COVID-19 UPDATE

As state officials on Wednesday announced that NC will remain paused in Phase 3 for three more weeks to monitor viral trends, numbers in the continue to build.

Burke County Public Health reported 34 new cases of COVID-19 Thursday afternoon.

Burke’s total of positive cases of COVID-19 now stands at 2-thousand-893.

425 cases are active, 2-thousand-396 cases are reported as recovered, and 6 residents remain hospitalized.

Health officials in McDowell County reported 15 additional cases Thursday, bringing the county total to 1-thousand-173 positives.

Caldwell County reported the 2nd outbreak at the Shaire Center after the first outbreak of

4 cases was closed on August 20th. The Shaire Center now has 7 new cases of COVID-19.

Caldwell added 49 new cases of the virus yesterday, for a new total of 2-thousand-307.

Catawba County added 67 new cases of COVID-19, for a total of 4-thousand-121.

Shooting Leaves One Critical

An early morning shooting Thursday at a Hickory apartment leaves one critical, and the suspect apprehended in the afternoon.

Hickory officers arrived at 2830 12^th Avenue Southeast to find 32-year-old Winter Devonne Brooks of Hickory suffering from a gunshot wound to the abdomen.

Reports say Brooks was able to tell police she was shot by her boyfriend, 34-year-old Andrew Mungro of Hickory.

At 12:30 p.m Thursday, Mungro was taken into custody by the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office after a deputy conducted a traffic stop of the suspect vehicle.

Police reports state Mungro left the scene of the shooting in a 2004 gold Chevrolet Trailblazer, armed with a semi-automatic handgun.

He is currently being held in the Catawba County jail without bond; charged with felony kidnapping and assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill inflicting serious injury.

Brooks was taken to CMC Charlotte, where reports list her in critical condition but stable.

A news release states a 12-year-old child was also at the residence at the time of the shooting but was not injured. 

Anyone having additional information about the incident should call Hickory Police at 828-328-5551.

Meth Trafficking Conviction 

A federal jury, sitting in Statesville has convicted a 37 year old Fresno

California man in connection with the distribution of meth via the US Postal

Service and FedEx and money laundering.  David Alexander Moralez, Jr. has been

detained pending sentencing, at which time he faces 10 years in prison and up to

20 years in prison for money laundering.  According to evidence presented at trial,

law enforcement in Newton and Hickory seized two pounds of meth during

controlled buys on December 18^th and 19^th of 2018.  The meth was also trafficked

to other locations throughout North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee. 

Girlfriend Choked

A Marion man is arrested for choking his girlfriend and interfering with 911.

McDowell deputies were called to a reported domestic disturbance at an Old Fort residence at 4 am on October 15^th.

An investigation revealed 33-year-old Thomas William Dalton had choked his girlfriend during a dispute, and when she called 911, he had reportedly grabbed the phone from her and ran into the woods.

Dalton was later taken into custody and charged with assault by strangulation, and interfering with emergency communication.