NORH CAROLINA -- McCrae Dowless, the man at the center of the District 9 election fraud investigation, has been indicted. Thursday afternoon, he bonded out of jail.

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He’s facing several charges related to the election fraud investigation, including three counts related to obstruction of justice and ballot fraud in the 2018 election and four courts of those same charges in the 2016 election.

 

 

 
The Wake County district attorney made the revelation in a court document on Wednesday.

Dowless was the political operative Mark Harris hired during the election last fall in an effort to get out the vote.

As a result of a probe by the State Elections Board, it was determined a new election will be held.

“We believe that anybody that committed illegal acts in Bladen County, in Robeson County or anywhere else, if they had criminal intent they should be prosecuted. I do think the hearing exposed some of this on the Democrat side and those people ought to be prosecuted,” said NCGOP Executive Director Dallas Woodhouse.

“Yet again Republicans are embarrassing out state and they’re putting our state in national headlines and making us embarrassed and show that we didn’t have fair elections last time around every North Carolina voter deserves them going forward,” said NC Democratic Party Communications Director Robert Howard.

Others were also indicted Wednesday as a result of the 2016 and 2018 elections.

  • Caitlyn Croom – 2 counts for the period from 9/14/16 to 11/8/16
  • Matthew Mathis – 4 counts for the period from 9/14/16 to 11/8/16
  • Tonia Marie Gordon - 2 counts for the period from 9/19/16 to 11/8/16
  • Rebecca Thompson – 2 counts for the period from 3/21/18 to 5/8/18

Wake County District Attorney Lorrin Freeman says the investigation has taken place for roughly a year and is ongoing.

“Our job is to determine what criminal laws have been broken and to make sure that those people who broke them are held accountable and hopefully that moves us in the direction for restoring confidence in the voting process,” said Freeman.

Dowless is under a $30,000 bond and he's been ordered not to contact any of the co-conspirators indicted in the matter. He is expected in Wake County Superior Court on March 25.