The killings of a man and his nephew in their homes less than two miles apart appear to be connected, said authorities, who want to talk to another relative about the slayings.
The son of Marshall Tapp, 46, found him dead Thursday in his home, Spartanburg County Sheriff's spokesman Maj. Dan Johnson said.
Investigators started tracking down family members to interview and went to the home of Tapp's uncle, 74-year-old Kenneth Tapp. Deputies found Kenneth Tapp's body in a field behind his home.
The commission that oversees the Holly Springs fire department hopes that changing the department's name will also change its perception in the community.
The former Holly Springs Volunteer Fire District, chartered in 1972, is now known as the Holly Springs Fire-Rescue District.
The name change was made official after approval by the state Senate earlier this month.
ROCK HILL -- When school officials in Rock Hill tell commencement crowds to hold all applause until the end of the ceremony, they're not joking.
Seven people were arrested by Rock Hill police and charged with public disorderly conduct after being accused of cheering during graduations.
Rock Hill Police Department spokesman Lt. Jerry Waldrop said Tuesday police began patrolling graduations several years ago. Waldrop said school district officials requested the patrols to end disruptions, including standing, hollering and clapping.
The Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Office confiscated between 4,100 and 4,500 marijuana plants Monday, ending an apparent two-man operation that could have been worth at least $2.9 million on the street.
A helicopter spotted two fields Saturday in the southernmost tip of Spartanburg County, carved out of a hard-to-reach wooded area several miles south of Enoree. One had about 1,000 plants; the other, about 2,000.
In the early afternoon, a helicopter coming to transport the pulled plants from the first two fields spotted a third field across Highway 49. Officers reached it about 3 p.m. That field was estimated to be home to at least 1,100 more plants, possibly up to 1,500, Pharis said.
The Spartanburg County Sheriff's Office confiscated about 3,000 marijuana plants Monday, ending an apparent two-man operation that could have been worth up to $2.1 million.
A helicopter spotted the fields Saturday in the southernmost tip of Spartanburg County, and officers approached them Monday morning. They found an elaborate campsite, complete with a makeshift latrine, garbage pit and homemade irrigation system, but the two beds in the tent were empty.
Nine narcotics officers with the sheriff's office used chainsaws to clear a path for four-wheelers to make it to the marijuana fields. They were assisted by three National Guardsmen and one State Law Enforcement Division agent. They pulled the plants up. They will be taken to either Duncan or Columbia and destroyed, Sgt. Joe Pharis said.
Police are investigating a reported indecent exposure at the Spartanburg County public library on Church Street. Two young girls told them that a 34-year-old man, who they knew as "L.A.," approached them in the library's teen room and began fondling himself, according to an incident report. Eventually, "he pulled his privates out of his pants" and began masturbating in front of them, the report states. The girls told a security officer, who approached the man. The man denied the incident took place.
Spartanburg County Sheriff's Office
Darrell Houston, 42, of 223 Conley St., Spartanburg, has been charged with failure to stop for a blue light, 2nd-degree burglary and petty larceny.
A four-month investigation by the Spartanburg Public Safety Department has uncovered what officials are calling a "copper theft epidemic."
"Operation Copperstopper" yielded 239 arrest warrants against 13 individuals. Ten are behind bars and facing multiple charges, including burglary, larceny, malicious injury to real property and possession of stolen goods.
Property damage to 14 city businesses and about 70 residences totals nearly $588,000. The suspected thieves pocketed more than $11,000 by selling in excess of 5 tons of stolen metal to local recyclers.
Spartanburg Public Safety Police and Fire Investigators said Thursday that foul play was not the cause of a Milan Street house fire Sunday.
Minnie Bell Mitchell, 50, died from asphyxiation as a result of the fire at 189 Milan St. Two other adults and a 2-year-old escaped through a window.
"Fire investigators carefully reviewed the scene and worked closely with police investigators," Fire Marshal Mike Julazadeh said in a statement. "After a thorough review, we believe the fire originated in the den area."
