Lieutenant of Special Operations - Lieutenant Phillip Furtick

Lieutenant Phillip Furtick is the Lieutenant of Special Operations. Furtick's entire law enforcement career has been with the Orangeburg County Sheriff's Office. Prior to joining the Sheriff's Office, Furtick was a member of the United States Marine Corps. Furtick continues to serve his country as a member of the South Carolina National Guard.

Furtick is a certificated bloodhound and canine handler. He has received the Sheriff's Office Deputy of the Year award and the Rotary Deputy of the Year award. A certified police sharpshooter by the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division, Furtick is also a member of the SWAT team.

The Orangeburg County Sheriff's Office maintains canine (K-9) teams that assist deputies in a variety of law enforcement situations. Canine teams are trained for a particular objective with extensive training prior to any operation and continuous weekly training to maintain the highest level of efficiency.

The Bloodhound Tracking Team assists with tracking criminals, finding missing or abducted persons, apprehension of suspects for crimes such as rape, robbery, burglary, murder, and prowling, as well as search and recovery efforts. Our narcotics detection dog is utilized to find the scent of marijuana, heroin, methamphetamine, and cocaine. These animals are also responsible for locating narcotics that have been hidden in houses, cars, and various other locations.

The Special Operations Unit is a highly skilled unit that is deployed into areas of the county to investigate citizen's complaints and to be an immediate crime deterrent. The unit also operates and handles the majority of the tracking and narcotics canine officers of the Sheriff's Office. These Officers also investigate criminal cases and perform all other law enforcement duties.

Commander of the Special Weapons and Tactics team -
Lieutenant Dannie Thomas

Lieutenant Dannie Thomas is the commander of the Special Weapons and Tactics team. Thomas has 14 years law enforcement experience and he has served 9 years with the Orangeburg County Sheriff's Office. Thomas previously served the OCSO in the Field Services Division as a shift lieutenant.

He has previously served his country in the United States Navy and as a member of the South Carolina Army National Guard.

He is certified as a police sniper by the Florida SWAT Association and has been certified in more than a dozen trainings directly related to SWAT deployments. Thomas holds several instructor certifications in firearms and weapons. He is also a Fire Instructor at the SC Fire Academy and a certified firefighter.

 

SWAT - The Special Weapons And Tactics, also known as SWAT, is a unit of deputies highly trained in various weaponry and tactics. SWAT is used in high risk situations where the potential of danger is great. Common occurrences where SWAT is needed are hostage situations, barricaded persons, executive protection details, high risk warrant service and fugitive apprehension. Through the well-trained team concept, combined with special weapons and tactics, the goal of SWAT is to apprehend dangerous persons without death or injury to the persons involved.