Gregorys have long history
Page 6
Dear bursts into Winfali home
Page 2
Sports
Pages 9 and 10
Subscriber of the Week:
Hattie Riddick
The
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PERQUIMAMS COUNTY LIBRARY
110 W ACAOEMY ST
HERTFORD, NC 27BM-130S
October 10,2007
Vol. 75, No. 41 Hertford, North Carolina 27944
**News from NextDoor*^
35 cents
Former Hertford cop held for kidnapping
CATHY WILSON
Staff Writer
The Kitty Hawk police
officer charged in con
nection with the alleged
kidnapping of an Ahoskie
man worked as a police of
ficer in Hertford for about
six years.
Raymond C. Jedele, who
worked for the Hertford Po
lice Department from 1990
— 1996, is being held un
der a $10 million bond on
a first degree kidnapping
charge. Donald B. Smith-
wick of Ahoskie was ab
ducted from his home last
Thursday morning. As of
Monday, officials were still
searching for Smithwick.
Smithwick’s ex-wife,
Janice Denise Harrell of
Edenton, was also arrested
and charged with acces
sory after the fact of first
degree kidnapping.
Hertford Police Chief
Dale Vanscoy described
Jedele as a good officer, an
aggressive officer while he
worked locally.
“I was shocked when I
heard about it,” Vanscoy
said. “It about floored me.
He liked to do silly pranks.
After he left the force, we
didn’t stay in touch. Every
couple of years or so. I’d
get a phone call from him.
That’s about it.”
Jedele was hired as a
patrolman, but was pro
moted to sergeant while
on the local force. During
his tenure here, Jedele was
investigated by the SBI for
allegedly assaulting an
individual while on duty,
Vanscoy said.
According to Vans
coy, the SBI investigation
showed that Jedele at
tempted to serve a warrant
and the individual pulled
scissors on him. Jedele hit
the man with a flashlight.
Jedele was cleared of any
wrongdoing.
According to published
reports, - Smithwick was
taken from his home
around 6 a.m. Thursday
morning. A witness saw a
white man dressed in black
standing over Smithwick
in the driveway. Blood was
found in the driveway as
well as a Taser wire.
A little after 7 a.m., a 1988
Lincoln was involved in an
accident on the Chowan
River bridge. A highway
patrol trooper investigat
ing the accident reported
that the driver, Jedele, was
dressed in black. Later, au
thorities found the vehicle
at an Edenton residence
with traces of blood in the
trunk.
Smithwick’s pick-up
truck was found a short
distance from his house.
Blood was found inside the
cab of the truck.
Published reports also
state that Smithwick’s cell
phone was tracked to a cell
tower near Edenton, and
that Harrell reportedly
rode to the accident scene
with the tow truck driver.
Jedele appeared in
Hertford County Crimi
nal District Court Friday
morning, and denied hav
ing any part in the kidnap
ping.
Jedele was apparently
a friend of Smithwick’s
ex-wife. The Smithwicks
recently fought a custody
battle over their children
with Smithwick receiving
custody.
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CATHY WILSON
Staff Writer
A second pavement fail
ure will close the cause
way for at least another 30
days.
Sterling Baker, division
maintenance engineer
with the North Carolina
Department of Transpor
tation, notified local gov
ernment officials Thurs
day that another pavement
failure has occurred, this
time in an area that has
not felt construction traffic
and is closer to the bridge.
“This closure period
needs to be extended so
that we can repair anoth
er 100-foot section of the
causeway in addition to
the 50 feet of causeway we
are currently addressing,”
Baker stated in his memo.
The additional work
should take another 30
days to complete, with the
new anticipated opening
date pushed back to Nov.
19. The causeway was
originally expected to open
Friday.
“I do realize that all par
ties involved are deeply
concerned about the condi
tion of the causeway while
planning for the Trans
portation Improvement
Program (TIP) project that
addresses the replacement
of the drawbridge and
causeway moves forward,”
Baker continued. “There
fore, I would like to reiter
ate to all parties that the
department will commit
to continuing to perform
maintenance functions t t t •
Monument to be dedicated in November
Perquimans Weekly Photos by
CATHY WILSON
AREA SCHOOL CHILDREN
LEARNED how peanuts
are grown and harvested
today and yesteryear at
Springfield Farm dur
ing the "Heritage Grows
Here" farm tour Friday
and Saturday. Represen
tative Annie. W. Mobley
(left) was on hand to help
Mayor Fred Yates (right)
congratulate citizens hon
ored by Winfali during the
Oak Leaf Festival. Honor-
ees were Jeanne White,
Willie Mae Symons, M.
Shirley Wiggins and Da
vid Brookins. Hundreds of
people took advantage
of the weekend's fun and
fund raising events across
the county. *
this section remains func
tional and safe until such
time that the TIP project
addresses these issues.”
The causeway between
Hertford and Winfali was
closed Sept. 17 after a sec
tion of the road sunk eight
to twelve inches after the
concrete slab underneath
the roadway broke in
half. The river water actu
ally runs underneath the
causeway and highway of
ficials were concerned that
the water had eroded the
concrete.
NCDOT is installing pil
ings and building a bridge
over the old road and pav
ing on top of it. Message
boards have been installed
around the area notifying
vehicle traffic of the clo
sure with a detour route
identified.
Honorariums,
memorials
to help fund
project
CATHY WILSON
Staff Writer
Buy a brick. Honor a
veteran.
A monument honoring
all veterans will be con
structed on the county’s
courthouse square.
Preston Spears, a mem
ber of the county’s Vet
erans’ Monument Com
mittee, said the granite
monument has been or
dered, and the committee
is now selling bricks to
help pay for the monument
,as well as a paved walkway.
The monument will feature
emblems of all branches
of armed services as well
as the American flag and
an inscription.
The monument will
stand to the right in front
of the courthouse between
the sidewalk and tree in
the same general area of
the other monuments on
the square.
“We wanted something
that would blend in with the
surroundings, but stand on
its own,” explained Spears.
“We believe it will fit right
in with what’s there now,
and still be conscious of
tile historical aspect.”
Facing the courthouse,
the large monument to the
left is a monument to
CONTINUED on page 2
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THE VETERANS MONUMENT WILL honor all those
who have served in the military.
OLF
groups
to meet
SUSAN HARRIS
Editor & Publisher
Stan Winslow said no
new information was
shared with those attend
ing a Governor’s OLF
Study Group meeting in
Raleigh last week.
The chair of the local
No OLF Committee at-
tended the meeting along
with County Manager
Bobby Darden and Julian
Baker, a Whiteston farmer
who would lose land that
has been in his family for
generations should the
OLF locate in Perquimans
County.
All available OLF infor
mation will be be shared at
a meeting at the Belvidere
Fire Station on Oct, 15 at 7
p.m. The meeting is set to
prepare the community
to speak at a public hear
ing of the Governor’s OLF
Study Group set for Oct. 23.
The Study Group sent out a
news release on Oct. 3 stat
ing that the public hearing
date has been set, but no
time or location has been
determined. Winslow said
his group has received an
indication that the meet
ing will be held in Eliza
beth City.
Winslow said the navy
said that three to six of
the six new North Caro
lina and 11 new Virginia
locations will be chosen by
the Secretary of the Navy
for Environmental Impact
Studies.
He added that even if
the navy decides internally
that the OLF will not go in
Perquimans, the site will
stay on the list. He said it
is a procedural matter.
Weekend
Weather
Thursday
High: 83
Low: 57
Partly Cloudy
Football Friday
High: 75
Low: 50
Sunny
Farm Tour Saturday
High: 70
Low: 49
Sunny