Former Olanta police officer charged with arson
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By Jamie Rogers
Morning News Reporter
Published: July 17, 2008
A former Olanta police officer was arrested after deputies said he set fire to his mother’s car because he didn’t want to repair it, Florence County Sheriff Kenney Boone said.
Robert Brendon Smith, 28, of 428 Chester Road is charged with third-degree arson and filing a false report, Boone said.
Deputies said Smith and his neighbor, 40-year-old James David Morris of 439 Chester Road, set fire July 8 to a 2001 Dodge Dakota on Johnnie Lee Road in Coward, Boone said.
Investigators said the next day, Smith called central dispatch and reported the car stolen. When deputies arrived, Smith filed an incident report and signed an affidavit stating that he didn’t have anything to do with the vehicle disappearance, Boone said.
Arson investigators later found the truck and discovered that it had intentionally been set on fire by someone using an accelerant, the sheriff said.
The car was registered to Smith’s mother, but was routinely used by Smith and his wife.
Deputies think the suspects destroyed the vehicle because it needed some repairs to its transmission, Boone said.
Olanta Police Chief Mark Strickland said Smith resigned from the department Wednesday.
Smith was employed at the department for about 10 months, Strickland said.
Smith was released from the jail in Effingham on Thursday after posting a $5,000 person recognizance bond.
Morris, who also is charged with third-degree arson, remains custody awaiting a bond hearing.
The Olanta Police Department now has two officers, excluding the chief.
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Reader Reactions
Posted by ( unknown ) on July 20, 2008 at 7:43 pm
I agree with smstric Robbie is a great cop and family man. we have all done and said things that we all regret. He worked hard and sacrified many things to become a cop for it all to be thrown away because of a so called friend and accusations. grant it if he did it then he needs to pay but until then im standing beside him. but we also need to think of his wife and kids in this situation.
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Posted by ( randyhump001 ) on July 20, 2008 at 2:10 pm
At times like this we miss the days of honest police work like those of Marshall Dillon!
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Posted by ( smstric ) on July 20, 2008 at 8:05 am
Let the person who is with out fault cast the first stone at this officer.Because you apparently dont know robbie very well. He was a great officer.We all have skelton in our closets and the only reason he is on public display is because he was a police officer.If it werent for that no one would have anything to say about him.
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Posted by ( angelswalk ) on July 19, 2008 at 11:38 am
Do people know all these things but hold on to the information?
Why would someone know for fact that cops are doing wrong but keep it to themselves? Unless it is serving some purpose for them?
Seems to me that would be aiding and abbetting(?), wouldn’t it?
If you ask me why I kept quite, I will tell you, because I didn’t.
I have worked on my issue for years but it wasn’t Florence County law that started it and I wasn’t holding onto information that may have helped the sheriff DO his job. If you call him, I believe you will find you do get a response. Maybe not the one you want. I was out there working on fixing it ALL these years.
This is a major concern that people know these things and stay silent, which to me is helping the bad ones stay bad. It is like giving them permission.
Just my opinion.
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Posted by ( CitizenRights ) on July 19, 2008 at 10:42 am
angelswalk,
I do have something to say and it is not just accusing without proof. I am not saying all officers in FCSD are bad, I know of a few good ones and bad ones. The bad ones do feel that they have a gun and badge and are above the law. Just try this anyone on here that does not believe me, call the FCSD up and try to see the current sheriff. Good luck with that, you might get a phone call back or maybe not. But if you are not the press or some high powered friends, I would not count on any face to face time. Then again this comment might change that part, but see if any investigate is done on the corruption or bad seeds. The business of FCSD is not private; it is a public government agent.
In recent story, that never made the papers, some kids on the west side of Florence were stealing from homes and cars. They were not caught for over a week until they broke into a cop’s unmarked car and home. The victims tried to get their property back, was took it was evidence until the trail. The boys pleaded out and were guilty. The only person to get their stuff back was the cop. Also, I know of some current cops that have evidence for their personal use, that was never sold at auction or transfer from private owner to public use. They just when in the evidence room and took things like GPS and other things. This is sad the victims can not get their stuff, but some cops are thinking it is a free for all. Maybe these comments will have someone looking into this matter, plus a lot other things that are wrong in our county.
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Posted by ( angelswalk ) on July 19, 2008 at 7:49 am
Citizenrights,
seems you have something to say.
Why don’t you just say it?
Is this a personal attack against our Sheriff?
Are you really wanting to see our city, county and state better?
Do you honestly think the Sheriff is going to make office business public if they ARE working on something?
Seems he is doing more that other city and county officials I have known.
Or is that the problem?
Maybe he is doing his job well. Maybe he isn’t, I don’t know, only time will tell.
If you have accusations to make perhaps you should make them instead of insinuations.
Don’t you know part of the problem is people staying quiet when they should be speaking.
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Posted by ( angelswalk ) on July 19, 2008 at 7:36 am
LakeCity341, Can’t we just imagine!
That badge [and gun] gives some the right to do all the things which if they did as civilians, would be crimes.
The bad ones are really sneaky if they have to be. And very open about some things if they can be.
You don’t want me to go there. I know things.
Yes, may God be with the ones who have been screwed over by officers such as this.
Check the records, but that doesn’t help because the offices I know of do not make reports to SLED when they get rid of bad seed.
They just send them on to get them away.
They almost always move on to other departments.
To other victims who must do as they say or else.
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Posted by ( unknown ) on July 18, 2008 at 9:45 pm
not only do they maybe need to start checking in on the local cops but the sherrifs department to. and what about all these cops that have been charged things in the past but paid for their records to be cleaned to become a cop and still remain corrupt.
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Posted by ( unknown ) on July 18, 2008 at 9:37 pm
how is it a fugtive from out of state that tried to kill a cop get a smaller headline than an a officer accused of burning his own vechile
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Posted by ( CitizenRights ) on July 18, 2008 at 3:05 pm
It is funny, that FCSD was commented to have some of the best officer around and the fact that Mr. Smith did for FCSD at one time. I feel he left on his on free will and not because of an investigation that Sheriff Boone would have supposedly would have asked for. It is also funny, that Lake City and Olanta have seen their share of bad cops, but when is the last time or the first time you have heard our current Sheriff has investigated its officers. It is hard to get the current sheriff to investigate officers if he will not usually meet with the general public and listen to open comments and complains.
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