In effort to control violent surge, police crack down on clubs

Targeting area nightclubs known to be problem areas, the police made seven arrests over the weekend including three gun-related charges.

Beaufort County Sheriff P.J. Tanner said special teams comprising investigators, narcotics officers, patrol deputies and traffic enforcement officers have begun "aggressive patrols" of areas shown to produce high volumes of calls for services, such as Johnny Blue's nightclub in Sheldon and Hole in the Wall on St. Helena Island.

Of the 14 reported shootings in northern Beaufort County since July 5, four of them have occurred in or outside of area clubs, including the fatal shooting of a Beaufort sailor earlier this month outside the Masonic Lodge on Lady's Island.

"This is just a snapshot of the work these teams have been doing," he said. "We were able to get three guns off the street and make some other arrests. This is working, and it's not stopping."

Tanner said the Sheriff's Office has been keeping tabs on the county's career criminals and their hangouts to help guide them in their stepped-up patrols.

"If you're a drug dealer, you're going to go where the fishing's good, and the same is true for law enforcement," he said.

The following arrests were made Friday and Saturday, the Sheriff's Office said:

• Michael Green, 17, of Kinloch Drive in Beaufort, was arrested at the Elks Lodge in Beaufort on charges of fleeing to evade arrest, providing false information to a police officer, unlawful carrying of a pistol and unlawful possession of a pistol by a person under 18. He was released from the Beaufort County Detention Center on Saturday on more than $12,000 bond.

• Dwayne Smalls, 17, of Webb Road in Burton, was arrested at the Elks Lodge in Beaufort on charges of unlawful carrying of a firearm. He was released from the detention center on Saturday on $10,000 bond.

• Derrick Lesesne, 26, of Joe Street on St. Helena Island, was arrested at Hole in the Wall on St. Helena on four bench warrants for city of Beaufort traffic offenses. He was released from the detention center on Sunday on more than $1,300 bond.

• Malcom Greene, 19, of Seabrook, was arrested at Lotties in Seabrook on charges of simple possession of marijuana and possession of alcohol by a minor. He was released from the detention center on Saturday on $1,300 bond.

• Jeremy Williams, 20, of Josephine Drive in Beaufort, was arrested at Lotties in Seabrook on charges of unlawful carrying of a pistol, open container of beer and possession of alcohol by a minor. He was released from the detention center on Saturday on about $1,500 bond.

• Tyrone Kelly, 24, of Sheldon, was arrested at Johnny Blue's in Sheldon on charges of simple possession of marijuana and possession of crack cocaine. He was released from the detention center on Saturday on $5,700 bond.

• Kendrick Webb, 24, was arrested at Hole in the Wall on St. Helena Island on two family court bench warrants and one magistrate court bench warrant. He remains in the detention center.

The Sheriff's Office also arrested five men Monday after a search of their car produced more than a gram of crack cocaine and less than an ounce of marijuana, according to authorities. Two guns were also seized in the search, one of which reportedly fell out of a man's shorts while he was being frisked by deputies.

An illegal window tint was the reason cited by deputies in a Sheriff's Office report for pulling over a gold Ford Taurus in the parking lot of the Happy Mart on Ribaut Road early Monday.

When the deputy asked the men inside the car for identification, one of the men, believing he had active warrants, gave the deputy a fake name. That man, Devon Washington, 19, of St. Helena Island, was arrested for providing false information to the police, and two prescription painkillers were found in his pocket when he was searched by deputies, according to the report.

Deputies performed a search of the vehicle after arresting Washington and found a Doritos bag with "several" rocks of crack cocaine and a small bag of marijuana, the report said. Since the bag was accessible to everyone in the car, and the amount of drugs found exceeded 1 gram, all five men were charged with possession of crack with intent to distribute.

David Lynard, 25, of Heyward Drive in Beaufort, was arrested for carrying a concealed weapon after deputies say a loaded .22 caliber pistol fell from his shorts while being searched by police, the report said.

A .45 caliber pistol and nine rounds were also recovered as evidence from the trunk of the car, the Sheriff's Office said.

Lynard, Washington, Ernso Prinville, 18, Joshua Rouzard, 23, and Ronald Maurice White, 20, were all arrested, and are being held at the Beaufort County Detention Center.