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A North Carolina man has been charged in connection with the investigation into a theft from an ATM at a bank in Roan Mountain which occurred earlier this month. Investigators of the Carter County Sheriff’s Office have obtained warrants charging Jeremiah Ayers, 39, of Green Mountain, N.C., with theft of property ($60,000 to $249,999) and vandalism ($60,000 to $249,000).
Ayers is currently in custody in Yancey County, N.C., awaiting extradition back to Carter County to face the charges.
The investigation into the theft began in the early morning hours of January 10 when Carter County 911 received a silent alarm notification from the ATM located at the Carter County Bank branch office located in Roan Mountain. Deputies were dispatched to the location and found the ATM had been knocked off its concrete foundation, moved behind the bank, and broken into. The suspect removed an undisclosed amount of cash from the ATM and fled the scene. Security camera footage from the bank captured images of the suspect as well as the suspect’s vehicle. During the investigation, the suspect was identified as Ayers,and a search warrant was executed for his cellphone records. Data obtained from that search warrant placed Ayers in the vicinity of the bank at the time the ATM’s alarm alerted 911. Investigators obtained an arrest warrant charging Ayers with theft and vandalism and alerted North Carolina authorities of the active warrant.
Officers in Yancey County located and arrested Ayers around 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 23, and CCSO Investigator Preston White responded to the detention center in Yancey County where he interviewed Ayers regarding the theft.
“I am proud of the hard work my investigators put into solving this case and identifying the suspect,” Sheriff Mike Fraley said. “I would also like to thank the officers in Yancey County for helping us apprehend Ayers.”

“I couldn’t be more proud of our investigators and the hard work they put into this. It comes down to good old-fashioned police work. Our officers went door-to-door talking to neighbors and businesses getting information,” Fraley said. “The information they obtained led to the identification of the suspect. We couldn’t do this without the public’s help. No matter how small a piece of information is, it may just be the piece we need to solve the case.”

When asked if he believed the theft from the ATM in Roan Mountain was linked to other ATM thefts in the region:

“I don’t think this one is tied into the other ATM thefts. The MO is not the same as those other incidents.”