Two Aiken burglars were captured by police early Sunday during a home invasion on York Street in which the residents were terrorized, including the pistol-whipping of an 80-year-old man.
Police were called just after midnight Sunday to the home on the 300 block of York Street NE for a residential burglary with the homeowners still inside.
A 58-year-old woman who was visiting him overnight said she woke up and heard the suspects demanding money from the elderly man.
“The owner of the house was repeatedly pistol-whipped and was told they was gonna kill him,” she said. “They kept asking where’s the money. I woke up to him yelling and begging for his life, and I ran and hid in the shower and called 911.”
“Once on scene responding officers gave commands for the suspects to exit the residence from a side door,” an Aiken Public Safety report says. “One suspect attempted to evade officers by running through the front yard. The suspect was apprehended without further incident. The other suspect was ordered out of the home and complied.”
Cole Gaffney, 31, and Tyrese Odom, 24, both of Aiken, were each charged with burglary and two counts of kidnapping. Gaffney was also charged with assault and battery of a high & aggravated nature and weapon possession for the alleged pistol-whipping.
According to warrants, Gaffney struck the 80-year-old man with a pistol and knocked him to the ground. He suffered knots on his head and face but refused to go to the hospital, the woman said.
The 58-year-old victim said Monday that she is still shaken by the home invasion. “(I) keep jumping from any little noise,” she said.
Both men are being held in the Aiken County Detention Center.
