David Mills Hancock, a 50 year old West Columbia native, pled guilty this week to two counts of Burglary Second Degree - Violent. Chief Administrative Judge Frank R. Addy, Jr., sentenced Hancock to 13 years. Under South Carolina law, these convictions are classified as violent and serious.

Senior Assistant Solicitor Angela Martin handled the prosecution of this case for our office.

On March 28, 2016, Hancock broke into the Cruisin Express during the nighttime, entered, and stole forty cartons of cigarettes. He left behind his DNA at the point of entry. Then in October of 2016, Hancock took his girlfriend’s car during the nighttime and broke into Maurice’s BBQ where he stole a cash register. The girlfriend had reported her car stolen. When Hancock returned home and told her what he had done, she called law enforcement who later found the register in the trunk of her car.

During the past two years, state prosecutors had been unable to find Hancock but recently located him serving a five year sentence in prison from a conviction out of Aiken county.

Hancock has a significant criminal history and has already spent over 23 years of his life in prison.