SC woman, 86, pushed to ground and injured in daytime robbery

An 86-year-old woman was pushed to the ground in the Spartanburg Fresh Market parking lot and her purse was stolen Saturday afternoon.

Two bystanders tried to help her. One woman tried to get the purse but the robber was holding onto it like a football. She did manage to punch him in the throat, according to a Spartanburg Police Department incident report.

The purse snatcher told her to back off; he had a gun.

Meanwhile, a man collected his own gun from his car but the robber was able to run across the parking lot and speed off in a Nissan Altima. Another person in the parking lot videotaped part of the incident.

Spartanburg Police Captain Art Littlejohn said the victim’s injuries were not life threatening, but she suffered from severe injury to her arm and body in the fall.

The video shows the suspect wearing a light blue shirt with a Superman logo, with a light gray T-shirt underneath, dark blue shorts and tennis shoes.

It also shows the license plate number, which Spartanburg police matched to a car belonging to an Inman woman. Ultimately, they discovered the plate had been stolen three weeks earlier while the woman was shopping at Westgate Mall in Spartanburg.

Spartanburg Police announced Monday afternoon that James Robert Seibles, 63, had been arrested at USA Economy Lodge at 7136 Asheville Highway in Spartanburg.

Corporal John Burgess of the Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Office said a deputy on patrol noticed a car that matched the description backed into a space at the motel. He checked the plate. It matched.

Warrants were obtained and the suspect arrested.

“Violent Crimes Investigators with our agency located the suspect in a hotel room,” he said in an email.

Seibles is being held at the Spartanburg County Jail on strong armed robbery and assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature charges.

This story was originally published July 10, 2023 at 12:15 PM.