December Police Blotter
There were two fender-bender vehicle accidents; neither were alcohol related, and both were minor incidents.
A resident reported being a victim of financial identity theft. The crime was committed outside of Hyde County, making it out of the Sheriff's Department's jurisdiction. Other agencies are investigating the matter.
A vehicle was broken into one night, and Deputies Jason Daniels and Rob King urge everyone to lock their cars and report any suspicious activity immediately. "Please call us when you hear something," Daniels said. "Call us when you see someone; there's a chance we could pass the person on the way to your location. And please keep your doors locked." There were also a few trespassing calls made to the local Office. No arrests were made, but Daniels said, "Don't do it again; just don't go there anymore."
Earlier in the month, the Carteret County Sheriff's Office contacted the Hyde County Sheriff's Department about a person coming from Cedar Island to Ocracoke by ferry. The previous night, Carteret County issued an arrest warrant for the male passenger. He was arrested upon arriving at Ocracoke. A female, who accompanied the man on the ferry from Cedar Island, found herself in trouble, too. Currituck County had issued multiple arrest warrants for her, so she was transfered into their custody and served papers. The man was transported to the holding facility in Manteo.
Some residents reported not hearing from or seeing an elderly woman for a couple days, so a welfare check was conducted. The woman had fallen and was unable to stand as a result, so she was transported to a hospital. Daniels reported that she is doing fine now. The Hyde County Sheriff's Department offers a welfare check program to residents upon request. If the service is requested, a deputy will call the resident each morning to make sure he or she is okay.
In the holiday spirit, many residents decorated their homes with lights to celebrate the season. Some have even decorated their golf carts. Daniels said, "I'm not trying to be the Grinch or anything," but any extra lighting on a vehicle – off-road lights, strand lights, and lights that illuminate the undercarriage of a vehicle, for example – is prohibited on state maintained roads. If you have auxillary lighting, you are allowed to have them on when the vehicle is parked or on a road not maintained by the state.
Just yesterday a camping trailer caught fire on Bryant Lane and sustained a significant amount of damage. The Hyde County Sheriff's Department assisted the Ocracoke Volunteer Fire Department at the scene.
On December 1st, Guire Cahoon was sworn in as the new Sheriff of Hyde County. Daniels said, "Everything is the same structure wise. There are the same deputies as before; no one was let go."
Daniels also said Sheriff Cahoon is going to make a point of coming to Ocracoke more often, and the Sheriff encourages anyone with issues or concerns to call his office.
"He has an open-door policy and an open line," said Deputies King and Daniels, "And he will call you back."
