20 or more people in up to 7 cars break in to popular downtown Columbia liquor store
A crowd of 20 or more people broke into the Green’s Discount Beverages liquor store in Columbia late Sunday night, according to store’s manager.
Gary Langas told The State that the crowd pulled up to the store about 11 p.m., well after a protest had wrapped up at the S.C. State House over the killing of George Floyd by police in Minneapolis.
“It didn’t have anything to do with what was happening at the State House,” Kangas said. “They knew police were in other areas of town. It was definitely organized.”
The store’s security cameras show the caravan of cars pulled into the parking lot of the store at 400 Assembly St. near the University of South Carolina campus, Kangas said. The crowd broke two large front windows, the exterior and interior doors, and streamed in.
The incident lasted about two minutes, the manager said. The crowd rushed through the store grabbing armloads of bottles and a case of tequila, Kangas said. The main targets were shelves closest to the front door, he said.
“They came in like a line of ants,” he said.
The crowd only entered the liquor side of the store and not the separate beer and wine side, Kangas said. South Carolina law requires that liquor be sold separately from other products, like beer and wine.
The store was closed because South Carolina doesn’t allow liquor sales on Sunday or after 7 p.m.
The Columbia Police Department is investigating the incident. A spokeswoman said preliminary reports estimate the stolen items and damage to the building total about $3,300.
Kangas, who has been with the store for 15 years, said “just when I think I’ve seen everything, I get surprised.”
This story was originally published June 3, 2020 at 4:39 PM.