Blue Light Special | Granny’s Lane, taxis and beauty salons

Granny’s Lane going gangster

Horry County police arrested two men on drug charges Thursday morning and are still searching for a third suspect.

Yen B. Simmons, 39, of Myrtle Beach, is charged with possession with intent to distribute cocaine, possession with intent to distribute heroin, possession with intent to distribute marijuana and possession of stolen property.

In other words, this guy knows how to party.

Kendrick W. Green, 30, of Myrtle Beach, was also charged with the same charges, in a game the two called "Simmons says."

Police are searching for a third suspect: Raahkeem Young, 25, of Myrtle Beach, for possession with intent to distribute cocaine, possession with intent to distribute heroin, possession with intent to distribute marijuana and possession of stolen property, according to Lt. Raul Denis with Horry County police.

Young is considered armed and dangerous and should not be approached, Denis said.

Shortly after midnight Thursday, police responded to a report of people selling narcotics on Granny’s Lane in Racepath, Denis said, which seems like the least most likely Lane for that type of activity to take place. I would never suspect "Granny's Lane" to be a haven for narcotics. Maybe apple pies LACED with narcotics, but that's a story for another time.

When the suspects – who were standing near two vehicles – saw police, they ran away on foot, even though they were ... standing .. next to two ... vehicles ... and officers were able to apprehend Simmons and Green near the area, the police report said. Police are still searching for Young, who also fled.

While investigating the suspects and vehicles officers found two stolen handguns, distribution quantities of crack cocaine and heroin and marijuana packaged for distribution, the report said. One of the vehicles near the suspects was also reported stolen, Denis said, which at this point is to be expected.

Simmons is being held at J. Reuben Detention Center on a $25,800 bond, according to jail records. Green is also being held at the jail and awaiting bond, according to jail records.

Anyone who has information about Young’s whereabouts is asked to call Horry County police at 843-915-8477.

Man who took taxi to robbery a noi-show at court

A Conway man was found guilty Tuesday of robbing the Scotchman convenience store on the corner of U.S. 501 and 4 Mile Road in Conway on Jan. 2, even though he did not show up for trial after cutting off his ankle monitoring device. That, in my opinion, is a HUGE red flag for guilt.

Police were called at 1:41 a.m. to the Scotchman at 3410 W. U.S. 501 in reference to a panic alarm.

When police arrived, a female store clerk told them she had been robbed at gunpoint.

The victim told authorities she came from a back storeroom and saw two suspects coming around the corner. One of the suspects pointed a gun at her and told her to open the register, according to a police report.

The victim said the suspects grabbed the money from the register and left the store.

During the search, authorities said they saw a taxi with occupants who matched the descriptions of the suspects. That means these guys took a taxi to a robbery, which is just honestly the most ballsy I can even think of.

"Wait right here."

"Ok, meter's running."

"We won't be long"

*puts ski mask on*

When officers stopped the taxi, they found the handgun used and the items in the robbery, according to a report, which really isn't all that out-of-the-ordinary cargo for a taxi in Myrtle Beach, along with Glover, when authorities stopped the taxi.

One other man was arrested with the group, but his charges were disposed on Wednesday, and he was not indicted, according to Horry County court records.

He was auditing.

Ellerbe and Coles went before Judge Cothran on Monday and both pleaded guilty, officials said. Ellerbe pleaded guilty to armed robbery and was sentenced to 15 years, and Coles also pleaded guilty to armed robbery and received a 10-year sentence, which puts an end to their robbing shenanigans.

Glover’s trial was held in an Horry County general sessions court before Judge R. Ferrell Cothran. Assistant solicitor Lauree Richardson was the prosecutor in this case.

“Under South Carolina law, armed robbery is considered a violent, most-serious offense. Therefore, the above-listed defendants will be required to serve 85 percent of their sentences at the South Carolina Department of Corrections before they are eligible for parole,” Richardson said in a press release.

Authorities said Glover’s sentence will remain sealed until he is found and arrested.

Security guard snuffs fire

Myrtle Beach police are investigating a fire at an Ocean Boulevard resort that blazed last week, but was quickly extinguished before it spread thanks to a fast-acting hotel security guard and manager.

Did you totally just picture Kevin James in Paul Blart: Mall Cop? I absolutely just pictured Kevin James in Paul Blart: Mall Cop.

Officers were called about 11:15 p.m. Oct. 14 to the Paradise Resort at 2201 S. Ocean Blvd. after a patrolling hotel security guard noticed the fire and alerted his manager, who put out the blaze then called the fire department, police said.

Billy Joel has been ruled out as a suspect.

While making his rounds, the 41-year-old security guard said he noticed the fire on the north side of the building when he was on the 10th floor of the hotel and swung into action, authorities said.

He said he told his manager, who immediately grabbed two fire extinguishers and put it out.

“It was obvious it was a set fire,” Bruce Arnel, battalion chief and fire marshal with Myrtle Beach Fire Department said of the incident.

Arnel said a lone plastic chair sitting outside the building was “maliciously” set on fire. The chair was stored near large stacks of other plastic chairs, and the situation could have become much more serious if the fire had spread.

Talk about "being on the hot seat." That was stupid.

Arnel said the chair was completely consumed by the fire, but that the building suffered only some superficial damage.

MBFR officials will be keeping a file on the incident and be looking out for similar incidents in case a trend emerges.

“We just want to remind business owners to be very careful about what they store outside their building, like combustibles and flammable things, which can lead to fires, and also if you see Garth Brooks lingering around, that might be a red flag," Arnel said.

Robbery not a thing of beauty

Horry County police are searching for two suspects who are accused of robbing two elderly women.

#WWBD (What Would Blanche Do)

Officers responded to a home invasion at around 9:15 a.m. Wednesday at a home on Highway 19 in Conway, according to Lt. Raul Denis, with Horry County police. The female victims, 72 and 90, told police a man and a woman came into their beauty salon with shotguns and forced them into their residence, Denis said.

Is "beauty salon" necessarily the go-to for cash withdrawals?

The suspects tied up both victims and locked them in the bathroom while the home was searched for anything of value, Denis said.

Aside from antiques, pictures of grandkids and an extensive teapot collection, the suspects came up empty. Oh and jewelry, money in $2 bills, the victim’s 2004 white Chevrolet C19C 1500 extended cab pick-up truck, and NUMEROUS FIREARMS.

I would have been the first one to call a hidden drawer of $2 bills, but numerous firearms? NUMEROUS, as in great in number, or many firearms. These ladies were packing.

The truck’s S.C. license plate reads CGC-822 and the truck has a small faded "tiger paw" sticker on the tailgate and silver bed rails. The truck may have magnetic stickers on the sides advertising for Chestnut Pools. But probably not since it's stolen.

The victims described the suspects as:

A white male, about 30, 6' tall, 130-150 lbs., short "buzz cut" black hair, wearing black shoes, jeans, gray zip up hoodie jacket, black gloves and shades. He is believed to have a mustache.

The other suspect was a white female, about 30, 5’ tall, 100 lbs., wearing black shoes, jeans, gray zip up hoodie jacket, black gloves, black toboggan and shades with long hair.

The female suspect told the victims she has four children, two in school and two not in school. She also stated that she had lung cancer and was being treated at MUSC, Denis said. So naturally, she needs all the salon money she can find.

This story was originally published October 19, 2015 at 7:06 PM with the headline "Blue Light Special | Granny’s Lane, taxis and beauty salons."