BERKELEY COUNTY, S.C.–According to the Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office, deputies rescued two suspects from a burning vehicle after stealing an ATM and leading officers on a chase early Monday morning.
A little after 3:00 a.m., a St. Stephen’s police unit responded to an alarm following a glass breakage at the Citgo in St. Stephen. Once on scene, a suspicious Ford Explorer left. A description of the vehicle was relayed to the Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office. They were also informed that an an ATM machine had been taken from the business.
At 3:10 a.m., officials stated that a Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office deputy noticed a vehicle matching the description of the light in color Ford Explorer in the Santee Circle area near Highway 402. Deputies stated that the Ford Explorer refused to stop and began to try to evade capture. The deputies in pursuit attempted to get the vehicle to stop as it traveled down the back roads of rural Berkeley County. The occupants of the vehicle were throwing credit cards and a firearm out of the vehicle as it was refusing to stop.
Deputies say they successfully deployed tire-deflation devices on the Ford Explorer as it was passing through Huger. This caused the Ford Explorer to slow considerably but the vehicle continued to refuse to stop.
The Ford Explorer with deflated tires ultimately crashed at 3:35 AM at Highway 41 and Highway 17 in Mt. Pleasant. The vehicle struck another vehicle that was occupied by two females. The suspect vehicle flipped and caught fire. A Berkeley County Sheriff’s Office sergeant was on scene and was able to extinguish the fire with the assistance of both Charleston County deputies and Mount Pleasant Police officers. The driver, Joseph Edward Cobb, was trapped by the ATM machine that had landed on him after the Ford Explorer rolled over. The sergeant pulled Cobb to safety once the fire was out.
The passenger, Ernest Clifton Davis, was removed from the vehicle and arrested. Both Cobb and David have extensive criminal histories and both are prevented from possessing a firearm.
There was a stolen ATM machine in the rear of the vehicle occupied by the two suspects that is believed to be the one from stolen from the Citgo in St. Stephens. Detectives are working on that as well as looking for video footage.
Cobb, a B/M, is 50 years of age and lives on Railroad Avenue in St. George.
Davis, a B/M, is 48 and from Arctic Court in Orangeburg.
The two suspects were transported to the MUSC for treatment. Charges are pending on both suspects.
The two females in the vehicle that was struck were transported to an area hospital for observation. The SCHP worked the crash as it involved a police pursuit.
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