RIDGEWAY – Waffle House in Ridgeway was the latest victim of gun-related crime in Fairfield County, when two male suspects robbed the store at gunpoint, according to the Fairfield County Sheriff’s Office.
Around 1:49 a.m. on Friday, Feb. 24, Fairfield County Sheriff’s Deputies were dispatched to Waffle House on 34 Contractor’s Way in Ridgeway in reference to an armed robbery. While en route, deputies were told that two male suspects had departed the store on foot and were headed towards The Sharpe Shoppe, the gas station next to Waffle House, the incident report stated.
According to the report, a female employee told deputies upon their arrival at 1:58 a.m. that she was in the dish pit area when two unknown subjects entered the establishment and raised a firearm to rob her register. As she pulled the money from the register, one of the suspects grabbed the money from her and made his way towards the hallway by the restrooms to access the side door.
The suspect in the rear of the store appeared to have a weapon malfunction while attempting to shoot the lock off of the office door, and requested assistance from the suspect in the front of the store, according to the report.
The female employee reported that she heard four gunshots, and within a minute the two subjects left the store on foot.
A male employee, a cook, told deputies that, while taking a break outside the front of Waffle House, two individuals with black hoods over their heads approached him from the back side of the building. The male employee told deputies that one of the subjects, who stood about 5’10”, told him to go back inside the building and that the second male followed them inside, according to the report.
Once inside, one of the male subjects held them at gunpoint while the other subject retrieved money from the register, the report stated. The subject with the handgun walked to the back of the restaurant where the safe is located, and then he heard four gunshots. A few moments later, both suspects left the restaurant, the report said.
According to the report, deputies discovered a hole in the outer part of the metal door leading to the safe, upon examination.
The incident report stated that $2,000 was stolen and estimated damages to the building at $500.
The female employee told officers that the two suspects ran out of the back door of the restaurant, towards the Exxon gas station, and that she did not see a vehicle, the report said.
Witnesses told deputies both individuals were wearing blue jeans, black tennis shoes, black hoodies, and masks covering their faces.
No suspects have been identified as of March 1. The incident remains under investigation by the Sheriff’s Office. This story will be updated as more information becomes available.
