Suspect in custody after 3 injured in Sullivan's Island hit-and-run: Police
SULLIVANS ISLAND, S.C. (WCIV) — (UPDATE, 6:00 p.m.) — The hit-and-run suspect accused of injuring two children and one adult was apprehended Thursday after an hours-long search in the Sullivan's Island area.
Justin Collin Adams was taken into custody around 5:57 p.m., and the area is now safe, police said.
Adams was reportedly caught while on a boat at a dock behind a house in the 3000 block of Jasper Blvd., police said. He was spotted by a police sergeant who was riding in the Charleston County Aviation Unit helicopter.
The arrest was a joint effort by multiple federal, state, and municipal agencies, including the FBI, SLED, SCDNR, NCIS, State Port Authority, the Charleston County Sheriff's Office, the Mount Pleasant Police Department, the Mount Pleasant Fire Department, the Isle of Palms Police Department, the U.S. Marshals Service, the Charleston Police Department, Charleston County Emergency Management, Charleston County Radio Communications, Charleston County Fire and Rescue, as well as the Sullivan's Island Police Department.
The Charleston County Sheriff's Office has been asked to handle the criminal investigation as well as the crime scene investigation, according to police.
(UPDATE, 5:00 p.m.) — The Sullivan's Island Police Department released the identity of the suspect believed to be involved in the hit-and-run on Sullivan's Island Thursday.
Justin Collin Adams was still at large as of 5 p.m. Thursday and possibly armed with a knife, police said. He was reportedly on foot and wearing a red shirt, and dark shorts. Police urge anyone who sees him to call 911.
(UPDATE, 4:30 p.m.) — The FBI has joined in the search for a man accused of ramming his car into children near Sunrise Presbyterian Church on Sullivan's Island, local law enforcement officials said.
In the incident, two juveniles and one adult were injured. One of the two children was taken to the hospital along with the adult. The other child was treated and released at the scene.
The child who was taken to the hospital has since been released, while the adult is expected to be released later, police said.
The suspect, a man police describe as a "heavyset white male, balding with facial hair," is still at large, with police combing Sullivan's Island in a grid fashion. Law enforcement warned the public that he is considered armed with a knife and dangerous.
He was last seen on foot on Jasper Boulevard between Station 30 and Station 32 Street, police said.
(UPDATE, 3:30 p.m.) — Two juveniles and one adult were injured after a driver crashed his vehicle into them Thursday, Sgt. Matt Storen with the Isle of Palms Police Department said during a press briefing.
One child and one adult were taken to the hospital, while one was treated at the scene and released to parents. The driver fled on foot and is currently armed with a knife.
The child taken to the hospital was released, police said. The adult also taken to the hospital is expected to be released shortly.
Police said the suspect is "considered armed and dangerous."
Law enforcement is still determining if the crash was deemed intentional or not. The children were outside a preschool, and the vehicle hit the children and an adult. The vehicle in question was a sedan.
The Isle of Palms Police Department utilized a grid search of the area to check and search for the suspect.
According to an email from parents, Sullivan's Island Elementary released kids from school early. School officials did not allow students to walk or ride the bus home, stating that a legal guardian must pick up each child.
The dispatch calls list the Sunrise Presbyterian Church as the place where emergency crews were first called.
Law enforcement officials said as of 2 p.m., a shelter-in-place warning is still active while Jasper Boulevard and Middle Street eastbound remain closed at Station 32 to Breach Inlet Bridge.
An armed assailant is currently at large, and law enforcement believes the suspect is in the area wearing a red shirt and dark shorts. He is considered a "heavyset white male, balding with facial hair."
Police said he was last seen on foot on Jasper Boulevard between Station 30 and Station 32 Street. Law enforcement has warned residents not to approach the man and to call 911. All local law enforcement jurisdictions have been called to assist with the matter.
ORIGINAL STORY
Police are searching for a suspect on Sullivan's Island Thursday afternoon after multiple children were hit by a vehicle in what police believe to be an "intentional" act, according to Isle of Palms Police spokesperson Matt Storen.
The incident happened around 1 p.m., Storen said. The Isle of Palms Police Department tweeted out at 1:41 p.m. a search is underway in the area of Breach Inlet for a male last seen wearing a red shirt and shorts, who is possibly "armed and dangerous."
An alert text was sent out to residents, telling them to shelter in place while the search was underway. The scene is near the Sunrise Presbyterian Church.
Multiple law enforcement vehicles - marked and unmarked - could be seen heading through the Mount Pleasant area around that same time, believed to be en route to the Sullivan's Island area.
