Violent armed robbery in St. Stephen caught on camera

ST. STEPHEN, S.C.—Some scary moments recently for a couple working inside a St. Stephen convenience store when they got the scare of probably a life time.

According to St. Stephen Police, three men dressed entirely in black and wearing masks entered Palmetto Food on Byrnes Drive in late September. Inside the store, officers say the suspects assaulted a store worker and fired a gunshot into the ceiling.

The whole thing was caught on tape by the store’s security cameras. In the video, you can see a store worker counting money when two of the masked suspects dashed into the store pointing a gun at the helpless employee.

A third suspect enters the picture, pushing another victim into view of the camera. According to that victim, he was in a cooler at the time when he heard his wife screaming. That’s when of the suspects walked into the cooler to grab him and put him up behind the counter as well.

Later on in the video, as one of the suspects counts and gathers the money from the cash register, the victims calmly remain stationary with their hands up in the air.

A second suspect comes back around to the counter and points his gun at the two victims. The second suspect follows suit.

The male victim reportedly told police that one of the armed robbers hit him in the head with a gun and demanded him to open the safe. The victim complied with his demands.

During the armed robbery, one of the suspects eventually tore down the store’s camera system, causing a break in the video. Before the three suspects fled the store, one of them reportedly turned out the lights and fired a single shot into the store.

The suspects made off with an undisclosed amount of case, merchandise valued at approximately $500 and lottery tickets valued at close to $1,000.

At this time, St. Stephen Police has not made any arrests in the case.

If you have any information on this armed robbery, you’re urged to contact Crime Stoppers at (843) 554-1111. Remember, you can remain anonymous.