Sheriff Carter's Newsletter: 06/01/2015

National Night Out 2015

It's America's Night Out Against Crime!
The "32nd Annual National Night Out" (NNO), a unique crime/drug prevention event sponsored by the National Association of Town Watch (NATW).

We cordially invite you and your community to be a part of our NIGHT OUT 2015 team.

Event will be held this year on Tuesday, August 4th from 6pm-9pm.

Current locations as of 6/30/15 are;

1. 3731 Woodside Dr. St Andrews Area

2. 4129 Steele Bridge Rd

3. 453 Lees chapel Ch Rd

4. 2709 Brookhaven Dr Brookhaven Sub Division

5. 1400 Web St. VFW

6. 60 Pickard Rd Northwest Pocket Fire Station

7. 2160 Pine Forest Rd Lemon Springs Fire Station

8. 236 Castleberry Rd Robinson Chapel Ch

9. 4141 S. Plank Rd Center Ch

10. Cumnock Community at the park with Chatham Co

11. 3084 Khalif Court Sanford Gardens

12. 5708 Quail Ridge Dr Quail Ridge Golf Course @ the pool

13. 37 A Indian Trail Carolina Trace Fire Dept.

14. 4522 Buckhorn Rd Chestnut AME Zion Ch

15. 6 Gettysburg Ct Dixie Acres

Last year's National Night Out campaign involved citizens, law enforcement agencies, civic groups, businesses, neighborhood organizations and local officials from over 15,000 communities from all 50 states, U.S. territories, Canadian cities and military bases worldwide. In all, over 37 million people participated in National Night Out 2014.

NATIONAL NIGHT OUT is designed to:

Heighten crime and drug prevention awareness;
Generate support for, and participation in, local anti-crime programs;
Strengthen neighborhood spirit and police-community partnerships; and
Send a message to criminals letting them know that neighborhoods are organized and fighting back.

If you reside in the county jurisdiction and are interested in organizing, hosting or helping, contact Sgt Sam Elliott @ 919-775-5531 ext.5629.

Patchetts Creek Female Charged With Murder

Christina Naomia Rivera (40) H/F of 210 Patchetts Creek Ln. Sanford was arrested for 1^st degree murder and misdemeanor child abuse.

The Lee County Sheriff’s Office was called to 210 Patchetts Creek Ln. Sanford on June 5^th, 2015 @ 4:36 PM to investigate an unresponsive person.

Robert Wayne Mathews (32) W/M of 210 Patchetts Creek was found by EMS workers on the living floor of the residence unresponsive and was transported to CCH-ER in attempts to resuscitate Mathews.

Christina Rivera (girlfriend) reported to officers on scene she had returned from the grocery store around 3 PM and found Mathews on the floor and believed he was asleep. After retrieving her daughter from the bus stop, their daughter in common, attempted to wake Mathews and realized he was not breathing.

Rivera later admitted to investigators she and Mathews had gotten into an argument over drugs and she gave Mathews a lethal dose of Heroin. Rivera admitted Mathews had collapsed hours before she attempted to render assistance to him.

Rivera was held under no bond.

Take Care Of Pets During Severe Weather

Sheriff Carter and his staff would like to remind owners of proper "petiquette" during days of excessive heat.

Never leave your pet in a parked car, whether the windows are cracked or if the car is parked in the shade. Walk your pet on grass when possible to avoid hot asphalt, and adjust your pet’s exercise in accordance with the temperature. Always offer a shady rest area and cold drinking water when outside.

Residents with concerns over a pet’s safety should call 919-775-5531. In North Carolina, animal cruelty is a Class I misdemeanor, a penalty that carries a fine of $1,000 and up to one year in jail.

Reward Offered for Information Leading To Arrests

LCSO has seen a slight increase in the larceny of catalytic converters over the past few weeks. We're offering rewards to anyone with information leading to the arrests and conviction of those involved.

These thefts typically happen to vehicles that are parked for prolonged periods in large lots, such as shopping centers, parking lots or company parking lots.

Vehicles that sit higher from the ground, such as trucks, pick-ups and SUVs, are particularly vulnerable to catalytic converter theft because thieves can slide underneath without having to jack up the vehicle to gain access to the converter.

To combat catalytic converter thefts follow these tips:

Always park in well-lighted areas
At shopping centers and other similar parking lots, park close to the entrance of the building or near the access road where there's a lot of traffic
If you own or work at a business or factory, park within a fenced area that's busy during the day and secured at night
Engrave your license plate number on the converter to make it traceable
Purchase a vehicle security system and make sure it’s set to trigger with just the slightest motion
Visit a local muffler shop and have the converter secured to the vehicle’s frame with a couple of pieces of hardened steel welded to the frame
Check out the different types of catalytic converter theft deterrent systems at your local auto parts store or online

Please contact our department at 919-775-5531 if you have information!

Craigslist and E-Commerce Transactions Just Got A Little Safer

How many times a week do we hear of stories where innocent people are victimized by scams from places like Craigslist, OfferUp and other e-commerce sites?

"If you plan on buying or selling items via Craigslist or any other online site, we want to offer some assurance of the safety of the individuals and suggests that our "Safe Zone" be used to protect both the buyer and seller," said Sheriff Carter.

Effective July 1st, 2015, the Lee County Sheriff's Office will begin to offer a "Safe Zone" transaction area for the citizens of Lee County! This program is part of our Community Policing Unit (CPU).

Interested individuals will be asked to contact the CPU to set a time/date, Monday through Friday, between the hours of 8am-4pm when they plan to meet the seller or buyer. Parties will meet in the lobby of the Sheriff's Office along with a member of the CP unit and if so desired, serial numbers can be queried to check the validity of the item(s).

"My attempt is to be proactive and to deter the criminal element during these e-commerce transactions and to protect our citizens from senseless scams or injury.", said Sheriff Carter.

To arrange an appointment, please contact the CPU at 919-718-4561, ext. 5607 or 5629.

For more information, visit these sites!

Deep River Resident Arrested for Growing Marijuana

On Friday June 12^th Lee County Sheriff’s Office Narcotics agents were tipped that numerous Marijuana plants were growing behind Shady Oak Apartment complex located at 97 Deep River Road Sanford.

Agents investigated the tip and located 16 Marijuana plants growing at the rear of the apartment complex.

On Tuesday June 16^th Agents arrested and charged Dayveon Alan Scaggs age 25 of room 5 Shady Oaks Apartments with 1 count of felony Manufacturing Marijuana and 1 count of misdemeanor possession of drug paraphernalia. Scaggs was jailed under a $10,000.00 secured bond.