Tag Archive for: #localnews

Repository Helps Families, Law Enforcement, Public When Children Go Missing

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— information courtesy of the N.C. Center for Missing Persons

A new public resource has been launched to help families and law enforcement agencies locate missing children.

In 2024, there were 8,758 reports of missing children in the State of North Carolina. Until now, North Carolina has not had a unified way to notify the public when children go missing.  Additionally, photos of missing juveniles have not always been readily available to the public.

The Missing Child Repository includes all juveniles reported missing in North Carolina, regardless of the circumstances.  Family members can now submit a photo of a missing child to be included in the repository by emailing the child’s name and case number to missing@ncshp.gov.

“Our hope is that this public repository will aid in the location of missing juveniles across the state, as well as providing a means to identify juveniles that are unable to identify themselves,” said Morrissa Ahl-Moyer, Director of the N.C. Center for Missing Persons.

For more information about the N.C. Center for Missing Persons and to access the Missing Child Repository, visit https://nccmp.ncdps.gov/.

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“Purple Heart Community” Ceremony Friday, Mar. 7 In Henderson

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The City of Henderson will host a ceremony Friday, Mar. 7 to designate the region as a “Purple Heart Community.”

The program will take place from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. in front of the Henderson Police Department, 200 Breckenridge St.

Purple Heart recipients, their families and all veterans are cordially invited to attend.

This designation is intended to express gratitude to members of the military from the community who were either wounded in combat or who were killed in combat.

There are more than 900 Purple Heart locations across the United States honoring the 1.6 million Purple Heart recipients.

Tabernacle Methodist Pancake Fundraiser Nets $4K For Townsville Volunteer Fire Department

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Tabernacle Methodist Church of Townsville hosted a Pancake Supper to raise money for the Townsville Volunteer Fire Department.

The Feb. 28 fundraiser netted $2,000 and that amount was matched by the church’s Missions Team for a total donation of $4,000.

The fire department recently purchased a new truck replace its 1983 Ford F-5000 Engine truck.

The new truck will help the department’s ISO rating, which currently is a 6 – but that’s down from a previous rating of 9. The lower the rating, the better. The rating affects homeowners’ insurance costs.

The volunteer fire departments each received $130,000 from the county to operate and they also are reimbursed for part-time employees. But like the other volunteer fire departments, they rely on fundraisers and donations from the community. Townsville VFD has boot drives on Memorial Day weekend and Labor Day weekend and the annual stew sale is the first Saturday in December. Mark Saturday, Dec. 6 on the calendar to purchase stew this year.

Tyrone Terry is the chief of the Townsville fire department, which also runs first responder calls into Mecklenburg County, VA, and provides mutual aid with fire calls. Mecklenburg County kicks in $4,500 for those services.

Catawba Sheriff’s Office Looking For More Possible Fraud Victims In Multi-County Conspiracy Case

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From the Catawba County Sheriff’s Office

Investigators with the Catawba County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigations Division are asking for the public’s help in identifying additional persons who may have been victimized in a multi-county fraud conspiracy.

Virgil Garrett, 64, and his son Noah Garrett, 27, have been charged with obtaining property by false pretense and felony conversion, for allegedly obtaining commercial vehicles and heavy equipment through rental agreements and then fraudulently selling them to buyers across western North Carolina. These buyers were allegedly convinced by this father-son duo they had a legal right to sell this equipment. Investigators believe this fraudulent practice has been occurring for several months or longer.

Noah Garrett is currently held in the Catawba County Detention Facility under a $750,000 secure bond. Virgil Garrett is currently held in the Catawba County Detention Facility under a $600,000 secure bond.

“We are confident there are more victims out there who have not yet come forward” said, Sergeant Stobbe, lead investigator in the case. “If you or someone you know has been deceived by these individuals, we strongly urge you to contact our office. Even if you didn’t realize you were a victim at the time, we want to hear from you.”

Multiple charges are pending against the Garretts. Investigators are working to identify the full extent of this operation and the total amount of financial loss to the victims.

Anyone who believes they may have been victimized or who has information related to these cases is encouraged to contact the Catawba County Sheriff’s Office at 828.464.3112 or astobbe@catawbacountync.gov.