Two arrested on charges of theft

Two arrests have been made by the Lincoln County Sheriff's Office in connection with a rash of burglaries that occurred recently in the Hidden Harbor subdivision at the end of Salem Church Road.

While executing a search warrant at a residence on Quail Court in Hidden Harbor, sheriff's deputies recovered items that had been stolen from several other homes in the area. Two occupants of the house, brothers John David Rogers, 35, and William Russell Rogers, 39, were arrested at the time.

John Rogers was charged with two counts of burglary and one count of theft by conversion. He is currently being held in the Lincoln County Law Enforcement Center on a $75,000 bond. As for William Rogers, he was charged with one count of theft by receiving and is presently out on a $2,500 property bond.

Among the other items that were stolen were three long guns that have been recovered.

The case is still under investigation.

In a separate matter, deputies were called to the vicinity of Elijah Clark State Park in reference to stolen items that were found near an illegal dumping site.

According to the official report, a ranger with the United States Army Corps of Engineers was inspecting the ramp area across from the park entrance and noticed what appeared to be an illegal dumping site. During a brief search of the area, the ranger discovered items that he believed to be stolen and notified sheriff's deputies, who responded to the scene.

Following a thorough search of the site by corps rangers, deputies, and county employees, the items were transported to the sheriff's office to be logged into the evidence room.

Later, when a complainant arrived at the law enforcement center to update the list of stolen articles on his incident report, he identified several of the items that had been recovered near the park as belonging to him. The items in question were associated with a burglary that had occurred in the northern end of the county in the vicinity of the Fishing Creek subdivision.

The case is still under investigation. Anyone having information regarding this or any other crime is asked to call the sheriff's office at 706-359- 7320 or dial 911.

Concerning other items of information, a spokesman for the sheriff's office noted that the sheriff has received reports of individuals visiting several residences on the McCormick Highway, posing as contractors for Rayle Electric.

"One of the males kept one homeowner talking while another went inside the residence and stole approximately $200 and a lock box that contained personal papers," the spokesman explained. "The lock box was later located on Highway 378, between McCormick and Saluda."

The subject, who distracted the homeowner, was described as a white male, approximately 5'7" to 5'10" tall, with a stocky build, brown hair, and a mole or sore on his left temple.

The sheriff's office is currently working with the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED) to solve this case.

Addressing local residents, the sheriff's office spokesman said, "If someone should come to your residence stating that they work for a utility company, have them show you his company identification and driver's license and make note of his name, height, weight, license number, and date of birth. This will assist in the apprehension of these criminals."

Sheriff Gerald Lawson added, "If anyone knows who these individuals are or has any information about crimes of this nature, he is strongly encouraged to pass this on to law enforcement officials. These people are preying on our elderly citizens and need to be dealt with by the courts."

In further news, it was reported that the investigator with the sheriff's office as well as an inmate assisted the Carroll County Sheriff's Office in locating a 16-year-old runaway.

During the month of September, sheriff's deputies took 44 incident reports, seven for burglary and two for theft; worked a total of 12 traffic accidents; and made a total of 40 arrests.