Apr. 21—LENOIR — Just one week after an alleged accidental shooting sent two people to the hospital, the Lenoir Police Department along with Alcohol Law Enforcement (ALE) Gaming Unit carried a search warrant into the Friendly Mart located at 830 Connelly Springs Road on Thursday afternoon (April 21).
The warrant comes after an investigation which had been prompted by ongoing illegal activity associated with the location and a number of community complaints the department had received over the last several months, according to Chief Brent Phelps.
"It's unfortunate this type of activity goes on in our community," said Phelps. "Our officers, along with ALE Gaming Unit, are going to work to the best of our ability to enforce the law to the fullest extent."
There is evidence of various types of alleged illegal activity that has been occurring on the property, including illegal gaming. Lenoir police have made numerous arrests for various types of crimes at the location. Illegal gaming is often plagued with illegal drug activity, according to Phelps.
There are other stores in the city that have gaming machines and the Lenoir Police Department will continue to conduct investigations to make sure they are operating in a legal manner, the chief said.
Phelps said those operating gaming machines are responsible for knowing the laws and the legal boundaries for the machines.