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Regional Briefs: PTA president charged in theft of $6,294 from organization
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Published: October 28, 2009
NORTH WILKESBORO -- The president of the Parent Teacher Organization at C.C. Wright Elementary School was arrested Monday on a charge connected to the theft of $6,294 from the organization, authorities said.
Tesha Witherspoon Johnson, 33, of Twin Lakes Drive was served with a warrant for a felony count of obtaining property by false pretense, police records show.
North Wilkesboro police accused Johnson of using an organization debit card for such personal purchases as groceries, meals, clothing and other items during a spending spree that started in June and continued through Oct. 8.
The school's annual fundraiser, the Tiger Walk that has schoolchildren walking around the track, raised $14,700 last year from students' families and business donations, according to the school's Web site.
Johnson is scheduled to appear Jan. 20 in Wilkes District Court.
Convenience store is robbed by by three men; one had a handgun
Three men robbed a convenience store in northern Winston-Salem on Monday night, police said.
The robbery occurred about 7:20 at the Cameron One Stop in the 1100 block of Thurmond Street.
Police said that one of the robbers had a handgun and took cash, cigars and snacks before fleeing down the hill toward Row Street.
Tech company plans expansion in Hickory that will add 400 jobs
HICKORY -- Fiserv Inc., a Financial-technology company, plans to open a new location in Hickory and add more than 400 jobs.
State officials said yesterday that the company, based in Brookfield, Wis., plans to invest $4.9 million in Hickory during the next three years.
Employees at the center will provide customer support and other services, and the jobs, scheduled to begin in February, will pay an average annual wage of $25,368.
Fiserv provides data processing and information management for financial companies. The company has 20,000 employees worldwide.
North Carolina is providing an $800,000 grant for the expansion.
Catawba County had an unemployment rate of 13.6 percent in September.
Wells Fargo declares quarterly dividend of 5 cents a share
SAN FRANCISCO-- The board of directors for Wells Fargo & Co. declared yesterday a quarterly common stock dividend of 5 cents a share. The dividend is payable Dec.1 to stockholders registered as of Nov. 6.
Former Easley advisers deny scheme to funnel campaign funds
RALEIGH -- Advisers who once helped former Gov. Mike Easley on fundraising told state election officials yesterday there was no scheme to funnel money that the campaign raised for the N.C. Democratic Party back to Easley's committee to avoid individual caps on giving.
Onetime campaign treasurer Dave Horne and finance director Michael Hayden testified in the State Board of Elections investigation into Easley's campaign and the party, aiming the spotlight on campaign rules that allow state parties to give and receive big donations.
Gary Allen, a Charlotte-area developer now living in Florida, testified yesterday that he couldn't remember the details surrounding a $50,000 check he gave the party in June 2003.
However, documents submitted earlier this week show that Allen was concerned about delays in the boat ramp for a project called Oyster Harbour in Brunswick County. Allen denied that the donation had anything to do with the ramp project.
Ex death-row inmate pleads guilty to kidnapping family of four
CHARLOTTE -- A former death-row inmate accused of kidnapping a North Carolina grandfather and his family has pleaded guilty to several charges.
Suellen Pierce, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Department of Justice, said that Jerry Douglas Case appeared yesterday in federal court in Charlotte.
Investigators say that he threatened to kill Gastonia resident William Payne, his adult daughter and two grandchildren.
Court papers say that Case forced the family to drive around North Carolina and South Carolina for 12 hours in July. They escaped at a gas station when Case briefly left the vehicle.
He was later wounded in a shootout with police and hospitalized.
Case pleaded guilty to several kidnapping charges and to vehicle theft. His next court appearance has not been set.
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