Swansea, SC (Paul Kirby) - Lieutenant Silano and his K-9 Rens of the Pine Ridge Police Department assisted Swansea PD officers in capturing a fugitive in possession of a stolen vehicle. This after a vehicle pursuit, a crash, a K-9 track, and then the surrender! Then, just to round out the case, Rens and Lt. Silano found drug paraphernalia believed to have been ditched by the suspect.
On November 25, 2019 at approximately 11:21 p.m., Officer Contreras with the Swansea Police Department attempted to stop a Nissan sedan for a moving violation near the 100 block of N. Church St. When Contreras activated his cruiser’s warning device, the vehicle, operated by Brian Bruce out of Gaston, failed to stop and instead, he initiated a pursuit. The vehicle he was operating was reported stolen out of Orangeburg County.
Officer Contreras pursued the Nissan approximately 10 miles. At times, the two cars reached speeds of approximately 100 mph. Eventually, Bruce, who did not have the high-speed driving training Contreras does, lost control and crashed into a tree. He fled on foot into the wood line. Surrounding agencies assisted by setting up a perimeter to contain the fugitive.
Pine Ridge’s K-9 Rens and his handler Lt. Silano arrived on scene and began their track. Ren put his nose to use and led Lt. Silano approximately 150 yards into the woods. There, the suspect was located lying on the ground in a heavily wooded area. The suspect saw Ren’s smile and was taken into custody without further incident. Surrendering was probably the first intelligent thing Bruce did that day.
Lt. Silano and K-9 Rens' day wasn’t over just yet. After a vehicle search, Rens positively alerted for narcotics in the vehicle. After checking the area, a syringe containing Methamphetamine was located. It was believed to have been ditched by Bruce.
Brian Bruce was transported to the Lexington County Detention Center on multiple charges. All defendants are innocent until proven guilty.
