charged with kidnapping and raping a woman after offering her ride home from The Finish Line Cafe, authorities said.

Dane Walter Lewless, 53, of the 3900 block of Alton Drive, is accused of dragging the 48-yer-old woman out of his car around 2 a.m. Thursday, forcing her into his house and then raping her, according to a sheriff’s report.

The victim escaped the suspect’s home and ran screaming to the Circle K on Washington Road with the suspect not far behind, a report says. Customers saw the woman yelling about the rape and then watched the suspect pull up and ask about the woman.

“He was told that the police were on the way, and he took off running across Columbia Road,” a report says.

Deputies fond the victim inside Circle K with a ripped shirt and “hysterical.”  Lewless was later captured and charged with rape, kidnapping and firearm possession by a convicted felon.

The victim told authorities that she had been drinking at The Finish Line Cafe and needed a ride home. Lewless offered her  ride to where she was staying but stopped by his house, claiming he needed to pay his babysitter for watching his son. He went inside but returned a few minutes later.

“Dane opened her door and drug her into his residence,” a sheriff’s report says.

After raping her, the victim grabbed her things and ran out of the door, a report says. But Lewless was right behind her, so she grabbed a large rock and smashed the window on his truck.

“This distracted Dane long enough for her to run down the street towards Circle K,” the report says.

Deputies arrived at the store and found the suspect’s abandoned truck parked at pump 7 with the rear window shattered and a large rock still laying on the rear deck.

Paramedics arrived and took the victim to GRU’s emergency room.

The post Martinez Man Rapes Woman & Chases Her to Circle K appeared first on AugustaCrime.com - Richmond, Columbia, and Aiken County Jail - Reports & Mugshots.

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