Police blotter
The following accounts were taken from reports filed with the Columbia County Sheriff's Office:
Teens have bond set
Family, friends and classmates crowded a Columbia County courtroom Tuesday morning as a judge granted bond to two teens indicted on sexual assault charges.
Superior Court Judge Duncan Wheale granted bond to Reginald Anthony Rice III and Shadrick Marquie Harris, both 17, who were seniors at Greenbrier High School when they were charged.
Judge Wheale granted each a $5,000 bond with special conditions. They are not allowed to leave home except for school - if they are allowed back at Greenbrier - church activities, work and attorney meetings; they are not to have contact with alleged victims or witnesses; and they are not allowed to speak about the case to anyone except lawyers, investigators and family.
Rice, of the 400 block of Louisville Road in Grovetown, and Harris, of the 3300 block of Ray Owens Road in Appling, were indicted Oct. 19 by a Columbia County grand jury and arrested. The indictment accuses Rice, former captain of Greenbrier High's football team, of rape involving one girl and aggravated child molestation involving another girl. Harris was indicted on three counts of aggravated child molestation with two girls. Both were indicted on three counts of contributing to the delinquency of a minor.
Police say the incident involved two 14-year-old girls and a 15-year-old girl and occurred Sept. 17 and 18 in a "barn-type structure" behind the home of a 16-year-old boy charged as a juvenile in the case. A parent of one of the girls reported the incident Sept. 26.
Counterfeit bill reported at Wal-Mart
A customer at the Evans Super Wal-Mart passed a counterfeit $20 bill to a cashier, a store manager reported Monday afternoon.
The store's accounting manager told police the store received the bill between 3 and 4 p.m.
The manager described a suspect to police as being a white woman, with short brown hair, wearing a blue sweater and sunglasses.
Front loader damaged at Evans work site
A Hephzibah construction worker returned to his Evans work site Monday morning and found that his earth mover had been damaged.
The worker told police the windshield of the white 2005 Bobcat T-300 front loader was smashed sometime after 5 p.m. Oct. 21 at Sandleton Way and Mansfield Lane. The Bobcat is owned by Marks Clearing and Grading, of the 4000 block of Fulcher Road in Hephzibah.
The worker estimated the damage at $250.
Evans woman subjected to identity theft
An Evans woman received a call from Bank of America informing her a woman in Texas had fraudulently opened a small business loan in her name Oct. 21.
The woman, a 46-year-old retiree, reported the incident to police Monday.
The Evans resident told police a bank representative told her a woman used the retiree's name and Social Security number to secure the loan at a branch in Kileen, Texas, according to the report.