Wanted for York, SC armed robberies from 30 years ago, Charlotte man turns himself in
Sometimes a suspect with a recent pending arrest warrant will turn himself in at the York County Sheriff’s Office, deputies say.
Tuesday was different.
A suspect from Charlotte turned himself in for warrants in connection with a pair of motel armed robberies in South Carolina that happened more than 30 years ago.
Benjamin Ray Legrande, 66, walked into the Moss Justice Center in York, S.C., Tuesday morning and turned himself in, said Trent Faris, spokesman for the sheriff’s office. Arrest warrants from 1988 and 1989 were located and served on Legrande, according to sheriff’s office incident reports.
“We determined that the warrants were still active and arrested Mr. Legrande,” Faris said.
The warrants to arrest Legrande, and charging him with both robberies, were signed by a York County judge in February 1989, records show.
The alleged crimes
Legrande is accused of using a handgun to rob clerks at a Comfort Inn in Fort Mill in December 1988 and a Howard Johnsons in Rock Hill in January 1989, according to the warrants obtained by The Herald. In both cases, Legrande allegedly took money from motel clerks at gunpoint, the warrants state.
In both cases Legrande was picked out of a photo line-up by the victims, according to the warrants.
It remains unclear why Legrande turned himself in Tuesday. Legrande was arrested in Charlotte Feb. 4 by Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department officers on a felony fugitive warrant, according to online records from the Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office. He was given a $500 bond and released, online Mecklenburg sheriff records show.
Legrande then turned himself in to York deputies.
According to York County Magistrate Court records, Legrande appeared in court Tuesday and was denied a public defender. He was released under a $25,000 personal recognizance bond in connection with the two armed robbery charges, York County court and sheriff’s office records show.
No criminal record in SC, records show
Online court records in York County show Legrande was charged by the S.C. Highway Patrol for a seat belt violation in 2013. The case ended in a forfeiture and a $25 fine, records show. The records do not say if Legrande was checked for pending South Carolina arrest warrants.
Records in South Carolina from the State Law Enforcement Division show Legrande has no prior felony criminal record in South Carolina, aside from the seat belt violation and the armed robbery charges from Tuesday.
He was arrested in South Carolina on Jan. 23, 1989, for traffic offenses, SLED records show, but the SLED criminal background check did not show convictions for the traffic charges.
What happens now?
Armed robbery under South Carolina law carries a sentence of 10-30 years in prison for a conviction. Armed robbery is considered a violent crime under South Carolina law, yet the allegations are more than 30 years old.
“Our office will review the case files and determine how to move forward on these cases,” said Kevin Brackett, 16th Circuit Solicitor.
Because of COVID-19, all jury trials in South Carolina are on hold. Additionally, no in-person hearings are being scheduled in South Carolina courts during the pandemic.
Legrande is due to check back in with court officials in April on the pending armed robbery charges, records show.
This story was originally published February 10, 2021 at 2:09 PM.
