An elderly man was assaulted and robbed at gunpoint by two men after giving them a ride to a gas station, according to the Aiken County Sheriff's Office.
The incident happened about 2:30 p.m. Friday near Pinecrest Avenue, according to a sheriff's report.
The 71-year-old victim told officers he went to locate a friend at a place called "the Spot" near Pinecrest Avenue and Morgan Street, but his friend wasn't there.
The victim said two men approached him and asked for a ride to the Lucky 7 on Hampton Avenue to get some drinks, police said. After arriving at the store, one of the suspects exited the vehicle, bought an orange drink and got back into the vehicle, police said.
The victim said he drove down Terry Street and then turned onto Pinecrest Avenue with the two suspects, at which point the suspect in the front seat threw his drink out the window, produced a silver pistol, and struck the victim in the right eye with it, police said.
That suspect then took the victim's wallet, threatened him, and raised the pistol toward the victim, who grabbed it in an attempt to block it, according to the report.
The second suspect, who was in the backseat, began striking the victim in the back of the head, the report states.
The suspects exited the vehicle, and the victim sped off, police said. He told officers he stopped at Aiken Public Safety when he became "woozy."
Officers saw the injury to the victim's face and collected the orange drink bottle from Pinecrest Avenue. The victim described the armed suspect as a black male about 5-foot-10 with a "square" face, shoulder-length dreads and full-sleeve tattoos on both arms. He was wearing a dark sleeveless shirt, police said.
The second suspect is described as a black male about 5-foot-10 with a slender face, a long goatee and shoulder-length hair. He had tattoos on his left arm, according to reports.
Teddy Kulmala covers crime and court.