Fourth suspect in Aiken armed robbery arrested

State law enforcement agents arrested the fourth suspect in a weekend Aiken armed robbery that resulted in one of the suspects taking his own life. Police have also connected the suspects to other robberies statewide.

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Toryast Jermaine Johnson

Toryast Jermaine Johnson, 28, of Columbia, was charged with robbery while armed with a deadly weapon, possession of a weapon during the commission of a violent crime, 18 counts of kidnapping and one count of carjacking, Aiken Department of Public Safety Lt. David Turno said in a news release. He was arrested today in Columbia.

Police believe Mr. Johnson and three other men robbed the Burger King on York Street around 12:45 p.m. Saturday, Lt. Turno said. Mr. Johnson is accused of leaving the scene of the crime, carjacking victims nearby and escaping their vehicle near Hampton Avenue.

Law enforcement agencies are investigating the connection between the suspects and several armed robberies throughout the state, Lt. Turno said. KFC restaurants in Sumter and Winnsboro were robbed in late October, and the robberies share similarities to the Burger King robbery.

"The number of individuals, the fact that the employers were placed in the freezer, the weapons and the daytime robbery makes the incidents very closely related," Lt. Turno said.

SLED, Orangeburg Public Safety Richland County Sheriff’s Office and Winnsboro, Sumter, Denmark and Bamberg police departments assisted in the capture of Mr. Johnson.

Another suspect, Richard Lee Simmons, 24, of Columbia, was found with a self-inflicted gunshot wound in a wooded area shortly after the incident Saturday.

Two other suspects, Sean Mark Rodriguez, 25, and Robert Mills Jr., 27, both of Columbia, remain in the Aiken County Detention Center in connection to the robbery.