HERE’S CAROLYN MARK WYFF NEWS FOUR AT SIX STARTS RIGHT NOW. A DISASTER LIKE THIS IS SOMETHING THAT YOU CAN’T REALLY FATHOM WHAT IT’S GOING TO TAKE TO CHANGE AND TO RECOVER FROM TAKING THE FIRST STEP TOWARDS RECOVERY FOLLOWING A LEAN. I’M REY LLERENA IN ASHEVILLE WITH GRANTS THAT SOON MAY HELP HOMES AND BUSINESSES REBUILD. LET’S MAKE IT CLEAR IN OUR CONSTITUTIONS THAT ONLY CITIZENS ARE ELIGIBLE VOTERS. COMMITMENT 2024 VOTERS IN BOTH CAROLINAS WILL MAKE DECISIONS ON CHANGES TO THEIR STATE CONSTITUTIONS. ADVOCATES EXPLAIN WHAT’S BEHIND THE MEASURE. A MILD NIGHT TAKING SHAPE AS OUR WARM UP CONTINUES. I’LL SHOW YOU THE STRETCH OF 80S FOR A TOWN NEAR YOU. RECOVERY FROM HALLOWEEN CONTINUES TONIGHT IN WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA. ASHEVILLE CITY COUNCIL HAS APPROVED MONEY FOR A MULTI-MILLION DOLLAR PROGRAM TO HELP REPAIR HOMES AND BUSINESSES FOLLOWING THE STORM. CITY LEADERS SAY IT’S BEING PAID FOR WITH MONEY THAT WAS AVAILABLE IMMEDIATELY. OUR REY LLERENA REPORTS FROM ASHEVILLE. AROUND $4 MILLION HAVE BEEN SET ASIDE TO HELP HOMES AND BUSINESSES REBUILD FOLLOWING HELENE’S DEVASTATING FLOODING. LEADERS SAY IT’S THE FIRST STEP TOWARD RECOVERING FOLLOWING THE STORM. MANNA FOOD BANK IS NOW OPERATING OUT OF A LEASED FACILITY IN MILLS RIVER AFTER HELENE DESTROYED ITS OLD LOCATION ON SWANNANOA RIVER ROAD. FLOODING DESTROYED ALL OF OUR INVENTORY, OUR EQUIPMENT, AND WE’RE LITERALLY STARTING FROM SCRATCH. SO YOU CAN SEE ALL OF OUR DONATIONS ARE SITTING ON THE FLOOR AND WE’RE STARTING FROM THE BEGINNING. THEIR OLD BUILDING IS AMONG THE SEVERELY DAMAGED STRUCTURES. THE CITY OF ASHEVILLE IS COUNTING. NEARLY A MONTH AFTER THE STORM. TUESDAY NIGHT, CITY COUNCIL UNANIMOUSLY APPROVED FUNDING FOR GRANTS TO HELP RECOVER. IT WILL GO TO BUSINESS RECOVERY GRANTS TO RENT ASSISTANCE AND A HOME REPAIR, WHICH ARE THREE GAPS WE’RE SEEING IN THE FUNDS THAT WILL BE GETTING AT A STATE FEDERAL AND FEMA LEVEL OVER TIME. OFFICIALS SAY THEY WILL BE LOOKING TO PARTNER WITH NONPROFITS WITHIN THE NEXT TWO WEEKS TO DISTRIBUTE WHERE THE MONEY IS NEEDED. THIS FIRST MONEY IS TO STOP THE BLEEDING. THERE ARE BUSINESSES THAT ARE STILL KEEPING PEOPLE ON PAYROLL OUT OF THEIR OWN POCKET, AND WE WANT THOSE PEOPLE TO KEEP THEIR JOBS, BUT WE WANT THOSE BUSINESSES TO SURVIVE. ALSO, THE FOOD BANK SAYS IT HELPS SERVE AROUND 158,000 PEOPLE PER MONTH BEFORE HELENE, IT WOULD NOT BE SURPRISED IF THAT NUMBER HAS DOUBLED. WE NEED YOUR SUPPORT TWO MONTHS FROM NOW, SIX MONTHS FROM NOW, BECAUSE IT’S GOING TO TAKE YEARS TO RECOVER FROM THIS. ASHEVILLE CITY LEADERS SAY WHILE THIS IS THE FIRST STEP TO RECOVERING FROM HELENE, THEY HOPE TO GET MORE FUNDING FROM THE STATE AND FEDERAL GOVERNMENTS IN THE NEAR FUTURE. REPORTING IN ASHEVILLE, REY LLERENA WYFF NEWS FOUR. RAY. THANK YOU. LET’S KEEP YOU OUTSIDE AND TAKE A LOOK AT THE WEATHER. A LIVE LOOK FROM OUR PEACE CENTER SKYCAM. NOW A GORGEOUS EVENING TAKING SHAPE, BUT IT CONTINUES TO BE SUNNY AND DRY. YEAH, IT’S BEAUTIFUL OUT THERE. CHIEF METEOROLOGIST CHRIS JUSTICE IS HERE. CHRIS, HOW’S TONIGHT LOOKING? OH, PICTURE PERFECT AND NOT AS COOL. I MEAN, WE’VE BEEN USED TO MORNINGS GETTING DOWN INTO THE 40S, WHICH IS ACTUALLY RIGHT WHERE WE SHOULD BE THIS TIME OF THE YEAR. BUT TONIGHT WILL NOT BE. WE’RE TALKING ABOUT TEMPERATURES ONLY FALLING TO THE MID 50S, WHICH IS ABOUT TEN DEGREES ABOVE WHERE WE SHOULD BE THIS TIME OF THE YEAR. RIGHT NOW, MOST OF US IN THE ENTIRE CAROLINAS ARE AT ABOUT 75 TO 80 DEGREES. IT IS WAY WARMER THAN IT SHOULD BE THIS TIME. OF THE YEAR. IT’S 78, IN PICKENS, RIGHT NOW. TO MY FRIENDS IN CLEMSON, IT’S CURRENTLY 78 DEGREES. WE’RE AT 77 IN SPARTANBURG AND IN GAFFNEY AT 75, IN BOTH ASHEVILLE AND HENDERSONVILLE. LOOK AT THE SUNSET TAKING PLACE RIGHT NOW OVER GREENVILLE. WE’VE GOT COMPLETELY CLEAR SKIES, AND THAT’S GOING TO ALLOW US TO HAVE A VERY NICE NIGHT. THOSE TEMPERATURES WILL COOL DOWN A BIT ONCE THE SUN GOES DOWN TO THE 60S, THEN INCHING DOWN TO THE 50S, BUT THAT’S KIND OF WHERE WE PUMP THE BRAKES. THEY’RE NOT COOLING AS MUCH AS WE HAVE BEEN. NOW, COMING UP, I’LL SHOW YOU OUR WARM UP THIS WEEK, FOLLOWED BY THAT COOL DOWN AND HOW LONG IT LASTS. THANK YOU CHRIS. RIGHT NOW IN SPARTANBURG COUNTY, THE VETERANS AFFAIRS FACILITY IS CLOSED DUE TO DAMAGE FROM HELENE. TODAY, LEADERSHIP PROVIDED AN UPDATE ON THE ONGOING REHABILITATION EFFORTS AT THE FACILITY. DESPITE THESE SETBACKS, THE COLUMBIA, VA HEALTH CARE SYSTEM HAS DEPLOYED MOBILE MEDICAL UNITS KNOWN AS SEA FORTS. THE UNITS ARE EQUIPPED TO HANDLE KEY FUNCTIONS INCLUDING ROUTINE FOLLOW UP CARE, JOINT INFECTIONS, AND BATTLEFIELD ACUPUNCTURE WITH THE EQUIPMENT BEING HERE ON GROUND, WE DON’T EXPECT ANY DELAYS. WE ARE REACHING OUT PROACTIVELY TO THE VETERAN POPULATION THAT HAVE SCHEDULED APPOINTMENTS TO SEE IF WE CAN SWITCH THE MODALITY OR SWITCH TO LOCATION. THE SPARTANBURG CLINIC EMPHASIZES SAFETY IS A TOP CONCERN AND PRIORITY, AND THE GOAL IS TO HAVE THE SPARTANBURG OFFICE OPEN BY THE END OF THE YEAR. THE GREENVILLE COUNTY SCHOOL BOARD HAS APPROVED THE ADMINISTRATION’S RESOLUTION TO REQUEST FORGIVENESS FROM THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY IN RELATION TO THE DAYS MISSED FROM HALLOWEEN. THE BOARD VOTED ON THE MEASURE LAST NIGHT. STUDENTS IN THE DISTRICT MISSED EIGHT DAYS DUE TO HURRICANE HELENE. THE DISTRICT ADMINISTRATION IS ASKING THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY FOR FORGIVENESS OF THOSE DAYS, SO THEY DON’T HAVE TO MAKE THEM UP. A DECISION WILL NOT BE MADE BY THE ASSEMBLY UNTIL AFTER LAWMAKERS RECONVENE IN JANUARY. COMMITMENT 2024. TONIGHT, AS WE COUNT DOWN TO ELECTION DAY. EARLY VOTING ACROSS THE CAROLINAS AND GEORGIA CONTINUES, AND MORE THAN 250,000 PEOPLE HAVE ALREADY CAST THEIR BALLOTS IN SOUTH CAROLINA. EARLY VOTING RUNS UNTIL SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 2ND IN SOUTH CAROLINA. IN NORTH CAROLINA, WE’RE TOLD MORE THAN 1.7 MILLION PEOPLE HAVE VOTED EARLY VOTING ALSO RUNS UNTIL NOVEMBER 2ND THERE AND IN GEORGIA, MORE THAN 1.9 MILLION BALLOTS HAVE BEEN ACCEPTED. THE LAST DAY TO EARLY VOTE IN GEORGIA IS NOVEMBER 1ST. WE WILL CONTINUE TO UPDATE YOU ON VOTING NUMBERS AHEAD OF ELECTION DAY FOR A FULL GUIDE ON EARLY VOTING, YOU CAN VISIT WYFF4.COM OR THE WF FOR MOBILE APP. VOTERS IN BOTH CAROLINAS WILL SEE AN ADDITION ON THE BALLOT. IT WOULD NARROW THE DEFINITION IN EACH STATE’S CONSTITUTION AS TO WHO HAS THE RIGHT TO VOTE IN STATE ELECTIONS. SENATOR JOSH KIMBREL WAS THE PRIMARY SPONSOR OF THE MEASURE IN SOUTH CAROLINA. HE HELD A NEWS CONFERENCE TODAY TO ENCOURAGE VOTER SUPPORT FOR THE MEASURE. IT ASKS CITIZENS TO APPROVE A WORD CHANGE IN THE STATE CONSTITUTION FROM EVERY TO ONLY A CITIZEN OF THE UNITED STATES WILL BE PERMITTED TO VOTE IN STATE ELECTIONS. IT PASSED THE LEGISLATURE WITH BIPARTISAN APPROVAL. WE’RE CONFIDENT IT WILL PASS. I WANT IT TO PASS OVERWHELMINGLY. I WANT IT TO BE VERY CLEAR TO EVERYBODY IN THIS STATE THAT WE DEFEND THE RIGHT TO VOTE AND THE INTEGRITY OF CITIZENSHIP AND THAT IF YOU’RE NOT HERE LEGALLY, WE’RE NEVER GOING TO ALLOW THAT TO HAPPEN IN SOUTH CAROLINA, SENATOR KIMBREL SAYS THIS WOULD PREVENT ANY FUTURE COURT RULING THAT MIGHT ALLOW NON-CITIZENS TO VOTE IN LOCAL ELECTIONS, WHICH HE SAYS IS CURRENTLY ALLOWED IN 19 U.S. CITIES. A FORMER LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER WILL SPEND DECADES IN. PRISON AFTER PLEADING GUILTY TO KILLING HIS NEIGHBOR. ACCORDING TO THE SOLICITOR’S OFFICE, 43 YEAR OLD JUSTIN MOODY WAS SENTENCED TO MORE THAN 30 YEARS BEHIND BARS WITHOUT PAROLE. HE PLEADED GUILTY TO MURDER PRIOR TO HIS UPCOMING TRIAL DATE IN GREENWOOD. DEPUTIES SAY 48 YEAR OLD OSCAR RUBIO WAS FOUND DEAD IN THE LIVING ROOM IN MAY OF 2023. A SPARTANBURG MAN HAS BEEN SENTENCED TO DECADES IN PRISON FOR STABBING HIS GIRLFRIEND. THE SOLICITOR SAYS JOVAN JOHNSON PLEADED GUILTY TO SEVERAL CHARGES, INCLUDING ATTEMPTED MURDER. THE CRIMES HAPPENED BACK IN JULY OF 2023. AUTHORITIES SAY JOHNSON REPEATEDLY STABBED HIS THEN GIRLFRIEND. GREENVILLE COUNTY DEPUTIES ARE INVESTIGATING A ROBBERY AT A BUSINESS ON WOODRUFF ROAD. IT HAPPENED THIS MORNING JUST AFTER 11 AT SMOKE VILLE VAPE SHOP. DEPUTIES SAY. A911 CALL CAME IN. ABOUT FIVE MEN GOING INTO THE STORE AND THREATENING THE CLERK. WE ARE TOLD DURING AN ARGUMENT. AT LEAST ONE OF THE MEN BEGAN TO TAKE ITEMS FROM THE SHELVES AND THEN THEY ALL RAN AWAY. ANYONE WITH INFORMATIO
Over 9 kilograms of methamphetamine seized in Upstate drug ring bust, deputies say
The Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Office announced on Wednesday, in conjunction with the United States Attorney’s Office, that three members of an Upstate drug ring have been sentenced to prison.(Video above: WYFF News 4 Evening Headlines)Deputies said three members of the drug ring have been sentenced to federal prison, and the final member has pleaded guilty for their role in a methamphetamine trafficking conspiracy.Court documents showed that on Jan. 18, 2023, Spartanburg County deputies pulled over Rebecca Elizabeth Whitesides of Mooresboro, North Carolina, on I-85 and searched her car. During the search, deputies found almost two kilograms of methamphetamine. Investigation into her bank accounts demonstrated that she was assisting others to conceal payments for drug proceeds.Whitesides, 54, was sentenced to 10 years in prison and also pleaded guilty to money laundering, officials said.On Feb. 22, 2023, Spartanburg County deputies conducted surveillance on Richard Brian Walker’s home and observed co-defendant Jeffrey Michael Wilson’s car arrive and leave. Law enforcement conducted a traffic stop on Wilson, finding more than 5,800 grams of meth and a loaded semi-automatic pistol with 19 rounds. Over the course of the conspiracy, Wilson was responsible for trafficking 50 kilograms of methamphetamine with Walker.Authorities then conducted a search warrant on Walker’s home and storage unit, finding over 500 grams of meth, 85 grams of fentanyl, a loaded pistol, a rifle, and an unmarked short-barreled AR-15 style rifle, commonly referred to as a “ghost gun.” Co-defendant Amanda Gail Tuck was also found on the premises.Walker, 49, of Chesnee, South Carolina, was sentenced to 22 and a half years in prison, additionally pleading guilty to possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, possession of a short-barreled rifle, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.Over a month later, on March 24, deputies in Cherokee County pulled Tuck over in a U-Haul truck and found almost a kilogram of meth in the vehicle.Tuck, 45, of Chesnee, was sentenced to nearly 6 years (70 months) in prison.The final defendant, Jeffrey Michael Wilson, 54, of Commerce, Georgia, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to traffic methamphetamine and to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. Wilson was convicted in a prior federal methamphetamine conspiracy case in 2000, officials said.United States District Judge Donald Coggins sentenced the defendants and accepted Wilson’s guilty plea. The court ordered each of the defendants’ sentences to be followed by a term of supervised release. Coggins will sentence Wilson at a later date. The maximum penalty for the offense is a life sentence. There is no parole in the federal system.
The Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Office announced on Wednesday, in conjunction with the United States Attorney’s Office, that three members of an Upstate drug ring have been sentenced to prison.
(Video above: WYFF News 4 Evening Headlines)
Deputies said three members of the drug ring have been sentenced to federal prison, and the final member has pleaded guilty for their role in a methamphetamine trafficking conspiracy.
Court documents showed that on Jan. 18, 2023, Spartanburg County deputies pulled over Rebecca Elizabeth Whitesides of Mooresboro, North Carolina, on I-85 and searched her car. During the search, deputies found almost two kilograms of methamphetamine. Investigation into her bank accounts demonstrated that she was assisting others to conceal payments for drug proceeds.
Whitesides, 54, was sentenced to 10 years in prison and also pleaded guilty to money laundering, officials said.
On Feb. 22, 2023, Spartanburg County deputies conducted surveillance on Richard Brian Walker’s home and observed co-defendant Jeffrey Michael Wilson’s car arrive and leave. Law enforcement conducted a traffic stop on Wilson, finding more than 5,800 grams of meth and a loaded semi-automatic pistol with 19 rounds. Over the course of the conspiracy, Wilson was responsible for trafficking 50 kilograms of methamphetamine with Walker.
Authorities then conducted a search warrant on Walker’s home and storage unit, finding over 500 grams of meth, 85 grams of fentanyl, a loaded pistol, a rifle, and an unmarked short-barreled AR-15 style rifle, commonly referred to as a “ghost gun.” Co-defendant Amanda Gail Tuck was also found on the premises.
Walker, 49, of Chesnee, South Carolina, was sentenced to 22 and a half years in prison, additionally pleading guilty to possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, possession of a short-barreled rifle, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime.
Over a month later, on March 24, deputies in Cherokee County pulled Tuck over in a U-Haul truck and found almost a kilogram of meth in the vehicle.
Tuck, 45, of Chesnee, was sentenced to nearly 6 years (70 months) in prison.
The final defendant, Jeffrey Michael Wilson, 54, of Commerce, Georgia, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to traffic methamphetamine and to possession with intent to distribute methamphetamine. Wilson was convicted in a prior federal methamphetamine conspiracy case in 2000, officials said.
United States District Judge Donald Coggins sentenced the defendants and accepted Wilson’s guilty plea. The court ordered each of the defendants’ sentences to be followed by a term of supervised release. Coggins will sentence Wilson at a later date. The maximum penalty for the offense is a life sentence. There is no parole in the federal system.
