Press Releases

Offender Jonathan M. Lechner (#1134193) died Wednesday night at Pasquotank Correctional Institution after an apparent suicide.He was found unresponsive in his cell at 9:06 p.m.

On Tuesday, July 7, at 5:33 am, the State Highway Patrol responded to a fatal vehicle collision on NC 50 at Old Drug Store Road.  A 2016 Dodge Charger was traveling north on NC 50 when it struck a pedestrian who was believed to be sitting in the travel lanes.

The North Carolina Department of Public Safety is continuing its efforts to contain and reduce the spread of COVID-19 in state prisons by conducting testing of the offender population statewide.

The State Highway Patrol is continuing to investigate a serious collision involving one of its members from today in Charlotte.  On Saturday, July 4, at approximately 8:36 am, Trooper Adolfo A.

Following implementation last month of a plan to provide COVID-19 testing for youths housed currently in state secure custody facilities, final test results received this week show that all juveniles who agreed to undergo testing were not infected by the coronavirus at the time they were tested.

The State of North Carolina and FEMA have approved $2.9 million to reimburse the North Carolina Department of Transportation for debris removal costs following Hurricane Florence.

In anticipation of the July Fourth holiday weekend, the State Highway Patrol is encouraging motorists to drive responsibly when traveling to their intended destinations. 

The State of North Carolina and FEMA have approved $2.9 million to reimburse the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services for mosquito abatement costs following Hurricane Florence.

Two offenders who escaped Thursday night from the Catawba Correctional Center in Newton were captured around 12:30 p.m. today without incident at the Baymont by Wyndham hotel in nearby Hickory.

State correctional and local law enforcement officers from Newton and the Catawba Sheriff’s Office are seeking Catawba Correctional Center, minimum custody offender Nhia Vue (#1093002), who was reported missing from the facility June 25. Vue was last seen in the yard at approximately 9 p.m.

State correctional and local law enforcement officers from Newton and the Catawba Sheriff’s Office are seeking Catawba Correctional Center, minimum custody offender Juan McDonald (#1132541), who was reported missing from the facility June 25.

The State Highway Patrol is requesting assistance from the public in locating a hit-and-run vehicle responsible for the death of a pedestrian in Cumberland County. On Thursday, May 21, troopers were called to NC 87 near Sand Hill Rd where they located Timothy Wayne Slade, 51, of Hope Mills.

On Wed., June 24 at approximately 8:57 a.m., the State Highway Patrol responded to I-40 in Wake County due to several vehicles traveling at a slow rate of speed near the 298 mile marker.

Over the weekend, four individuals were shot, two were killed at an illegal bar in Edgecombe County. 

Conrad Paul James, 27, is charged with inciting a riot (felony), 1st degree trespass, resisting an officer and injury to personal property, according to arrest warrants. The warrants are for events that took place on State Capitol Grounds on Friday and Sunday nights.