Police blotter
Armed robbery suspects caught
Two Columbia County sheriff's deputies were taken to the hospital early Thursday after a car chase and crash that involved two men suspected in a Harlem armed robbery.
One suspect, Timothy Wayne Osborne, 38, of Langley, was arrested at the scene of the crash. The other suspect, Tifiloe Maurice Council, 32, of Aiken, fled the crash on foot and was arrested at about 7 a.m. after in a area near the wreck at Wrightsboro and Old Wheeler roads, sheriff's Capt. Steve Morris said.
Police say two men had entered the Pumpkin Center Store at 1313 Appling-Harlem Highway at about 2 a.m., held a knife to a clerk's throat and forced her to open the cash register.
The robbers took cash from the register and drove away east on Wrightsboro Road, police said. Deputies pursued the vehicle until the suspects crashed into another vehicle at Old Wheeler Road, lost control of the vehicle and crashed into a power pole, Morris said. Two deputies also were injured when their patrol car crashed, and along with Osborne were transported to Medical College of Georgia Hospital. All three were treated for minor injuries and released, Morris said.
Osborne had been released from prison in May on a 1995 aggravated assault conviction. Morris said deputies surrounded the area for several hours before Council was spotted at about 7 a.m. by a reporter for a radio station, who alerted police.
Morris said Council and Osborne are being held in the Columbia County Detention Center on armed robbery and various traffic charges associated with the chase.
The following accounts were taken from reports filed with the Columbia County Sheriff's Office:
Woman arrested on battery charge
A Martinez woman was arrested after she hit her neighbor in the abdomen with a baseball bat.
Christa Lynette Hiers, 29, of the 200 block of Shawnee Court, was arrested Tuesday on a charge of battery after she began arguing with her neighbor concerning her neighbor's dog, a Columbia County sheriff's report states.
The report alleges Hiers struck her neighbor with a baseball bat, leaving a welt on the left side of the woman's abdomen. Hiers told police she hit her neighbor because she had acted as though she were going to hit her with her fist, the report states.
A warrant was issued and Hiers was taken to the Columbia County Detention Center, where she was released Tuesday on a $1,100 bond.
High school principal reports rape threat
The principal of Westside High School in Augusta told police Monday that someone called his house and threatened to rape his daughter.
The principal, who lives in Martinez, said someone called from a blocked number and threatened to rape his daughter because, the caller said, the principal had "messed with his grades."
The incident occurred at about 9:18 a.m.
Evans restaurant burglarized
An Evans restaurant was broken into Tuesday after someone smashed the business's front door, breaking its glass.
The incident occurred at the Sonic Drive-In, in the 100 block of North Belair Road, between 1 a.m. and 4:58 a.m., according to a police report.
Authorities stated they searched the restaurant to see if there was more damage but found none.
Special Photos
Dallas (from left), Jackie and Bill Pitts recently vacationed in Switzerland, where they had their picture taken in front of the Matterhorn in Zermatt.
Heading out of town for vacation, or just visiting the lake or a local park? Send us a family photo, and we'll publish it in The News-Times. Bring or mail a photo to our office at 4272 Washington Road, Suite 3B, Evans, Ga., 30809, or e-mail photos to cnt@newstimesonline.com. Be sure to write a few words to tell readers about your trip.[CAPTION]