Two Savannah men are in custody Tuesday afternoon after police say they seized large amounts of crack cocaine and two firearms from a residence in the 3600 block of Montgomery Street earlier in the day.

Earlier this month, the Chatham-Savannah Counter Narcotics Team initiated an investigation of possible drug sales involving Eric Bradley, 42, from this residence, said Sgt. Mark Lupus, agency spokesman. As a result of this investigation, a search warrant was executed Tuesday.

During the course of their search, CNT agents seized 5.4 ounces of crack, 8.1 grams of marijuana, and two handguns — a Smith & Wesson .40-cal and a Raven Arms .25-cal, Lupus said.

Bradley was charged with trafficking cocaine, possession of marijuana (less than one ounce) and possession of a firearm during commission of a crime.

Also arrested was 53-year-old Alvin Riley, who was found to be in possession of marijuana and a one of the two handguns, Lupus said. He was charged with possession of marijuana (less than one ounce) and possession of a firearm during commission of a crime.

Both are being held without bound at the Chatham County jail and are expected to be arraigned Wednesday in Recorder’s Court.

The Chatham County Sheriff’s office is warning the public about an ongoing scam involving the department and the courts.

A caller orders victims to pay a fine because of a missed jury summons and subsequent contempt of court fine, said Gena Bilbo, sheriff’s spokeswsoman. The suspects try to keep them on the phone until a green dot cart is purchased and the money pack number of the back of the card is relinquished, she said.

The department received numerous calls Monday from potential victims, Bilbo said.

The Chatham County Courthouse could possibly call about a jury summons but will never demand payment or ask for personal financial information. The sheriff’s office does not contact anyone by phone directing them to put money on an account to pay a bond, Bilbo said.

A deputy will deliver a subpoena or any process by hand.

Any jury notices will arrive by mail.

Bilbo said anyone who feels they may have been a victim of the scam or who has any information about the case should call the department’s investigators at 912-652-7693.

One person was shot Wednesday afternoon in Savannah’s Dixon Park neighborhood.

Shortly after 3 p.m., a male was shot in front of a house on the 400 block of East Waldburg Street, said Julian Miller, Savannah-Chatham police spokesman.

The gunshot victim was taken to Memorial University Medical Center with wounds that were considered serious, Miller said.

Police cordoned off the 400 block of East Waldburg, just a few blocks from the downtown Kroger, with crime scene tape as they investigated Wednesday afternoon. Violent crimes detectives and forensics officers were on sene.

No details about a suspect were immediately available.

Police ask anyone with information on the shooting to call CrimeStoppers at 912-234-2020. Tipsters remain anonymous and may qualify for a cash reward.

Detectives from the Savannah-Chatham police department are seeking help from the public in identifying keys obtained during arrests this week.

At least five sets of keys and a metal lock box were obtained during the investigation of five males arrested after a pursuit that stretched from Richmond Hill to Hardeeville, S.C., on Wednesday, said Julian Miller, metro police spokesman.

Most of the keys are on rings with items that may be readily identifiable by victims. Some have identifying attachments that appear to be from a dealership, Miller said.

Islands Precinct detectives are requesting that anyone who believes they can identify the keys contact Detective Alycia McLemore at 912-756-5645 or arice@savannahga.gov.

Savannah-Chatham police are requesting the public’s help locating a Savannah man charged in the shooting death of a 17-year-old in Carver Village Aug. 16.

Jo’Andre Robbins, 18, has been charged with the murder of Wayne Edwards in a parked car on the 1200 block of Elliott Street, said Julian Miller, police spokesman.

Robbins is described as a black, about 5 feet 7 inches tall and 170 pounds. He is known to frequent the Carver Village area, where he lives, and west Savannah neighborhoods, Miller said.

Anyone with information on his location or the shooting is asked to call CrimeStoppers at 912-234-2020 or text CRIMES (274637) using the keyword CSTOP2020. Tipsters remain anonymous and may qualify for a cash reward.

A confidential tip line also is open directly to investigators at (912) 525-3124.

Savannah-Chatham police have charged a youth arrested in Garden City with the shooting of a Savannah man during an Aug. 3 robbery.

Keyon Malik Morman, 17, has been charged with armed robbery and aggravated assault in the shooting of a 50-year-old man at his business on the 1900 block of Waters Avenue, said Julian Miller, metro police spokesman.

Morman was arrested Wednesday about 11:30 p.m. by Garden City police on charges of possession of a weapon in committing a crime, jaywalking, possession of a firearm by a person younger than 18 and carrying a concealed weapon, Miller said.

The victim remains in stable but serious condition at Memorial University Medical Center, where he was transported after the 6 a.m. shooting, Miller said.

The investigation is continuing.

Savannah-Chatham police are searching for the person responsible for at least two recent thefts on Savannah’s southside.

On the morning of Aug. 13, officers responded to an entering auto report at a residence on Reynolds Street, said Eunica Baker, metro police spokeswoman. Detectives learned the suspect made off with a purse containing several credit cards.

Further investigation revealed the suspect used one of the cards multiple times at a BP station at Waters and DeRenne avenues, Baker said. The suspect also made a high priced purchase at Wal-Mart on Montgomery Crossroad. He returned to Wal-Mart to attempt an additional purchase, but was hindered after the card was declined, Baker said.

Wal-Mart’s surveillance cameras recorded the suspect walking out of the store with a fraudulently purchased television.

Investigators also have linked him to an entering auto report that resulted in the theft of another purse recovered on the 200 block of Andover Drive, Baker said.

Anyone with information on this suspect’s identity or location is asked to call metro’s Southside Precinct at 912-658-1692.

Jail bookings from August 25–26 for Savannah-Chatham County are now posted, alphabetically by each person’s last name.

Click through this slideshow to view photos and information obtained from the Chatham County Sheriff’s Department.

All individuals posted have not been convicted of a crime and are innocent until proven guilty.

Police are asking the public to help identify a man they say raped a woman on Savannah’s westside Monday.

The woman was walking when a slender black male wearing blue jeans and holding a white T-shirt over his face forced her into a wooded area in the vicinity of Cloverdale/Laurel Grove, where he attacked her, said Julian Miller, Savannah-Chatham police spokesman.

Police ask anyone with information on the case to call CrimeStoppers at 912-234-2020 or text CRIMES (274637) using the keyword CSTOP2020. Tipsters remain anonymous and may qualify for a cash reward.

Investigators can be reached confidentially by calling 912-525-3124.

A Savannah man police announced they were looking for after charging him with raping a woman in a local cemetery is in custody.

Charles Christopher Green, 50, was arrested Wednesday morning and booked in the Chatham County jail on charges of rape and probation violation.

He was charged with raping a woman Thursday in a cemetery near Ogeechee Road, said Eunica Baker, Savannah-Chatham police spokeswoman.

Police look for second rape suspect

Metro police are still looking for a man they say raped another woman here Monday.

The woman was walking when a slender black male wearing blue jeans and holding a white T-shirt over his face forced her into a wooded area in the vicinity of Cloverdale/Laurel Grove, where he attacked her, said Julian Miller, police spokesman.

Police ask anyone with information on the case to call CrimeStoppers at 912-234-2020 or text CRIMES (274637) using the keyword CSTOP2020. Tipsters remain anonymous and may qualify for a cash reward.

Investigators can be reached confidentially by calling 912-525-3124.

Two men wanted by police in connection with recent South Carolina bank robberies were arrested Tuesday in Pooler.

James Authur Gable, 41, and John Bennett, 44, were arrested in a Pooler motel U.S. marshals working with sheriff’s deputies from Beaufort County, S.C., the FBI, Pooler police, the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division and Bluffton, S.C., police.

Members of the U.S. Marshals Southeast Regional Fugitive Taskforce and the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office discovered Gable and Bennett were staying at the motel Tuesday. Police secured the perimeter and moved in.

Both men were lying in bed and were arrested, the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release.

Gable is charged with entering bank, depository or building and loan association with intent to steal; theft or solicitation of person using automated teller machine for the July 14 robbery of a Sun Trust Bank at Westbury Park in Bluffton and the Aug. 22 robbery of TD Bank at 1021 Fording Island Road in Bluffton.

Bennett is charged with accessory after the fact (bank robbery) for the robbery of Sun Trust.

Both men were taken to the Chatham County jail to await extradition to South Carolina.

Police are searching for a man they say raped a woman Tuesday night in Savannah.

The assault occurred on Lilac Avenue, said Eunicia Baker, Savannah-Chatham police spokeswoman.

Police described the suspect as a black man in his forties or fifties who stands 5 feet 7 inches tall and weighs 160 to 170 pounds. At the time of the assault, he wore a white shirt, dark pants and a dark baseball cap, Baker said. He wears his hair in an unkempt afro style, Baker said.

The suspect is usually seen pushing a red lawnmower with a black handle and is known to go door to door asking to cut residential lawns in the Oakland Park neighborhood near Skidaway Road and Delesseps Avenue, Baker said.

Metro police are still looking for a man they say raped another woman here Monday.

The woman was walking when a slender black male wearing blue jeans and holding a white T-shirt over his face forced her into a wooded area in the vicinity of Cloverdale/Laurel Grove, where he attacked her, said Julian Miller, police spokesman.

Police ask anyone with information on the cases to call CrimeStoppers at 912-234-2020 or text CRIMES (274637) using the keyword CSTOP2020. Tipsters remain anonymous and may qualify for a cash reward.

Investigators can be reached confidentially by calling 912-525-3124.

Police say one person was shot Wednesday evening in the Carver Village neighborhood on Savannah’s westside.

Just after 6:30 p.m., several people were involved in a discussion on the 900 block of Crosby Street when someone was shot, said Julian Miller, Savannah-Chatham police spokesman. A male in his late teens to early twenties was transported to Memorial University Medical Center with injuries police did not believe to be life threatening.

Police locked the area down and detained a few people as part of their investigation, Miller said.

Violent crimes detectives, patrol officers and forensics investigators were on scene about 7:30.

Miller said many people were in the area at the time of the incident.

No further information was immediately available.

Police ask anyone with information on the case to call CrimeStoppers at 912-234-2020 or text CRIMES (274637) using the keyword CSTOP2020. Tipsters remain anonymous and may qualify for a cash reward.

Investigators can be reached confidentially by calling 912-525-3124.

As the last big holiday weekend of the summer gets underway, police across the Coastal Empire will be ramping up patrols on Savannah area streets and highways.

“We’ll have police out all weekend, but obviously if you’re out drinking and driving, we’ll be looking for that,” said Savannah-Chatham police Lt. Greg Mitchell, commander of the department’s traffic unit.

Friday night will see multiple law enforcement agencies join together with the Governor’s Office of Highway Safety for the Hands Across the Border operation. That operation will focus on motorists entering and exiting South Carolina.

Police will set up a road check to look out for impaired motorists, seatbelt and safety seat violations, suspended licenses and other things, said Georgia State Patrol Sgt. B.J. Kennedy.

“This is before Labor Day weekend,” Kennedy said. “We’re just trying to keep the public safe.”

The Hands Across the Border event marks the end of Operation Thunder, a Governor’s Office of Highway Safety-led initiative invited to Chatham County by metro police that had been targeting impaired and aggressive motorists over the past three months.

“On Saturday we’ll have people out patrolling, looking for DUIs and keeping the highways safe due to increased traffic,” Mitchell said.

The lieutenant also said he wanted to advise motorists, especially those who plan to travel, to make sure their vehicles are road-worthy before driving.

Police also will be out in force in Effingham County.

“We’ll be beefing up patrols on county roads and interstates,” said David Ehsanipoor, Effingham County Sheriff’s Office spokesman. “Traffic Enforcement will be working alongside Georgia State Patrol targeting impaired and aggressive drivers.”

In Pooler, near the airport and home to several hotels, city police will be upping traffic enforcement and looking for drunken drivers throughout the weekend, said Chief Mark Revenew.

At the airport, officials expect a busy weekend.

Spokeswoman Lori Lynah said flights are likely to be full and travelers should arrive at least 90 minutes early.

It’ll be all hands on deck on Tybee Island, too.

“All officers are going to be working throughout the weekend,” said Police Chief Bob Bryson, adding part-time officers will be out as well. “Everybody extra that can work, we have them working.”

Police on the island will be looking for drunken drivers and safety violations on the beach.

“Make sure you lock your doors and secure your belongings and don’t leave your things unsecured on the beach,” Bryson said. “And please don’t drink and drive.”

TOW TO GO

Tow to Go will be operating in the Savannah area Friday through Monday. The free service offers a confidential local ride within a 10-mile radius to a safe location.

It is available to both AAA members and nonmembers.

The AAA service vehicle transports the driver and their car.

Call 855-2-TOW-2-GO or 855-286-9246 for the service

Police are seeking information in the 2000 slaying of a Savannah teenager who was shot to death while trying to protect his mother from an armed robber.

Jonah Bryant, 15, was killed Jan. 14, 2000, during an altercation with a man trying to rob Bryant’s mother at their home on East 37th Street, according to old stories in the Savannah Morning News.

Police describe the gunman as a black male who stood 5 feet 7 inches to 5 feet 9 inches tall who was wearing a black and white checkered jacket, said Catherine Neal, CrimeStoppers spokeswoman.

A potential cash reward of as much as $13,500 is available for new information that leads to the arrest of Bryant’s killer, Neal said.

All information provided to CrimeStoppers is anonymous and may be reported 24/7. Tipsters can call 912-234-2020, send an e-tip through www.SavannahChathamCrimeStoppers.org or text CRIMES (274637) along with the keyword CSTOP2020 before the message content.

As rush hour hit U.S. 80 in Pooler on a recent Thursday afternoon, officer Michael Swords pulled an unmarked police truck onto the median and looked down into the cars slowly headed westbound.

The Pooler police officer kept his eyes peeled for drivers whose eyes were fixated on cellphones instead of the road. Police in the west Chatham County city are cracking down on motorists who violate Georgia’s ban on texting while driving.

“A lot of people don’t understand it’s very dangerous to look down and text,” Swords said.

Since motorists generally know it’s illegal to play on their phones while driving, many who choose to do so will try to be stealthy about it and keep the devices in their laps, Swords said. From his vantage point in the truck, he watched for drivers who stared down at their legs while inching along the highway.

The stop-and-go traffic made it difficult for him to pull out and follow a few people who were clearly looking at phones, but it wasn’t long before he found himself on the road next to a woman who thumbed at a phone while she drove along U.S. 80. Swords pulled the lapel camera off his uniform and pointed it out the window toward the woman as evidence to add to his observations.

While Swords was in the process of writing the woman a ticket, another Pooler police officer rolled up and shared a story about pulling over a man he worried was drunk due to erratic swerving. It turned out, the officer said, the man had been using an iPad while driving.

A ticket for violating Georgia’s texting ban typically comes with a $150 fine. The law bans “writing, sending, or reading text based communication” while driving.

It’s also illegal to do so in stopped traffic. Police say it’s not necessarily safer looking at the phone in slow-moving or even stalled traffic.

“You’re still on a roadway,” Swords said. “You’re not in a safe location to be using that phone.”

In addition to the obvious risk of fender benders, failing to pay attention in slow moving traffic can create other conditions that have a negative impact on other motorists, police say.

“They fail to pay attention to the light changes and cause delayed responses, causing traffic to congest behind them,” said Pooler Police Chief Mark Revenew.

Revenew said police in Pooler have issued eight citations for texting while driving in the past few months. When motorists are fiddling with their phones to change music or access GPS, they can be cited with failure to exercise due care.

In Effingham County, police are also on the lookout for motorists who text behind the wheel.

“There are also so many different distractions in cars these days such as GPS devices, radios and iPods,” said David Ehsanipoor, Effingham County Sheriff’s Office spokesman. “Our Traffic Enforcement Team also goes to different schools in the county to talk to teens about the danger of texting while driving.

“Over the past couple years we have had at least two or three crashes that we believe were the result of distracted driving.

“It’s not worth risking your life or other people’s lives. That text message can always wait.”

A bicyclist was killed in a hit-and-run wreck Saturday evening in Pooler.

The bicyclist died on scene at Jimmy DeLoach Parkway after being struck by a vehicle that left the scene, said Pooler Fire Chief Wade Simmons. Multiple agencies responded after the 911 call came in about 7:30 p.m., Simmons said.

The wreck occurred on Jimmy DeLoach near The Farm subdivision, Simmons said. Police had the parkway shut down for several hours while investigating.

Georgia State Patrol is working the investigation. The identity of the bicyclist was not released late Saturday.

Police ask anyone with information on the hit-and-run to call CrimeStoppers at 912-234-2020. Tipsters remain anonymous and may qualify for a cash reward.

Student charged in Savannah State shooting

A Savannah State University student has been charged with the Friday night shooting of a fellow student on campus.

Marviq Leekhi Richardson, 18, was charged with aggravated assault, carrying a weapon on school property and reckless conduct. He was being held without bond at the Chatham County jail Saturday.

Savannah State police say he shot another student, a male, about 8 p.m. Friday night in the area of University Village, a residence area on campus. No further details about the nature of the shooting were released Saturday.

Campus had been locked down immediately after the shooting, and police arrested Richardson within about two hours.

University spokeswoman Loretta Heyward said the investigation by campus police is ongoing.

Anyone with information about the shooting to call campus police at 912-358-3004.

A Savannah State University student has been charged with the Friday night shooting of a fellow student on campus, a school spokeswoman says.

Marviq Leekhi Richardson, 18, was charged with aggravated assault, carrying a weapon on school property and reckless conduct. He was being held without bond at the Chatham County jail Saturday.

Savannah State police say he shot another student, a male, about 8 p.m. Friday night in the area of University Village, a residence facility on campus.

No further details about the nature of the shooting were released Saturday.

Campus had been locked down immediately after the shooting, and police arrested Richardson within about two hours.

University spokeswoman Loretta Heyward said the investigation by campus police is ongoing.

Anyone with information about the shooting to call campus police at 912-358-3004.

The owner of a Savannah-area paint and contracting business was arrested Wednesday by state authorities, who charged him with insurance fraud and accuse him of defrauding insurance companies of about $50,000 in workers’ compensation premiums.

Cesar A. Martinez, owner of Martinez Painting Pros, was charged with insurance fraud and forgery in Effingham and Chatham counties, said Stan Bexley, director of the Enforcement Division of the state board of Workers’ Compensation. Martinez, 40, was taken to the Effingham County jail.

Martinez, whom Bexley described as a Rincon and Savannah business owner, operates Martinez Painting Pros, a paint and contracting business that provides residential and commercial painting in and around Savannah and Tybee Island.

The Enforcement Division’s investigation alleges Martinez altered several workers’ compensation insurance certificates and then presented the bogus certificates of insurance to general contractors in an attempt to avoid paying premium for a valid policy. Initial estimates indicate Martinez has defrauded the several insurance companies out of approximately $50,000 in workers’ compensation premiums.

Anyone in the Savannah area who has received a certificate of workers’ compensation insurance coverage from Martinez or Martinez Painting Pros and is unable to verify the coverage by using the Board’s website www.sbwc.georgia.gov, is asked to contact the state Board of Workers’ Compensation’s Enforcement Division at 404-657-7285 or(800-533-0682. All other lines of insurance coverage such as auto, home or general liability should be verified directly with the insurance carrier.

Police are searching for two men they say burglarized a westside Savannah convenience store early Sunday morning.

At 4:11 a.m. Sunday, surveillance cameras recorded two males crawling through the front door of Shop-N-Go on the 1600 block of West Bay Stret before stealing items from the store, said Eunicia Baker, Savannah-Chatham police spokeswoman. Surveillance footage captured just before midnight Sept. 6 showed one of the store’s glass doors being broken with a concrete block.

During the burglary, one suspect wore a light colored T-shirt, blue jean shorts, and a large sack. The second suspect wore a black T-shirt, dark pants and a white ball cap.

No further descriptions of the suspects was immediately available.

Police ask anyone with information about the case to call CrimeStoppers at 912-234-2020 or text CRIMES (274637) using the keyword CSTOP2020. Tipsters remain anonymous and may qualify for a cash reward.