COLUMBIA, SC — A manhunt is on for one of two suspects involved in an armed robbery at a Garners Ferry Road jewelry store Tuesday morning.

Police are looking for the suspect near Pennington Place townhomes off Garners Ferry and Leesburg Roads, Columbia Police Department spokeswoman Jennifer Timmons said. The suspects lead police on a chase before crashing his car into a fence at Gavinshire and Pennington roads.

The chase and manhunt came after the robbery of Mims Fine Jewelry at 6780 Garners Ferry Road around 11:45 a.m., Timmons said.

In that incident, an armed suspect went into the store and told everyone to get on the ground. Then, a second suspect came into the store, smashed a glass case and stole jewelry inside. Both suspects than ran out of the store and got into a car and left the scene. There were at least three people in the store, who weren’t injured, Timmons said.

Then, a short time later, one of the responding officers saw a man matching the description of one of the robbers running near the Interstate 77 overpass about a quarter-mile away from the crash site.

A witness started chasing the robbers’ getaway car before police got involved, Timmons said. The witness didn’t crash the car and wasn’t injured, Timmons said.

The area around the crash has been closed off while police search for the second suspect, Timmons said.

This story will be updated as more information becomes available.