Couple quit jobs at Bojangles, then use key to break in on Valentine’s Day, cops say
A couple ended up behind bars after they were accused of burglarizing a Bojangles restaurant in South Carolina, deputies said.
Employees at the Bojangles in Kershaw discovered money was missing Wednesday, Feb. 14, and called deputies to investigate the scene, according to a Feb. 20 Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office news release.
Two people were “quickly” identified as suspects: a couple who had previously worked at the restaurant and quit shortly before the burglary, per the sheriff’s office.
The girlfriend, 25, quit her job at the Bojangles about a week before the burglary, while her 21-year-old boyfriend left his role the night before, deputies said.
When the girlfriend quit, deputies say she never returned her key to the building. The key was then used to enter the restaurant after hours and steal money from the office area, according to the sheriff’s office.
The couple arrived at the restaurant at about midnight on Valentine’s Day, and the boyfriend entered the building using the key, deputies said.
He grabbed an “undisclosed amount of money” then left the Bojangles, sheriff’s office spokesperson Doug Barfield said. On his way out, deputies say the man left behind several $10 bills outside of a car wash next to the restaurant.
Investigators searched the couple’s apartment and car and found evidence in the couple’s apartment that connected the duo to the crime, deputies said.
The couple were arrested at their apartment after deputies completed their search, according to the sheriff’s office.
They were both charged with second-degree burglary, petit larceny and conspiracy to commit burglary, deputies said. The girlfriend also received an additional charge of breach of trust with fraudulent intent less than $2,000 as a result of keeping the key, according to the sheriff’s office.
They were booked at the Lancaster County Detention Center, where the boyfriend was being held on a $11,000 bond and the girlfriend on a $7,000 bond, deputies said.
The pair posted bond Thursday, Feb. 15, and were released from jail, according to deputies.
Kershaw is about 55 miles northeast of Columbia.
Andrew Dys contributed to this report.
This story was originally published February 20, 2024 at 6:06 PM with the headline "Couple quit jobs at Bojangles, then use key to break in on Valentine’s Day, cops say."
