ANOTHER DEPUTY TAKES PLEA

RALEIGH - A former sheriff's detective pled guilty Monday to fraud
charges related to private work he did for a former elected official
while on duty. Gary Warren Odum, 37, of Lumberton, also pled guilty
to illegally programming satellite TV cards and selling them. Odum
resigned from the Sheriff's Office on Tuesday.

Two other former deputies, Paul Pittman and Billy Hunt, last month
plead guilty to receiving taxpayers' money for helping landscape the
yard of a former elected official and working at that person's
campaign fund-raiser. The U.S. Attorney's Office didn't name the
former elected official in the bill of criminal information, but it
has been widely reported that the deputies helped former Sheriff
Glenn Maynor while on the clock. Maynor, who has not been charged
with a crime, resigned in 2004, citing health reasons. Federal
prosecutors say Odum was instructed by his supervisors to record the
hours worked for private benefit for Maynor as if he performed his
duty as a law enforcement officer. The value of that work exceeded
$5,000, according to the statement from the U.S. Attorney's Office.

Odum becomes the sixth deputy to take a plea deal as part of an
on-going investigation of the Sheriff's Office.

Sheriff Kenneth Sealey said until Odum's resignation Tuesday, he had
not been aware of the charges against the deputy.

"It's makes you feel sad to see one of them lose their job and be
charged with a crime," Sealey said.

Odum worked as a road deputy, a school resource officer, a detective
in the Juvenile Division and most recently as a detective in the
Major Crimes Division. Odum faces a maximum sentence of five years in
prison, two years supervised probation and a $250,000 fine for each
charge. A sentencing hearing has not been set. Early this month,
former deputies Roger Taylor, C.T. Strickland and Steven Lovin were
also charged with illegally programing satellite cards. Taylor,
Strickland and Lovin were first indicted in June on a host of
racketeering and other charges, including arson and stealing money
from drug dealers. Their trial has been rescheduled for March. Former
Deputy James O. Hunt, 39, pled guilty in July to conspiracy to commit
money laundering and admitted to stealing more than $160,000 during
six interstate traffic stops with his partner, Lovin.

He is scheduled to be sentenced in federal court on Dec. 13 along
with former Deputy Joey Smith. Smith pled guilty last month to
conspiracy to commit money laundering. Federal investigators have
said he misused about $4,000 that has been seized from drug dealers.

Former Deputy Kevin Meares, 37, pled guilty last month to conspiracy
to commit money laundering and admitted to stealing about $25,000
earmarked to pay informants. Meares is scheduled to be sentenced in
federal court on Dec. 12.