Update: Robbery Suspect Dead After Shootout With Deputies

The robbery suspect killed in a shootout with Richland County Sheriff's deputies Thursday evening in Irmo has been identified, Sheriff Leon Lott said.

Deputies say the 34-year-old Asian man robbed the Sunoco/Sam's Food Mart in the 4400 block of Broad River Road around 7 p.m. and then fled in a truck.

He led deputies on a pursuit down Broad River Road before he spun out and crashed into a mailbox near Kennerly Road and Fatz Cafe, Lott said during a press conference Friday. The man then started firing at deputies and was shot and killed when deputies fired back. 

The man's identity is not being released because his family has not been notified, Lott said. 

Deputies believe the man broke into a home in the Harbison area Wednesday night, Lott said. The truck he was driving and the 9 mm pistol he fired were both stolen from that house. He also took four fully-loaded magazines from the house.

When the man arrived at the gas station on Broad River Road Thursday evening, he went inside and told employees he wanted $40 in gas but didn't have any money, Lott said. The employees told him they could only give him $5 in gas. 

Lott said the man then pulled up his shirt, showed the gun to the employees and demanded that the pump be turned on. 

After the man went back outside, the employees turned the pump on, locked the doors and called 911, Lott said. Deputies arrived just as the man was driving away in the truck and followed him. 

After the man crashed, he started shooting at deputies, Lott said. One patrol car was hit with bullets four times. Another patrol car was hit at least once. 

One bullet hit a deputy in the foot, but his boots stopped the bullet from hitting his foot, Lott said. No deputies or bystanders were injured during the shootout.

Lott said the man has a criminal record of burglary and assault on a government official. The assault charge was in North Carolina. 

Lott also said that about two months ago, the man's family asked the sheriff's department for assistance in taking the man for a mental evaluation. Deputies took him for the evaluation, but he was not admitted. 

The five deputies involved in the shootout are receiving counseling, Lott said. 

"Our deputies acted very bravely," Lott said, "and their training assisted them in doing their job."