The chair of the Surry County Board of Elections is facing charges after illegal drugs were found in his granddaughters’ ice cream earlier this month, authorities said.
James Yokeley, 66, is charged with contaminating food or drink with a controlled substance, felony child abuse and felony possession of Schedule I narcotics, according to the Wilmington Police Department.
He’s now facing calls to resign from the county elections board.
The charges are connected to an incident on Aug. 8 in Wilmington, North Carolina.
Police said Yokeley flagged down officers at the Sheetz gas station on Shipyard Boulevard to report two pills found in the recently purchased ice cream of his two juvenile granddaughters. Medics checked the girls and found that none of the substances had been ingested, police said.
After a test, police determined the pills contained MDMA and cocaine, according to warrants.
Investigators reviewed surveillance footage and found that Yokeley had placed the pills in the victims’ ice cream.
State Auditor Dave Boliek, who oversees election boards in North Carolina, said Yokeley should resign from the board.
“The arrest and investigation of the Surry County Board of Elections Chair is very disturbing. This matter distracts from election management in Surry County and must be addressed quickly and directly,” Boliek said.
“Our office is built on holding individuals accountable. He needs to resign, and Surry County needs a new Board of Elections Chair. If he doesn’t resign, I’ll be requesting the State Board take action today to remove him as Chair,” he said.
Yokeley was taken to the New Hanover County Detention Center and later released on a $100,000 bond.
Justin Pryor
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