County elections chair in NC charged for putting drugs in granddaughters’ ice cream

A North Carolina county elections chairman has been arrested after allegedly placing cocaine and MDMA into the ice cream of his two granddaughters, according to officials.

Police said James Edwin Yokeley Jr., 66, chairman of the Surry County Board of Elections, flagged down an officer at a Wilmington gas station on August 8 and reported that the children had found pills in their ice cream from a nearby Dairy Queen, according to the Wilmington Police Department.

During the investigation, it was determined by video footage that Yokeley had been the one who placed the pills into both victims’ ice cream, police said.

The children discovered the objects before consuming them, and medical personnel confirmed they had not ingested the substances. An arrest warrant cited by WRAL said the pills tested positive for cocaine and MDMA.

Yokeley was charged with contaminating food or drink with a controlled substance, possession of a Schedule I narcotic, and felony child abuse. He was booked into the New Hanover County Detention Center and later released on a $100,000 bond.

The motive behind Yokeley’s actions has not been determined, and police said the investigation remains ongoing.