South Congaree, SC (Paul Kirby) – Investigator Washington of the South Congaree Police Department said Friday that as of January 17th, 2020, three of the Smash and Dash liquor store burglars who robbed multiple shops across the Midlands had been taken into custody. Several were caught in Richland County after a car chase and one was recently arrested in Berkley County where he is jailed.
Washington said that by the time their crime spree was over, they had hit multiple package stores in communities like South Congaree, Lexington County, Richland County, West Columbia, Forest Acres, and Cayce. The two that were arrested after the Richland County chase were booked into the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center. They had refused to talk to the police. Washington was able to interview the suspects at his department and eventually he obtained enough information to identify all the suspects. Warrants are being issued for all that helped perpetrate the crimes.
Many of the burglaries happened in the early morning hours of Friday, November 29, 2019. The men went from store to store in various jurisdictions using a blunt object to smash their way into liquor stores. Then, they’d dash in, grab some merchandise, and dash out before speeding away. They and their getaway vehicles were caught on numerous surveillance cameras. Those images were featured on most Midland’s news sources.
Many officers interviewed the suspects, but Investigator Washington was finally able to get useful information from the suspects. He used a simple but effective technique to make headway during his interview. “Sometimes you can use a simple reward or the correct words after a suspect has been in jail for a while,” Washington said. “At some point, suspects have been just sitting and have thought about it enough to realize it’s time for them to come clean.”
Washington said that warrants are being prepared for the three in custody and others that may have been involved will eventually be located.
