LADY’S ISLAND, SC (August 2, 2011/10:00 AM) – Two Lady’s Island men are in custody in connection with the July 25th armed robbery of the Sea Island Pkwy Circle K convenience store.
Nineteen-year old Harrison Coaxum was arrested Friday afternoon at Laurel Village Mobile Home Park on charges of Armed Robbery and Fleeing to Evade Arrest. His co-defendant, 23-year old Ricardo Turner was arrested early this morning at Taylor’s Mobile Home Park on charges of Armed Robbery, Fleeing to Evade, and Violation of Probation.
Just after midnight on July 25th, Sheriff’s deputies responded to the Circle K (114 Sea Island Pkwy) in reference to an armed robbery. Upon arrival, deputies made contact with a store employee who advised that the store had just been robbed by a black male armed with rifle.
According to the clerk, she had been in the back of the store emptying the trash and when she returned to the front, a black male wearing a white t-shirt, black pants and a black scarf over his face was standing near the register. The suspect, later identified as Harrison Coaxum, was armed with a rifle and demanded the money from the register. The clerk complied, handing over an undisclosed amount of cash. Coaxum then fled, leaving the clerk unharmed.
A witness who had been walking to the store at the time of the robbery advised that he had seen a second suspicious black male, later identified as Ricardo Turner, also armed with a rifle waiting near a red Chrysler Sebring convertible. Following the robbery, the witness observed both suspects run to the convertible and flee the area turning onto Sam’s Point Rd.
A deputy responding to the call observed the Chrysler traveling on Sam’s Point Rd towards Brickyard Point Rd and attempted to conduct a traffic stop. The driver (Turner) refused to stop, leading deputies on a brief chase that ended when the vehicle ran off the road, wrecking in grassy area. Both suspects fled on foot, jumping a fence and disappearing into a wooded area, where they evaded capture.
Both men currently remain in custody at the Beaufort County Detention Center. Investigators are continuing to work to determine if either suspect may be connected to other recent area armed robberies. Anyone with information is encouraged to contact the Beaufort County Dispatch Center at 843-524-2777.
