Suspect accused of assaulting Rock Hill officer

Authorities are searching for a man who allegedly punched a Rock Hill police officer during an incident Wednesday night.

D’Aaron Colson has a warrant for assaulting a police officer, officials said. He and two other men were standing outside Bob’s Food Mart on East Main Street around 11:40 p.m. Wednesday when officers responded to a disorderly call, according to a police report.

The men were asked to leave. One suspect “began questioning officers about why he had to leave [the] property, being that he was not asking anyone for money and he was a taxpaying citizen.” The suspect became loud and “verbally disorderly” when officers tried to answer his question and refused to listen to officers’ requests.

Sgt. Cedric Stokes, a shift supervisor, arrived and introduced himself. The suspect said he didn’t care who Stokes was and continued yelling and cursing.

Stokes again told the men to leave. The suspect took off his shirt and cursed.

When Stokes tried to arrest Colson, the other two men pushed officers, the report states. When the officers grabbed all three men, Colson swung past one officer’s head and hit Stokes in the left side of the head, the report states.

Stokes tried to grab Colson, who slipped away and “took a fighting stance,” police said. The officer pulled his Taser and tried to deploy it toward Colson, but the device didn’t make contact with him and he fled on foot.

The other two suspects were charged with disorderly conduct, police said. Colson is still being sought.

Capt. Mark Bollinger said Friday that Stokes suffered very minor injuries and did not have to be treated.

This story was originally published July 8, 2016 at 4:38 PM with the headline "Suspect accused of assaulting Rock Hill officer."