Florence County, South Carolina — A suspect in a huge theft that happened last month at the Palmetto State Armory in Florence County was caught after a long battle on Tuesday evening, police said Wednesday.
Benjamin Lee Mercer Jr., who is 29 years old, was caught after police set up a sting with agents from the US Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.
More than 150 guns were stolen from the Palmetto State Armory in Florence County on May 12 by Benjamin Lee Mercer Jr. and Benjamin Lee Mercer Sr. In this case, Mercer Jr. was arrested on May 22 but was freed on bond on May 28. Mercer Sr. is still on the run.
The sheriff’s office said that Mercer Jr. set up a place in Darlington County to sell some of the stolen guns. Besides that, he is said to have tried to rob the confidential snitch and then led police on a chase through Florence County in the informant’s car.
The armed Mercer Jr. finally ran away to an apartment on Pineland Avenue in Florence, where he locked himself and refused to give up, according to the sheriff’s office. Florence cops let a chemical irritant into the apartment, and Mercer Jr. then turned himself in.
The charges that Mercer Jr. is facing in this case were not released right away. They want anyone who knows anything about Mercer Sr. to call the Florence County Sheriff’s Office at 843-665-2121.
Source: WBTW
