SPARTANBURG, S.C. (WSPA) – A man who police said went on a crime spree on the west side of Spartanburg is behind bars.

Over the weekend, the Spartanburg Police Department received multiple calls for different disturbances or crimes. Officers said at first they didn’t realize all the crimes were committed by the same person. They said the suspect targeted stores, restaurants, gas stations, cars and apartments.

According to the Spartanburg Police Department, the calls started rolling in around 8 p.m. Saturday night.

“We didn’t realize it was the same person involved, but as the calls came in, we thought it was multiple crime scenes, which it was, but involving different people,” said Major Art Littlejohn.

Littlejohn said officers responded to each call, got descriptions and looked at surveillance video.

“They quickly realized it was the same person going from place to place, creating these crime issues for us,” he said.

The man arrested is Rodney Brownlee.

“Typically, you know, if someone is involved in a crime, it’s usually in one spot and one incident, but this guy, throughout the night, or the evening, he was involved in several different things,” said Littlejohn.

The timeline went like this:

  • 8 p.m. a call came in about a suspicious person asking for a phone charger at the Burlington Department Store
  • 8:30 p.m. police were called to a disturbance at Crowne Pointe Apartments
  • 9:50 p.m. shots were fired into an apartment on Dover Road, injuring a person who was shot through the door
  • 10:00 p.m. a driver was shot in their car at Jack in the Box, the passenger was uninjured
  • 10:05 p.m. a car jacking at Bojangles
  • That car was crashed into another vehicle in the Spinx parking lot
  • 11:00 p.m. shots were fired in the Spinx gas station
  • Suspect tried to carjack another car, was unsuccessful.

“After the first shooting and carjacking, which occurred at the Jack in the Box, that’s where he went from a suspicious person to now, suspect,” said Littlejohn.

Major Littlejohn said Brownlee was found in the rear of Circle K, in a cooler.

“He actually fired at several people, however he only shot two people. He shot at one gentleman in his home, he shot another man in his car,” he said.

Brownlee was taken to the hospital after he was arrested.

“He told us that he had used drugs throughout the day, and based on that, we wanted to make sure he was okay to be taken to the jail,” said Littlejohn.

The major said of the two people shot, one has been treated and released, the other is still in the hospital.

Brownlee is charged with carjacking and possession of a weapon during a violent crime. He has been denied bond on all charges.

The case is still ongoing and Major Littlejohn said as they further their investigation, Brownlee will be charged with additional crimes.

If you are confronted in a carjacking situation, Littlejohn said avoid getting hurt or injured. Make sure to always keep your doors locked and if you give up your car, through insurance and investigation, they can locate your car.