Clay Keel won’t be going on trial any time soon.
The former Lenoir County Sheriff’s Office investigator faces one count of felony trafficking of opiates — believed to be Hydrocodone — allegedly committed while he worked in law enforcement.
Keel retired from the LCSO on Dec. 19, 2011, and the State Bureau of Investigation obtained an arrest warrant on Dec. 30, 2011 and took him into custody. The warrant lists the official charge that Keel trafficked between 14 and 28 grams of an opiate.
Keel’s retirement and his arrest are reportedly not connected.
A grand jury issued a true bill of indictment on Keel on March 25, and he was formally arraigned on Aug. 15.
A new date for Keel’s appearance in Lenoir County Superior Court hasn’t been officially declared, but a staffer in the Lenoir County Clerk of Court’s Office said the District Attorney’s Office will issue court dockets for October soon and anticipates Keel will be scheduled for mid-October.
On that date, the case is likely to be pushed back.
“I know for sure my case will be continued again,” Keel said in a Sept. 17 email to The Free Press.
Attempts to reach Keel and his attorney, Dal Wooten III, were unsuccessful Tuesday and Wednesday.
Wes Wolfe can be reached at 252-559-1075 and Wes.Wolfe@Kinston.com. Follow him on Twitter at @WolfeReports.