Deputies: Gas station clerk stages robbery to avoid deportation

FAIRFIELD COUNTY, S.C. — On March 9, at 8:50 p.m., the Fairfield County Sheriff’s Office responded to a reported robbery at Monticello EZ Mart at 3888 State Highway 215 South. The store owner, Birenkumar Patel, reported that $379 was stolen by a masked suspect who brandished an object presented as a firearm. An extensive investigation by the Fairfield County Sheriff’s Office determined that the robbery was staged.