Former USC student charged with assaulting woman in off-campus apartment, police say
A former University of South Carolina student is behind bars after he was charged with assaulting a woman at an off-campus apartment, the USC Police Department said Wednesday.
George Allen Sophocleous, 22, was charged with first-degree assault and battery, and kidnapping, USC police said in a crime bulletin.
The attack happened on Oct. 16, between 11 p.m. and midnight, at Park Place Columbia student housing, according to the bulletin. That’s on the corner of Huger and Blossom streets, blocks away from Founders Park — the USC baseball team’s stadium.
Sophocleous entered the woman’s bedroom and took off a piece of clothing and physically assaulted her while holding her against her will, USC police said.
There was no word from USC police if Sophocleous previously knew the woman.
Sophocleous was enrolled as a student at USC from 2016 to 2018, university spokesman Jeff Stensland told The State Wednesday.
He is not a resident of Park Place Columbia, and lives less than three miles away on Preston Street, near the Five Points and Devine Street areas, Richland County court records show.
Sophocleous was booked at the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center Tuesday, jail records show. No bond was set on his charges, but court records show Sophocleous was scheduled to appear in court on Wednesday.
If convicted on the felony assault and battery charge, Sophocleous would face a maximum punishment of 10 years in prison, while a conviction on the felony kidnapping charge could mean a maximum of 30 years in prison, according to South Carolina law.
Sophocleous has traffic charges — operating vehicle on a highway without registration and license due to delinquency and disregarding a stop sign — pending against him from an Oct. 8 arrest, court records show. Since 2018, Sophocleous has been charged with seven other traffic crimes, according to court records.
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This story was originally published October 21, 2020 at 3:34 PM.
