Man accused of throwing gas, bleach on North Charleston convenience store clerks before stealing money from register
NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCBD) – A man is facing multiple charges after police said he threw gasoline, bleach, and another unknown liquid in the faces of three cashiers before stealing money from their registers.
Officers with the North Charleston Police Department (NCPD) arrested 37-year-old Paul Watson following a string of incidents that took place at convenience stores on May 11, 17, and early Saturday morning.
Police reports from the agency outline the three robberies.
In the first, a clerk working at a Scotchman on Remount Road told police that a male customer had asked to exchange dimes for quarters on the evening of May 11. When the cashier opened the register, the man threw a cup of liquid in her face.
Responding officers said they could smell bleach, observed liquid on the counter, and saw a McDonald’s cup when they arrived at the business.
A review of surveillance video shows the man parking his SUV near a gas pump before entering the store. He’s later seen throwing the cup with liquid at the clerk before taking money from the register and running back to his vehicle, according to the report.
North Charleston officers responded to a Sunoco on Dorchester Road the night of May 17 where a cashier said a man came inside to buy a cigar, but his card declined. The man left the store to grab change from his vehicle, but when he returned, he threw an unknown substance in her face before reaching over the counter and grabbing cash from the register.
According to a report from NCPD, a video from the store showed the man had a clear plastic cup with a brown-colored substance in it. Officers said the liquid had a vinegar aroma and burned the victim’s eyes.
The third known robbery happened early Saturday at Circle K on W. Montague Avenue. A clerk said the man entered the store and asked for water. When she looked up from behind the register, he threw liquid from a cup in his hand, and then took money from the register. The woman said her eyes started burning and she could not see.
Charleston County EMS took the woman to the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) for treatment.
Arriving officers said there was an overwhelming odor of gasoline when they entered the business.
A “be on the lookout,” or BOLO, was issued on the vehicle which matched a description from all previous incidents. It was seen traveling on Dorchester Road about three minutes after the robbery occurred, police said.
Watson was arrested following a pursuit and taken to the Al Cannon Detention Center on three counts of first-degree assault and battery, three counts of strong-arm robbery, failure to stop for blue light, and driving under suspension. His bond totaled $320,000 and remains in jail as of Monday morning.
Jail records show Watson has been arrested more than a dozen times in Charleston County dating back to April 2010 on a burglary charge.
His most recent arrest was in February on second-degree burglary charges.
