ASHEVILLE, N.C. --
Wednesday afternoon, the Asheville Police Department released a statement saying they are cooperating with a state investigation into missing drug evidence that was in the department’s property room.
The statement released by Asheville police Lt. Wallace J. Welch said, “The Asheville Police Department is fully cooperating with the District Attorney’s office and the State Bureau of Investigation to address a matter related to evidence located in the property room in the Asheville police department.
“An instance of missing evidence related to a criminal drug offense prompted the investigation. A third party audit is forthcoming and evidence will be opened, examined and compared against logs to identify if this was an isolated case or if other evidence was compromised. The property room has been sealed and outside auditors will complete an inventory to verify and ensure the integrity of evidence.
“The police department takes this issue very seriously. We are taking immediate corrective action to make sure all vulnerabilities are addressed.
“As a department, we pride ourselves on integrity and professionalism. Above all we know the public trust is essential to our work. For that very reason there will be seamless cooperation with the SBI and the District Attorney’s office to ensure timely review and resolution of this issue.
“In the interim, the men and women of the Asheville police department remain committed to providing the highest level of service to the community.”
No other information on the missing evidence or what case it was related to was immediately available.
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