CHESTER, S.C. — A man is in custody after police said he robbed a woman at gunpoint as she was leaving a Bible study in Chester on Wednesday night.
Authorities said officers responded to an armed robbery call at the First Baptist Church on Church Street around 7:49 p.m.
Police said 29-year-old Jerrell Brockman approached a woman in the parking lot outside the church, put a gun to her head and demanded her purse.
(Jerrell Brockman)
“She feared for her life, she did,” Chester Police Department spokesperson Maksheeria Tobias said.
Authorities said Brockman ran from responding officers and the Chester County Sheriff’s Office K-9 Division was dispatched to the scene.
Brockman was apprehended at a home on Gardendale Circle, authorities said.
Officials said more than a dozen officers from 13 agencies helped track Brockman down.
"Probation, Pardon and Parole, DNR, State Transport, Fairfield County Sheriff's Office, Union County Sheriff's Office," Tobias said.
Channel 9 was told that a task force was in Chester for another event when the armed robbery call went out.
Resident Lisa Holly said she saw all the officers out searching, but was unaware they were looking for a man she knows.
"You never know what may trigger someone to do something like that, but I didn't think he'd turn out like that," Holly said.
Representatives of the First Baptist Church declined to comment Thursday, but members of the nearby business community told Channel 9 that they’re concerned about the incident.
"We shouldn't have to be afraid, but that's the world we live in today," resident Sheila Stillwell said.
Stillwell said she knows the victim well and it is painful to hear what happened at the church across the street from her.
"I do know her, and I know what kind of person she is,” Stillwell said. “And just, thank God she wasn't hurt."
Channel 9 was told that the house where Brockman was found is not within walking distance of the church. Police won't comment on how he ran so far, or on what led them to the home.
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