Home burglarized in Okatie gated community while owners were on vacation, cops say
A Bluffton man was arrested last week for allegedly breaking into a home inside a private community and fleeing from police in an SUV he stole from the residence.
Patrick Franklin Merritt, 37, was charged Dec. 29 with first-degree burglary, grand larceny of goods valued more than $10,000, reckless driving, failure to stop for a blue light and driving with an open container of alcohol, according to inmate records. Around 2 a.m. on Dec. 29, Beaufort County deputies responded to a home in the Oldfield gated community that had been burglarized. They were told about the break-in by South Carolina Highway Patrol troopers, who detained Merritt after he allegedly led them on a five-mile pursuit down Okatie Highway (S.C. 170) in an SUV he stole from the home.
What police say was found at the burglarized home
Deputies arrived at the home on Rice Mill Road to find one of the front windows shattered. “Glass was everywhere,” blood was on the floor of nearly every room and the home had “obviously” been rummaged through, according to a report from the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office.
Police also noted the suspect allegedly drank wine and that the stove and coffee maker had been left on, the report says. The homeowners were on vacation at the time but told deputies they wanted to pursue charges.
Oldfield security informed deputies a white pickup truck belonging to Merritt had “ran the gate” earlier in the evening, according to the incident report. Police found that pickup truck in a parking lot near the burglarized home.
Merritt was treated for his injuries at Beaufort Memorial Hospital before being taken to jail.
As of Tuesday morning, Merritt remained in custody at the Beaufort County Detention Center on cash bonds totaling $15,000, according to judicial records.
