BLYTHEWOOD – A violent crime spree that began with a gunpoint carjacking in Blythewood ended in a shooting and an airlift in Orangeburg County on Saturday, Nov. 15.
Steven Townsend, 32, is currently in custody at a Midlands hospital following the multi-county incident that involved three stolen vehicles and a stolen firearm, according to a release from the Richland County Sheriff’s Department.
The Sheriff’s report said the spree began just after 7 a.m. Saturday morning. Deputies responded to the 200 block of Blythewood Road, where a victim reported that Townsend had stolen their Lexus at gunpoint before fleeing at a high rate of speed.
Deputies located the Lexus abandoned and disabled near the 1600 block of Beltline Blvd. Inside the vehicle, investigators recovered the firearm used in the carjacking, which was reported stolen out of Union County, North Carolina.
Townsend, however, had already fled the scene. Witnesses advised deputies that a suspect matching Townsend’s description had exited the Lexus and immediately stolen a second vehicle, a Ford Escape.
A ‘Be On the Look Out’ (BOLO) alert was issued to surrounding agencies. At approximately 9:30 a.m., the Orangeburg County Sheriff’s Office notified Richland investigators that they had located the stolen Ford Escape. It had been abandoned. Orangeburg deputies then located Townsend in a third stolen vehicle.
According to officials, Townsend attempted to flee from Orangeburg deputies and was subsequently involved in a shooting. He was airlifted to a Midlands hospital where he remains in stable condition in the custody of the Orangeburg County Sheriff’s Office.
Townsend currently faces charges from RCSD for Armed Robbery and Possession of a Weapon during a Violent Crime. Additional charges are expected as the investigation continues.
