News briefs:

Investigation updates

Death of Sharon Yates
Investigators with the Watauga County Sheriff’s Office and the State Bureau of Investigation continue to examine the circumstances of the death of Sharon Yates, 50, of Blowing Rock. Officers were called to Yates’ camper home on Clarence Newton Road at 11:30 p.m. on Nov. 28. The incident report reads Yates was dead on arrival.
Watauga County medical examiner Dr. Brent Hall said the cause of death was “blunt force chest trauma, secondary to a motor vehicle-pedestrian accident.”
The SBI was called in to assist WCSO within one week of Yates’ death. No further information has been released since the incident. Capt. Dee Dee Rominger of the WSCO said only that the investigation is continuing as of Thursday morning.

Explosives on Junaluska
A search warrant was conducted on Dec. 11 by officers of the Boone Police Department after an anonymous tip indicated a vacant house at 632 Junaluska Road may have contained explosives and a weapon.
Boone police officers were assisted in the search by members of the Wilkes County Sheriff’s Office Special Operations Unit bomb squad. Boone Fire Department and Watauga Medics were also on scene in case an emergency situation arose.
Materials suspected to be explosives and a rifle were seized. The materials are currently being tested, and Capt. William Greene of Boone Police Department said he hopes to have the results within the week. The investigation of those responsible for the above items is ongoing.
The owner of the property is a resident of Hillsborough. Greene said investigators do not believe the owner was aware of or involved in the suspicious activity in the residence.

— Melanie Davis, staff writer