Public records
By Other
Published in News on February 9, 2006 1:46 PM
Man is charged
in school thefts
Goldsboro police have cleared break-ins at Meadowlane Elementary School and the Wayne County Public Schools administration building and the theft of $11,000 worth of property with the arrest of a 35-year-old Goldsboro man.
William Vaughn Lee of North James Street was charged with two felony counts each of breaking and entering, larceny and possession of stolen goods. He was placed in the Wayne County Jail in lieu of a $50,000 secured bond.
Lee was accused of stealing several laptop computers, several desktop computers, a television, camera equipment and other items, Investigator Dale Foster said. The computers, television and camera equipment were recovered at a Goldsboro business.
Lee's first court appearance was scheduled for today.
Man shot
A 41-year-old Goldsboro man was wounded before dawn today in the Franklin Baking Co. parking lot at 607 N. Carolina St., according to a Goldsboro police report.
A bakery employee, Carlos Manuel Hernandez of Bonnie Place, was taken by ambulance to Wayne Memorial Hospital, where he was treated and released, a spokeswoman said.
Another employee told police that he had walked past the suspect, heard two shots, then turned around and saw the suspect running south on North Carolina Street.
Hernandez, who had been struck in the left thigh, limped to a door at the bakery, and the other employee called 911, the report said. Hernandez reportedly had a large amount of cash.
Home fire
A malfunctioning gas space heater was blamed today for causing a fire that heavily damaged a brick home at 111 Moore Allen St., a fire official said.
Two adults and two children escaped the fire, Mar Mac Fire Chief Bill Harrell said. The owner was at work. One adult and one child were released after emergency-room treatment for smoke inhalation.
Harrell estimated damage at $25,000 to the home and $10,000 to the contents. He said the home was worth $75,000 and the contents were valued at $50,000.
"Smoke was coming from both eaves" when firefighters arrived, Harrell said. "They did a good job in knocking it down. They didn't have to cut a hole in the roof. When they went inside, the damage was pretty bad. I thought we had saved more than we did."
About 16 Mar Mac, 12 Arrington and 12 Thoroughfare volunteers responded to the 11:45 p.m. call.
Scam warning
The Wayne County Sheriff's Office is warning businesses and banks of a continuing check-cashing scam.
Fifty-seven counterfeit payroll checks have been cashed at a BB&T branch in Smithfield. The checks were drawn on the Flanders Precisionaire account and made out to people with Hispanic names. All were cashed on the same day by six to 10 people.
Wayne County Sheriff Carey Winders said the crime fits the same pattern that occurred in August at Case Farms in Dudley.
Some of the identifying characteristics of the crime are:
*The suspects used fraudulent company credentials with photographs and made checks from a particular legitimate business.
*The checks bear the same number, and the amounts range from $350 to $400.
*Some people may cash more than one check and use several forms of identification.
*The suspects know when the company pays its employees.
*The financial institution may have an agreement with the company's bank not to require identification.
"Often times, we are asked what can we do to prevent this," Winders said. "The opportunity for this to occur is immediately eliminated by the company use of direct deposit."
Anyone with questions about this crime was asked to call the Sheriff's Office at 731-1481 or 911.
Crime of the Week
An attempted armed robbery at Aggie's restaurant at 2814 Cashwell Drive has been selected by Goldsboro-Wayne County Crime Stoppers as the latest "Crime of the Week."
As the restaurant owner, Qiang Ming Wang, was walking to his sport utility vehicle after closing the business at 10:10 p.m. Monday, he was approached by a tall black man with a handgun. Wang jumped in his SUV and started the engine, but the report said the suspect shot Wang twice. Wang was taken to Wayne Memorial Hospital, where he was treated and released. The gunman wore dark clothes and a dark mask.
Anyone with information on this attempted robbery or any other crime in Wayne County was asked to call Crime Stoppers at 735-2255 or police Investigator Chad Calloway at 580-4216. Callers may remain anonymous, and they may be eligible for cash rewards of up to $1,000, if their information leads to arrests in felony cases.
Vehicle found
A car that was reported stolen Sunday from Grantham was recovered Wednesday on A Street in Goldsboro. The two people inside were charged by the Wayne County Sheriff's Office with the theft.
Sylvester Mendoza Sierra, 28, and Mary Elizabeth Sierra, 24, both of North James Street, were charged with vehicle larceny and possession of a stolen vehicle. Each was placed in the Wayne County Jail in lieu of a $10,000 secured bond.
Detective Sgt. Rick Farfour saw the Chevrolet Lumina at a convenience store and arrested the couple. The car, valued at $3,000, was returned to the owner.
Accidents
Six people were injured and damages were estimated at $29,750 in five recent traffic collisions in Wayne County, officers reported.
*Two passengers were injured in a two-vehicle collision at 3:40 p.m. Wednesday at North George and West Ash streets, Goldsboro police said. Annette Jeanette Best, 49, of West Ash Street and Letrel Best, 23, of East Walnut Street were treated and released from Wayne Memorial Hospital, a spokeswoman said. Their driver, Lakisha Michelle Best, 26, of East Walnut Street, was charged with not having an operator's license. The other motorist, Danny Paul Sasser, 49, of Leslie Road, was charged a safe-movement violation. Damages were set at $1,000.
*Damages were estimated at $5,000 in a two-vehicle crash at 8:28 a.m. Wednesday at Wayne Memorial Drive and the entrance to Wayne Community College, police said. A southbound driver, Marshall Edwin Cox, 74, of Wayne Memorial Drive, was charged with a stoplight violation. The report said Cox's pickup truck had collided with a car that was leaving the college and making a left turn onto Wayne Memorial Drive. The other driver was identified as Sandra Kay Wheeler, 45, of Slaughter Street.
*Three people who were injured in a two-vehicle collision at 7:56 a.m. Tuesday on Blackjack Church Road were treated and released from Wayne Memorial Hospital, a spokeswoman said. One driver, Lester Melvin Cannon, 66, of Lucky Oak Road, was charged with driving left of center. The other driver, David Joshua Hamilton, 16, and his passenger, Hunter Hamilton, 13, both of Ridge Runner Drive, were on their way to school. Damages were estimated at $10,400.
*A driver was injured and her car was demolished in a wreck at 11:45 a.m. Tuesday on Nahunta Road, the Highway Patrol said. Amanda Sue Thigpen, 19, of O'Berry Road, Mount Olive, was treated and released from Wayne Memorial Hospital. The report said she had looked down to pick up a compact disc and the car ran off the right side, came back on the road out of control, crossed the center line, then ran off the right side again and overturned several times. No charges were filed. The car was valued at $5,000.
*A driver was injured and her car was destroyed in a wreck with a stopped tractor-trailer truck at 6:44 a.m. Monday on N.C. 111 near Mount Carmel Church Road, the Highway Patrol said. Gail Lancaster Fleming, 66, of N.C. 111 North, Pikeville, was listed today in good condition at Wayne Memorial Hospital, a spokeswoman said. The report said a tractor-truck had run out of gas and stopped partly in the road and partly in a store parking lot. The trucker, Willie John Thomas Burgess Jr., of Tarboro, was charged with impeding traffic. Damage to the truck was set at $50. Ms. Fleming's car was valued at $6,500.
Sex charges
A Goldsboro teenager was arrested Wednesday by Goldsboro police and charged with five felony sex offenses.
Raymond Lemuel Cheadle III, 18, of West Oak Street was charged with three counts of statutory rape and two counts of a statutory sex offense. He was placed in the Wayne County Jail in lieu of a $100,000 secured bond.
Embezzlement
A Princeton couple was arrested Wednesday by Goldsboro police and charged with felony embezzlement.
Neil S. Weeks told officers that he saw a N.S. Weeks Co. van at the Swop Shop at 510 S. George St. He went inside to see what was happening and found two employees. The employees said they had stopped to look at jewelry, but a store staff member said the couple had pawned a N.S. Weeks Co. air stapler.
Police were notified and they arrested Orvis Earl Swaney Jr., 33, and Teresa Westbrook Boyd, 41, both of Massey Holt Road. Each was placed in the Wayne County Jail in lieu of a $1,500 secured bond.
Mobile home fire
A fire that damaged the underpinning of a mobile home at 107 Angela Drive was turned over to the Wayne County Sheriff's Office for a further investigation.
The resident, Ellen Worrells, told deputies that she, her husband and four children smelled smoke at about 2 p.m. Wednesday. They looked outside and saw grass in the back yard on fire. The fire was put out. It caused an estimated $2,000 to the home and $50 to a telephone line.