TheSunNews.com: Crime and Courts

Crimes up during holiday weekend in Myrtle Beach

Mon, 28 May 2012 19:54 EDT

Extra traffic in town for Memorial Day in Myrtle Beach had police working overtime.

Capt. David Knipes, spokesman for Myrtle Beach police, said it’s something the agency plans for every year. Extra officers are brought in to handle the volume of calls that skyrockets with the influx of tourists.

“Obviously it’s a three-day weekend,” Knipes said. “It’s a combination of the long weekend, Military Appreciation Days and [Atlantic Beach] Bikefest all rolled into one.”

Two armed suspects shoot at vehicle during attempted robbery at Myrtle Beach ATM

Mon, 28 May 2012 18:37 EDT

Myrtle Beach police are searching for two men suspected of trying to rob a woman at an ATM and shooting at a car as the driver tried to leave the parking lot, according to a police report.

Officers were called at 10:15 p.m. Sunday to 2501 N. Oak St., for an attempted armed robbery and gunshots fired, police said.

When officers arrived they spoke to a 49-year-old woman, who said she was with two men that drove her to the Automated Teller Machine to get cash, according to the report. The woman said as she walked up to the ATM from the parking lot, a man, who had a bandanna covering his face, stepped out from behind the ATM and yelled for no one to move.

Surfside Beach police recover stolen Super Bowl ring

Sat, 26 May 2012 18:34 EDT

A former NFL player with a home in Surfside Beach is breathing a sigh of relief today. After former Pittsburgh Steeler Richard Conn reported his 1974 Super Bowl ring missing on Monday, Surfside Beach police were able to retrieve it on Saturday.

Surfside Beach Police Chief Mike Frederick said that the four-day investigation eventually involved five other state and local law enforcement agencies before a search warrant was served late Friday night and early Saturday morning in Forestbrook, resulting in the arrest of 40-year-old Gregory Allen Owens of Myrtle Beach. As part of the search, police found Conn’s Super Bowl ring and his 1973 University of Georgia football ring hidden behind a water heater in the garage. The two, valued at $20,000, were sealed in a plastic bag and suspended with fishing line. Owens was charged with second degree burglary and grand larceny of more than $10,000.

According to an arrest warrant, police were led to Owens at least in part by Owens’ wife. A witness told police that the wife offered to sell the Super Bowl ring after finding it. After police arrested Owens and found the rings, Owens’ wife told police that she found them in the trunk of their car on Wednesday. When she asked her husband about them, he took them away and offered no explanation, she said.

Courthouse notebook | Prosecutor says fraudster’s evasive behavior deserves more prison time

Sun, 27 May 2012 22:30 EDT

A federal prosecutor wants former Little River resident Jasper “Jay” Knabb to spend more time in prison than she initially recommended because Knabb continues to be evasive about his finances after pleading guilty last year to master-minding a $40.8 million pump-and-dump stock scheme related to the Pegasus Wireless Corp. technology firm he founded.

The 46-year-old Knabb – who admits to defrauding about 600 people nationwide out of millions of dollars – solicited many of his investors from the Myrtle Beach area. He is scheduled to be sentenced on three felony charges on June 7 in San Francisco.

Melinda Haag, the U.S. attorney prosecuting the case, initially recommended a 6 1/2-year sentence for Knabb. In court documents filed last week, however, Haag said she wants Knabb to spend an additional nine months in prison – for a total of 7 1/4 years – because of his failure to accept responsibility for his crimes and the “lack of candor” he’s shown during a pre-sentence financial investigation.

Myrtle Beach police investigate mail thefts

Thu, 24 May 2012 08:43 EDT

Someone took mail from mailboxes Wednesday on one Myrtle Beach street and police are searching for the culprit.

Three people at three homes on Camellia Drive told Myrtle Beach officers that someone stole mail they left in their mailboxes for pickup by a post office employee, according to separate police report.

The mail was reported stolen between 7:30 a.m. and 6:20 p.m. Wednesday by residents living in the 4900 and 3900 blocks of Camellia Drive, police said. In each incident, the resident raised the flag on their mailbox and left their mail.

Columbia cops arrest state representative on DUI, weapons possession charges

Thu, 24 May 2012 22:24 EDT

Columbia police officers arrested a state representative Thursday for driving under the influence of alcohol and the unlawful carrying of a pistol after he was stopped for speeding.

S.C. Rep. Ted Vick, D-Chesterfield, was released from the Alvin S. Glenn Detention Center on personal recognizance bonds for the charges and given a ticket for speeding.

Vick, 39, has been in the House since 2005 and was considered the frontrunner as one of several candidates seeking the Democratic nomination for South Carolina’s new 7th congressional seat. That primary is June 12.

Local, state police bring “HEAT” to Myrtle Beach area motorists

Thu, 24 May 2012 22:24 EDT

Local and state police plan to apply HEAT to motorists and motorcyclists along the Grand Strand during the summer.

Officials announced Thursday their “100 Days of Summer HEAT,” which stands for Highway Enforcement of Aggressive Traffic.

“This weekend begins a very deadly time of year in South Carolina and nationally as we look toward what’s referred to as the 100 deadly days of summer,” said Phil Riley, director of the state Office of Highway Safety. “The response to the 100 deadly days of summer will be the 100 days of summer HEAT.”

Horry County Sheriff, U.S. Marshals verify registered sex offenders in two-week operation

Fri, 25 May 2012 13:08 EDT

The number of sex offenders in Horry County has climbed over the last several years, but a two-week long operation shows the Horry County Sheriff’s Office is successful in keeping tabs on the offenders to protect the community.

Horry County participated in Operation Carolina Shield with the U.S. Marshals to verify every sex offender in the county. Authorities were checking to see if the registered offenders were living and working at the addresses supplied to the HCSO.

The operation ended with a couple of arrests, including the standoff in Little River Wednesday where Walter Eugene Johnson barricaded himself inside an attic space at a relative’s home on Sea Mountain Highway.

Myrtle Beach PTO treasurer arrested after funds missing

Fri, 25 May 2012 11:03 EDT

The police report incorrectly identified the co-treasurer. The name has been corrected in this version of the story.

The treasurer of a Myrtle Beach parent-teacher organization was arrested last week on charges she took money from the PTO’s account, according to a report from the Myrtle Beach Police Department.

Julie Allen Herndon, 35, was charged May 15 at the police department with breach of trust with the value greater than $10,000, the report said. She was released on a $10,000 personal recognizance bond.

Standoff ends in arrest in Little River

Thu, 24 May 2012 12:24 EDT

A standoff that lasted nearly three hours Wednesday on Sea Mountain Highway ended with a man wanted on criminal sexual conduct charges surrendering to law enforcement officials.

Walter Eugene Johnson, 38, is accused of molesting a 17-year-old girl in Greenville County, according to Kelvin Washington with the U.S. Marshals.

“The [U.S.] Marshals and the officers from both departments were able to locate him briefly and take control of the first floor of the house,” Horry County Police Sgt. Robert Kegler said. “The second floor of the house was not cleared and there was a possibility that the suspect was in there.”

Myrtle Beach man charged with illegally tattooing in the city

Wed, 23 May 2012 09:18 EDT

A 34-year-old Myrtle Beach man was charged with illegally tattooing in the city limits, according to authorities.

Christopher David Giggey was charged with tattooing when police found him standing outside a motel in the 200 block of South Ocean Boulevard at 5:15 p.m. Tuesday, according to an arrest report. Officers had issued a warrant for Giggey’s arrest after beginning an investigation into illegal tattooing on Friday.

Police began investigating complaints of tattooing after seeing a man walking on Fifth Avenue South with a tattoo power supply in his hand and going into a room at 301 N. Ocean Blvd., according to a police report. Officers learned a friend of the man had tattooed him for free.

Horry County police charge man with threatening, holding couple at knifepoint

Mon, 21 May 2012 13:49 EDT

A Garden City Beach man is being held on $65,000 bond after police said he held a couple at knifepoint and threatened to kill them inside a Murrells Inlet home, according to authorities.

Timothy Shane Doyle, 32, was charged Saturday morning with two counts of second-degree assault and battery, two counts of kidnapping and two counts of possession of a weapon during the commission of a violent crime, according to records at J. Reuben Long Detention Center.

The charges stemmed from Horry County police being called at 6:30 a.m. Saturday to 9745 Kings Grant Drive for an assault, according to a police report. A 31-year-old Surfside Beach woman told officers that she and a 42-year-old Murrells Inlet man were partying with Doyle at the home when he “flipped out.”

Myrtle Beach woman sentenced to a year in prison for abuse of 5-year-old

Fri, 18 May 2012 12:20 EDT

A Myrtle Beach woman was ordered to serve a year in prison, pay court costs and be placed on the central registry of child abuse and neglect after she admitted she was involved in the abuse of her 5-year-old daughter, according to court documents.

Jackie Ann Dickerson, 26, of Myrtle Beach, pleaded guilty to unlawful neglect of a child Tuesday and Circuit Court Judge Benjamin Culbertson sentenced her to a year in prison, according to court records. Dickerson received credit for the time she had previously served.

Similar charges are pending against Dickerson’s boyfriend, James Cameron Carlyle, according to court records.

Another arrest in Hells Angels roundup in Myrtle Beach area, four people wanted

Fri, 18 May 2012 16:59 EDT

Four people are still wanted by Horry County police in connection with an 18-month investigation called Operation Red Harvest, which centered on marijuana cultivation and distribution involving local chapters of the Hells Angels, following the arrest of an Illinois man on Thursday, Sgt. Robert Kegler said.

Joshua Joseph Johnson, 42, of Rockford, Ill., was booked into J. Reuben Long Detention Center at 5:30 p.m. Thursday on charges of third-degree assault and battery, criminal conspiracy, first-offense criminal conspiracy to distribute marijuana and first-offense manufacturing marijuana, according to jail records.

Johnson is being held without bail pending a bond hearing.

Most vehicles removed from Lavin Cars lot in Myrtle Beach

Wed, 16 May 2012 12:48 EDT

Most of the vehicles have been removed from the Lavin Cars automobile dealership – which has been closed and guarded by private security for more than a week – and at least one investor told The Sun News on Tuesday that he’s worried he will lose his the money he put into the family-run business.

Don Harrell, a North Carolina resident who invested $150,000 into Car Group Inc. – a company the late Harry Lavin formed to help finance vehicle purchases for his dealership – said he cannot get anyone at the dealership to answer questions about the closure. Harrell said he drove to Myrtle Beach on Monday to check on the business and a security guard told him to leave the property.

“The fact that I’m hearing nothing from them is discouraging,” Harrell said. “They’re not being impolite about it, they’re just not talking.”

Former Myrtle Beach police officer pleads guilty in biker death, sentenced to 8 years in prison

Mon, 14 May 2012 17:50 EDT

A former Myrtle Beach police officer was sentenced Monday to eight years in prison after he pleaded guilty to charges connected to the death of a motorcycle rider killed during the 2011 annual Harley Davidson rally, according to officials.

Larry Dennis Hardee, 63, of North Myrtle Beach, pleaded guilty to felony driving under the influence with death and Circuit Court Judge Edward Cottingham sentenced him to eight years in prison, said Jimmy Richardson, 15th Circuit Deputy Solicitor. Because of the charge, Hardee is not eligible for parole and he must serve at least 85 percent of the sentence.

The charge carries a sentence of a mandatory minimum of a year in prison to a maximum of 25 years, Richardson said.

Virginia man charged with felony DUI following Myrtle Beach motorcycle crash

Mon, 14 May 2012 17:50 EDT

A Virginia man was charged with felony driving under the influence after he crashed his motorcycle early Sunday in Myrtle Beach and his passenger was seriously injured, according to authorities.

Kenneth Tarpey, 45, of Gloucester, Va., was charged with felony DUI with great bodily injury after Myrtle Beach officers were called at 1:13 a.m. Sunday to Mr. Joe White Avenue and Carver Street, police said.

Tarpey is being held at J. Reuben Long Detention Center on $30,000 bond, according to jail records.

Carolina Forest fire contained; man cited

Mon, 14 May 2012 15:33 EDT

The Legends II fire has been fully contained and held to 178 acres after it threatened to get out of control this weekend.

South Carolina Forestry Commission crews wrapped up their cleanup efforts Sunday afternoon, though some crew members from the state agency and Horry County Fire Rescue will continue to monitor the fire breaks over the next few days, said Forestry Commission spokesman Scott Hawkins.

He said the blaze, which started just after 2 p.m. Saturday in a wooded area near the Legends golf course in the Carolina Forest area, was dubbed the Legends II Fire because there was a much larger fire in the same area about 10 years ago called the Legends Fire. That blaze engulfed more than 1,000 acres.

Courthouse notebook | Bank says paper trail links Myrtle Beach businessman to alleged fraud

Sat, 12 May 2012 22:28 EDT

A bank that lost more than $500,000 in a real estate transaction tied to an alleged mortgage fraud scheme here is giving the public a rare glimpse at the complicated paper trail backing up its allegations in a civil lawsuit against – among other defendants – Alvin Shuman, a Myrtle Beach-based real estate investor and casino boat owner.

RBC Bank says in court documents that Shuman worked with former mortgage broker Darin Epps – now serving a 33-month prison sentence for mortgage fraud – to find a straw buyer to purchase condominium unit B-205 at the Myrtle Beach Villas II project at 704 S. Ocean Blvd.

The condo was sold at an inflated price, the court documents state, with Shuman paying a six-figure kickback from the excess proceeds to Epps, who then distributed kickbacks to other participants.

Murrells Inlet biker bar gets restraining order filed on Horry County

Sat, 12 May 2012 13:17 EDT

A Murrells Inlet biker bar won a victory against Horry County on Friday after a judge granted the owners a temporary restraining order that allows for motorcycle burnouts during the Myrtle Beach spring bike rally.

Bill Barber, manager of SBB, said the injunction was filed on Wednesday in response to the county’s special events permit which didn’t allow for the burnouts.

“We’re famous for burnouts,” Barber said. “It’s frustrating, very frustrating, to deal with people that don’t understand that this is just like any other festival.”

Elvis impersonator charged with assault over board game, leaves with Blues Brothers

Fri, 11 May 2012 06:11 EDT

It’s not clear if he sang a rendition of “Jailhouse Rock,” but an Elvis impersonator on the Grand Strand spent nearly 12 hours in jail Wednesday after a fracas over a board game.

David Allen Credille, 32, of The Colony, Texas was charged with third-degree assault and battery and booked into J. Reuben Long Detention Center at 8:45 a.m. Wednesday, according to jail records. He was released at 8:11 p.m. Wednesday on $1,000 bail.

Horry County police were called about 9 p.m. Sunday to 520 Pennington Loop for an assault at a backyard birthday party. When officers arrived they learned a 27-year-old man had been punched in the face and suffered a bloody nose, according to the report. The victim told officers they were playing Taboo when he and Credille got into an argument about the rules of the game.

Virginia man refused to pay bar tab, charged with assault of Myrtle Beach officer

Wed, 09 May 2012 18:11 EDT

A Virginia man was charged with assault after he resisted a police officer who was called to an Ocean Boulevard bar because the man refused to pay his bill, according to a police report.

Johnathan Roland Gaylord, 28, of Potomac Falls, Va., was charged with assault and battery on a police officer after officers were called at 1:15 a.m. Tuesday to 2600 N. Ocean Blvd., for a person being disorderly, police said.

When the officer arrived he noted Gaylord was yelling at the bartender and when asked what was going on, Gaylord told the officer that his bill was not correct and he refused to pay it, according to the report. The officer told Gaylord he had to pay the bill or he would be arrested.

Conway police investigate shooting, school lockdown lifted

Wed, 09 May 2012 17:33 EDT

Conway police investigated a shooting Wednesday morning near an Horry County school, which prompted a lockdown while a police bloodhound team searched for two men suspected of shooting another man twice, said Catina Hipp, spokeswoman for Conway Police Department.

Officers were called at 9:17 a.m. Wednesday to an area along Maple and Dillon streets, which is behind Whittemore Park Middle School, for gunshots being fired, Hipp said.

Officers found a man shot in the face and leg and he was taken to Grand Strand Regional Medical Center for treatment. It was unclear how serious his injuries were, but he underwent surgery about two hours after the incident, Hipp said.

Three more arrested in Hells Angels operation, Horry County police search for five others

Thu, 10 May 2012 12:26 EDT

The list of people Horry County police are looking for related to an 18-month investigation involving members of local chapters of the Hells Angels motorcycle organization is down to five after three arrests this week.

The three arrested in what police call Operation Red Harvest, which centered on marijuana cultivation and distribution by Hells Angels, were Joshua Thomas Burnette, 24, of Murrells Inlet; Glenn Mathew O’Brien, 30, of Myrtle Beach and Joseph Gigi Sagone, 50, of Melbourne, Fla.. Each was booked into J. Reuben Long Detention Center Tuesday on charges related to the operation, Horry County police Sgt. Robert Kegler said.

Police have arrested 31 people, including 15 in one day last week, as part of the operation that focused on the motorcycle group and people affiliated with it, Kegler said.

Judge agrees to put Divine Dining Group’s restaurants into receivership

Wed, 09 May 2012 13:44 EDT

A receiver will be appointed to supervise the financial operations of Divine Dining Group’s nearly two dozen restaurants along the Grand Strand because owner Jack Divine IV has failed to comply with a settlement agreement and repay an $8.6 million debt to Myrtle Beach dentist Wade Nichols, circuit court Judge Steven John ruled on Tuesday.

John gave lawyers for both sides 10 days to craft a consent order that would allow a third-party receiver to supervise the finances at every restaurant in which Divine has any ownership interest, including popular eateries such as Nacho Hippo and Divine Fish House. If both sides can’t agree on an order by noon on May 18, John said he will appoint a receiver.

Gene Connell, a Surfside Beach lawyer who represents Nichols, told John that he does not want to disrupt the operation of Divine’s restaurants but doesn’t think his client will get paid without a receiver in place to keep track of the money.

Thompson sentenced in Pineapple Bay mortgage fraud case

Thu, 10 May 2012 06:11 EDT

Gaither B. Thompson II – one of five people charged in a mortgage fraud scheme involving the Pineapple Bay condominium project here – will be on home confinement for the next seven months after pleading guilty in federal court to a misdemeanor charge of unlawfully receiving compensation in a real estate transaction involving the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Thompson also will be on five years of probation and must repay $50,000 to GMAC Mortgage as part of a sentence handed down last week. He could get early termination of his probation if the restitution is paid within two years.

Thompson had been charged with conspiracy to commit mail or wire fraud, which is a felony. Prosecutors dropped that charge because they could not prove it, according to court documents filed last week. Thompson then agreed to plead guilty to the misdemeanor charge.

DUI stop leads to unpaid Myrtle Beach bar tab arrest

Mon, 07 May 2012 18:00 EDT

Not only did a driver end up with a DUI charge, he and his passenger also now face charges that they didn’t for their drinks, according to a police report.

Kimberly Ann Leoffler, 43, and Harry Edward Slaton, 62, were each charged with defrauding a restaurant after officers stopped them about 2 a.m. Monday on Kings Highway near 38th Avenue North, police said.

Leoffler also was charged with first-offense driving under the influence and an unrelated charge of defrauding a restaurant that stemmed from an incident at 425 Arcadian Drive and Kings Road, according to an arrest record. Details about that incident were not listed in the police report.

Myrtle Beach police charge four, including one woman twice, with prostitution

Mon, 07 May 2012 22:56 EDT

Myrtle Beach police conducted an investigation into prostitution during the weekend and arrested four women, including one woman twice, according to police records.

Officers arrested the women in the area of Yaupon Drive and 15th and 16th Avenues South, according to arrest reports. Incident reports regarding the arrests were not immediately available early Monday.

Police arrested Shonya Michelle Young, 41, of Myrtle Beach, twice during the investigation, according to records.

Conway mo-ped driver charged following police chase

Tue, 08 May 2012 10:28 EDT

A burglary suspect led officers on a police chase, but not exactly the kind that would rivet an action-flick moviegoer to the seat.

A 79-year-old resident in the 1400 block of Dirty Branch Road in the Conway area called police about 1:30 p.m. Sunday to report two men leaving his backyard, each on a mo-ped, according to the police report.

The resident followed one suspect onto Kates Bay Road and then Dongola Highway while staying on the telephone with 911 dispatch operators.

Courthouse notebook | Five Rivers CDC home in foreclosure; executives still paying off restitution

Sat, 05 May 2012 14:53 EDT

A woman who bought a home in part with $65,500 in taxpayer-funded grants and subsidies from the now-defunct Five Rivers Community Development Corp. is in danger of losing that home to foreclosure, according to documents filed at the Georgetown County courthouse.

Aliska Brown, who bought one of eight homes that Five Rivers developed in the Poplar Place community here, is being sued by the S.C. State Housing Development and Finance Authority for failing to pay a low-interest loan she received in 2002 to purchase the home. The authority says Brown has not made a payment on the home “for some time” and now owes $43,373.45 on the past-due loan. The authority has asked a judge for permission to foreclose on the property.

Brown told The Sun News last week that her home is not in foreclosure and she does not know why a lawsuit has been filed. She declined to comment further on the matter.