Friday, Aug. 07, 2009

Robbery raises student safety issue

Pair reports being attacked, robbed while walking along Wheat Street

Columbia police are investigating the armed robbery of a man and a woman early Wednesday on Wheat Street near Five Points.

The man’s father told The State newspaper on Thursday that the incident highlights the need for returning University of South Carolina students to be cautious when out at night in the city. Classes start on Aug. 20; the official move-in day for students is Aug. 15.

“These kids need to be aware and warned,” said Dr. Michael Lawhead, a Blythewood physician, noting that his son attended USC and that he has two younger children enrolled at the university.

Columbia police spokesman Brick Lewis said Thursday that no arrests have been made in Wednesday’s incident, and that investigators weren’t aware of any other similar robberies in the Five Points area.

The university is very concerned about students’ safety, said USC spokeswoman Margaret Lamb. Among other things, the school has a full-time safety and crime prevention officer who conducts classes for students on safety on and off the campus, she said.

“The key point is that the safety of our students is the No. 1 priority,” Lamb said Thursday.

Michael Lawhead Jr., 22, told police he and a woman were walking east on the sidewalk in the 2000 block of Wheat near Harden Street about 2 a.m. Wednesday when two men knocked them to the ground and demanded money and other items, according to an incident report.

Lawhead reported his assailant was armed with a handgun. The woman was not sure whether the man who attacked her was armed with a knife or gun, the report said.

The robbers fled in a tan, older-model, four-door vehicle — possibly a Lincoln — west on Wheat Street, into the Shandon neighborhood, according to the report. The robbers stole Lawhead’s wallet, ATM bank card and driver’s license as well as the woman’s red purse, wallet, cell phone, credit card and driver’s license, the report said.

The woman wasn’t identified in the report.

The value of the items was blacked out in the report — a standard departmental practice to help protect other people from being targeted, Lewis said. Lawhead’s father said about $40 in cash was stolen from his son, who goes by his middle name, Dorian. Efforts to reach the younger Lawhead were unsuccessful.

The elder Lawhead said his son, who will attend Midlands Technical College this school year, was walking to a male friend’s home from a Five Points bar when he and his female companion were attacked. He said the fact that his son is 6-foot-3 and muscular should give caution to other students.

“If they take down a big guy, they will take down anyone,” he said.

The report said the victims were “both intoxicated” and “unsure of how the incident occurred.” The elder Lawhead said students who have been drinking are even more of a target for robbers.

He recommended students walk at night in groups of at least four to discourage would-be robbers. The police department’s Lewis agreed with that advice, adding that students should walk and park in well-lit areas.

“Don’t present yourself as a target,” he said.

Lewis said his department annually steps up patrols in the Five Points area with the return of USC students. He declined to discuss specifics, citing security reasons.

Reach Brundrett at (803) 771-8484.

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