The Triangle Trumpet

05/09/2025

Have you seen the yard on NC 96 between Youngsville and Zebulon with disjointed hand-painted words on a boat, large boards, and even the roadway?

Last week, the resident Travis Eugene Hodges, 59, was charged by the Wake County Sheriff's Office with pointing a shotgun at and threatening to kill five separate individuals, one of whom he also allegedly threatened with "burn[ing] his house down"

It's not exactly clear from the court documents how the events transpired, but Hodges was cited on July 25 with possession of drug paraphernalia after a deputy discovered a ma*****na pipe while frisking him (it's not clear why he was being detained)

July 24, the day before the court date on his citation, is when the incidents described in the later arrest warrants were charged

Hodges is charged with five counts each of communicating threats and assault by pointing a gun at five individuals (the relation between Hodges and the victims is unspecified)

He is also charged with resisting a public officer for "running inside" after a deputy investigating the assaults ordered him to walk towards the deputy, and with possession of a firearm by a felon (Hodges' criminal record includes a 2007 Wake Co. conviction for breaking and entering)

The warrants for the July 24 incident(s) were carried out three days later, on July 27, and Hodges was released on a total secured bond of $32,500

05/09/2025

REPORT: Florida criminals accused of breaking into over 20 vehicles across North Carolina

Michael Lee Grace and Marcus Lavon Felder, of Pompano Beach, FL, have extensive criminal records involving burglary and theft

03/09/2025

A Wake County detention officer has been caught trafficking co***ne, cannabinoid, and suboxone to inmates at the John H. Baker Jr. Public Safety Center, according to the Wake County Sheriff's Office

Hillary Morgan Seekins, 31, of Knightdale has been charged with three counts of possession with intent to sell/deliver, possession of controlled substances on jail premises, and conspiring with two unnamed inmates

Sheriff Willie Rowe says that the department took "immediate action" as soon as allegations were reported, and that "the community can remain confident that this office continues to uphold the highest standards of professionalism and accountability"

03/09/2025

Keep your eyes on the road, folks

30/08/2025

Nine apparently Middle Eastern-owned smoke shops have been raided by the Harnett County Sheriff's Office after reports of THC sales to children

Search warrants say controlled buys of vapes etc. found illegal THC levels, leading to the seizure of 64 pounds of THC and $49,033 in cash

According to the statement released by Keep Wayne Coats Sheriff, the department had received complaints regarding the sale of THC products to minors, which has been linked to overdoses and/or medical emergencies for minors including incidents at Harnett County schools requiring EMS response.

The HCSO lists the following individuals as the owners:
- Omer Faisal Alfaqih
- Ammar Qaid Al Mathil
- Imad Aied Shibli
- Hythem Ahmed-Ali Essa
- Maged Ahmed Almansoob
- Hasan Issa
- Mohamed Saleh
- Hani Saleh
- Rouf Saleh

26/08/2025

Rep. Guangya "Ya" Liu (D-Wake) has been accused of distracted driving on a Cary highway, with video appearing to show her holding her phone horizontally on the steering wheel as she drives

The citizen who captured the video says she was driving 10 mph under the speed limit, and was not using a self-driving mode

26/08/2025

A man previously accused of chipping a police officer's tooth during a traffic stop has been charged with felony littering for crashing his vehicle into the Wake Forest Reservoir after a police chase beginning "near Wendell," according to the Wake County Sheriff's Office

The WCSO says Kawan Lacarl Grant, 31, fled from an attempted traffic stop by a deputy at Edgemont Rd & Hodge Rd, but lost control near the intersection of Wait Ave & Traditions Grande Blvd in Wake Forest and crashed into the reservoir

Grant has been charged with fleeing arrest in a motor vehicle, felony littering (over 500 lbs), resisting a public officer, and possession of 20 grams of co***ne with the intent to sell/deliver

Grant has at least three prior pending cases in the Wake County courts, with charges including possession of ma*****na and possession of co***ne with the intent to sell/deliver

Grant also has pending charges for assaulting and chipping the tooth of an officer of the Wake Forest Police Department during a February 2024 traffic stop near Capital Blvd for driving without a muffler

16/08/2025

Is it too much to ask the North Carolina Department of Transportation to clean the graffiti off a bridge before dedicating it to a fallen deputy?

The NC DOT held a dedication ceremony earlier today for the renaming of a Neuse River bridge in honor of Wake Deputy Ned Byrd, who was ambushed and murdered nearby in 2022

Despite the large and organized dedication ceremony involving the Wake County Sheriff's Office, elected officials, etc., apparently no one thought to clean up the graffiti on the bridge which has been present since at least February

The graffiti includes political messages such as "no kid [sic] in cages," "BLM", and "Donald Dump"

14/08/2025

RALEIGH: Registered s*x offender rearrested on CSAM charge days after finishing 12-year sentence for statutory r**e

Joshua Allen Morgan, 38, has been charged with one count of second-degree s*xual exploitation of a minor after Wake County Probation and Parole found child s*xual assault material on his phone involving girls aged 10-12 during a probation check, according to the Wake County Sheriff's Office

In 2013, Morgan had been charged in Wake Superior Court with three counts of statutory r**e of a girl under 16 when he was 26, and was sentenced to 12-19 years in prison after pleading down to attempted statutory r**e

Morgan had only been released from confinement eight days prior to his August 13 arrest, according to NC Department of Public Safety records

Morgan is being held on a $250,000 secured bond

12/08/2025

An ALE investigation into the sale of fentanyl and co***ne outside Raleigh convenience stores has resulted a total of 101 felony charges for 8 defendants, including for dealing drugs within 1000 feet of Wake Young Men's Leadership Academy in Raleigh

Undercover Alcohol Law Enforcement agents identified individuals selling drugs in the parking lots outside ABC-licensed, and search warrants were executed at two Raleigh residences resulting in the seizure of fentanyl, co***ne, methamphetamine, and ma*****na

Arrestees:
• Prince Anthonee-India Taylor, 37, of Raleigh: 43 felonies, 3 misdemeanors
• Felicia Lynn Coovert, 23, of Louisburg: 12 felonies
• Ginger Michelle Kendrick, 23, of Mebane: 8 felonies, 1 misdemeanor
• Kaitlyn Johnette Street, 24, of Fuquay Varina: 11 felonies, 2 misdemeanors
• Tatyana Olivia Groves, 21, of Raleigh: 9 felonies, 1 misdemeanor
• Miah Shaleigh Lewis, 25, of Raleigh: 11 felonies, 1 misdemeanor
• Mykelti Fredrick Wynn, 32, of Raleigh: 6 felonies, 2 misdemeanors
• Christopher Rodricuz Brewington, 35, of Raleigh: 1 felony, 1 misdemeanor

09/08/2025

"Congenital embezzler"? One year after getting allegations censored, Wake Forest ex-commissioner charged with stealing $70k (ARTICLE)

Elizabeth "Liz" Simpers, 49, faces four counts of embezzlement

08/08/2025

Wake Forest ex-commissioner charged with embezzlement one year after bullying journalist into removing embezzlement allegations

Elizabeth Goddard Simpers, 49, is charged with four counts of embezzling a total of $69,348.19 from Wake Forest Area Chamber of Commerce when she was president, for:
- hardscape/masonry work/tree services/plumbing services at her home
- party bus rental
- orthopedic services
- professional photographs
- various amazon retail items, etc.

Simpers (who recently changed her name from Elizabeth Ann Simpers) reportedly resigned from the chamber in April 2024 after allegations of embezzlement were made

Those allegations were made public on July 17, 2024 by independent publisher Carol Pelosi of the Wake Forest Gazette; however, the article was removed less than two weeks later after Pelosi received legal threats from Simpers' attorneys

According to the article, it was "widely known" at the time of Simpers' election to Chamber president that she had previously embezzled funds as the associate branch director of the YMCA of the Triangle, which her father had paid back in a lump sum

Simpers served four-year one term on the Wake Forest Board of Commissioners (the town, not the college) in 2017 before losing reelection

Simpers was also named as the town’s North Carolina Main Street Champion in 2023

At the time the allegations were made public, Wake Forest Mayor Vivian Jones issued a statement claiming that the Wake Forest Police Department was not investigating because the Chamber "ha[d] not reported being the victim of a crime"

The WFPD's statement yesterday regarding Simpers' arrest referenced a "13-month investigation", indicating that the latest that investigation could have begun would have been very shortly after the mayor's statement

Simpers has been released on an $100,000 unsecured bond

EDIT: corrected a typo switching Simpers' and Pelosi's names