The West Columbia Police Department is asking for help locating two suspects who were involved in two separate burglaries in the city in the past week.
The suspects are approaching homeowners and telling them there are tree limbs that need to be cut down near power lines in their yard. One suspect then will get the homeowner out of the house to look at the limbs while the other goes into the house and takes items.
The first suspect is described as a white male, 30 to 40 years of age, approximately 5 feet 7 inches to 5 feet 9 inches tall and weighting about 175 pounds. He was wearing khaki pants and a collared shirt with a khaki hat.
The second suspect is described as a white male, 50-60 years old with gray hair. They were driving a silver Chevrolet pickup truck with some type of painting equipment in the bed.
In one of the incidents, the victim said one suspect said he was with the city of West Columbia. Chief Dennis Tyndall said all city workers would be wearing a city of West Columbia shirt and would be in a city vehicle. Workers also would have a city-issued picture ID.
Anyone with information about these crimes should call CrimeStoppers at (888) CRIME-SC or the West Columbia Police Department at (803) 794-0721.
- From Staff Reports
Lexington sheriff's dive team to clear lake rubbish
The Lexington County Sheriff's Department Dive Team will remove trash and debris along the shoreline and underwater on Lake Murray's Bundrick Island and Sandy Beach between 8 a.m. and noon Monday.
Bundrick Island and Sandy Beach are at the end of Brady Porth Road off Old Cherokee Road near Lexington.
The Dive Team has joined the Adopt-A-Waterway program operated by Keep the Midlands Beautiful, the Sheriff's Department said. The team has committed to cleaning up trash and debris in the lake and along the shoreline on Bundrick Island and Sandy Beach.
Dive Team members will use diving equipment Monday to go underwater and remove trash and debris from the lake bottom.
- From Staff Reports
S.C. won't operate high-risk insurance pool
Gov. Mark Sanford says South Carolina will not operate a new, high-risk health insurance pool for people unable to get private coverage.
Sanford said Friday the Obama administration's new federal program would unfairly strain taxpayers and small businesses in an already cash-strapped state.
The high-risk pools for people unable to get private insurance are part of federal health care reform signed last month by the president. States had until the end of the day Friday to tell Washington if they'll operate their own pools or defer implementation and oversight to the federal government.
Republican governors in Nebraska and Nevada already have opted out of participating in the plan. Both states and South Carolina are part of a lawsuit seeking to overturn health care reform.
- The Associated Press
Man gets prison in crimes including courthouse fire
LANCASTER - A man on a crime spree that included setting fires at the historic Lancaster County courthouse and a prosecutor's office has been sentenced to 35 years in prison.
The Herald of Rock Hill reported that 18-year-old Martavious Carter pleaded guilty Friday to arson, kidnapping, robbery and other charges.
Prosecutors say Carter's crime spree began last summer with the fires and ended about six weeks later when he carjacked a 70-year-old woman, stuffing her in the trunk. He also committed four armed robberies.
The fire heavily damaged Lancaster County's historic 180-year-old county courthouse, which had been designed by Washington Monument creator Robert Mills. The building is being repaired.
- The Associated Press
Tee times auction raises $106,000 for turf research
LIBERTY - An online golf auction for tee times at top courses in the Carolinas has raised $106,000 for turfgrass research.
Organizers say the money was raised in a two-week Rounds4Research.com auction that closed April 21.
The auction featured foursomes at more than 550 courses in the Carolinas, Georgia, Virginia and Texas.
Courses with PGA tournaments donating tee times include East Lake Golf Club in Georgia, Sedgefield Country Club in North Carolina and Harbour Town Golf Links in South Carolina. Other exclusive courses include the Ocean Course on Kiawah Island.
The auction funds efforts at research universities throughout the Southeast.
- The Associated Press
City lauded for census participation
CHARLESTON - Charleston has been singled out for praise by the U.S. Census Bureau for having the largest percentage-point increase nationwide of people mailing back Census forms, in cities with at least 50,000 residents.
Charleston went from 64 percent of residents mailing back forms in 2000 to 73 percent this year.
The response rate is important, because it helps determine federal funding for the area. The state is pushing participation, too, because a large enough population increase also could give South Carolina another congressional seat.
At 73 percent, Charleston's mail-back rate was just above the national average, but the city's improvement from the 2000 Census also helped make South Carolina one of the two most improved states in the nation, along with North Carolina.
Nationally, just over 72 percent of households mailed back Census forms, the same rate as in 2000. In South Carolina, the mail-back rate jumped from 65 percent to 73 percent.
- The (Charleston) Post and Courier
Notorious criminal gets life in teen's murder
CHARLESTON - One of Charleston's most notorious criminals was sentenced to life in prison Thursday after a jury decided that he gunned down a 15-year-old boy over a $200 drug debt.
After 3 1/2 hours of deliberation, a Charleston County jury found 23-year-old Rafael Horlbeck guilty of murder in the June 29 slaying of Jermel Brown. Horlbeck was accused of firing two bullets into Jermel's brain as the teen struggled to escape from a Ford Explorer below an overpass near Huger Street.
Authorities dubbed Horlbeck a predator and one of the city's most dangerous offenders. He has been accused of beating or shooting a half-dozen people over the past four years, but he had never spent a day in prison. At the time of Jermel's death, Horlbeck was free on bail in connection with the rape of an 8-year-old, authorities said.
- The (Charleston) Post and Courier
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