Local, state, and federal authorities arrest nine in an Eastern Burke County bust. Last week, the Burke County Narcotics Task Force assisted by federal and state agencies responded to 2263 Liberty Church Street Hickory to serve a federal warrant. While attempting to make contact with the subject in question, a news release states officers located several subjects inside the home. Once contact was made with the subject initially sought, law enforcement obtained a search warrant for the property. Nine individuals were arrested as a result of the search , including the two residents of the property - 42-year-old Mark Anthony Setzer - held on unspecified federal charges, and 47-year-old Kenneth Wayne Setzer for possession of a firearm by a felon and resisting arrest. The other seven were arrested on various charges including resisting arrest and failure to appear. All were placed in the Burke Catawba District Confinement Facility.

A pair from Marion was arrested and charged in connection with a vehicle theft. The 2006 Dodge truck was stolen from the owner's driveway on Christopher Road in Marion. McDowell officers later stopped a truck matching its' description and arrested 32-year-old Adam Lee Harding and 30-year-old Nisha Lucille Hollifield. Both were charged with possession of a stolen motor vehicle. The truck - valued at $2500, was recovered.

A Caldwell County is dead after a tractor trailer struck a car in the Town of Catawba Monday afternoon. The accident occurred at the intersection of US Highway 70 East and Oxford School Road. Reports say 91-year-old Frank Arthur Jr., of Lenoir died at the scene.

COMMA Director Dr.Jim Smith has been selected to serve on the 2018-2019 South Arts Advisory Committee. The selection will allow Smith to aid in furthering the professional development offerings at this year's Performing Arts exchange in Orlando in October. He will be working to shape workshops that meet the needs of the field for presenters, agents, managers, and artists. Founded in 1975, South Arts is located in Atlanta and is a non-profit regional arts organization serving nine states including the Carolinas, Georgia, and Tennessee.