Across South Carolina

Women face charges in food-stamp theft

HOLLY HILL - Four women have been charged with taking credits from someone else's food stamp account.

All four were employees of the IGA grocery store. Prosecutors say the four used a customer's food-stamp account number to buy groceries.

Police said Jessica Denequia Fuller, 22; Octavia Council, 19; and Sheketa Gardner, 21, were charged with conspiracy, breach of trust and financial transaction card fraud.

Darnette Brown, 17, was charged with conspiracy and financial transaction card fraud.

The victim reported a problem when her electronic food-stamp card was rejected as being overdrawn when she attempted to buy groceries.

Videotapes and register receipts showed that someone purchased groceries on her account 40 minutes after she made a purchase at the store earlier in the month.

Convicted sex offender gets 16-year sentence

SPARTANBURG - A convicted sex offender has been sentenced to 16 years in prison after he admitted possessing child pornography on his home computer.

Thomas W. Turner, 38, was sentenced Tuesday after pleading guilty to four counts of third-degree sexual exploitation of a minor.

The charge came after Internet service provider AOL alerted the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children about an account holder attempting to send pornography through the Internet.

Deaf, mute man pleads guilty to killing woman

SUMTER - A 29-year-old man who cannot hear or speak has been sentenced to 30 years in prison after admitting he killed a 40-year-old woman he had propositioned for sex.

Rico Abrams pleaded guilty to murder through a sign language interpreter as part of a plea deal Tuesday.

Bonita Davis Hopkins was found dead on a street in July 2002.

She had been shot several times, authorities said.

Glass-eater beats officer during arrest

FLORENCE - A Florence police officer ended up in intensive care with head injuries after he was beaten by a man who was eating broken glass, authorities say.

The glass-eater knocked Officer Tony Flowers to the ground with a punch to the chest Monday, officials said.

The officer was knocked unconscious when his head hit the pavement, officials said.

After the attacker beat Officer Flowers, a second officer tried to restrain him. The two struggled until a bystander told the man to stop attacking the officers.

The man then rolled into the street and remained there until he was arrested, officials said.