ASHEBORO N.C. – A registered sex offender has been arrested and charged after the Sheriff’s Office was notified he had been on school grounds.
On October 12th, 2023, a Randolph County Sheriff’s Office SRO was notified that Christopher
Timothy Ward, a registered sex offender, had been on a school campus.
Ward, who currently resides in Thomasville, was convicted in 2010 for two counts of Indecent Liberties with a Minor.
Under NC law certain registered sex offenders are prohibited from being in, at, or near certain places. According to an article on North Carolina Criminal Law, a UNC School of Government Blog, a sex offender convicted of a sex crime where they were a parent or custodian, if the offense was with a student, or when the victim was under the age of 16 at the time, are prohibited from being on the premises of any place intended primarily for the use, care, or supervision of minors, which includes schools, children’s museums, child care centers, nurseries, and playgrounds.
They are also prohibited at any place where minors gather for regularly scheduled educational, recreational, or social programs, or within 300 feet of any location intended primarily for the use, care, or supervision of minors when the place is located on premises that are not intended primarily for the use, care, or supervision of minors, including, but not limited to, malls, shopping centers, or other property open to the general public.
Charges were sought against Ward for felony Sex Offender on Child Premises and the magistrate
found Probable Cause for same and the warrant was issued.
On October 16, 2023, Ward was located, arrested, and transported to the Randolph County Jail where he was served the outstanding warrant. He was issued a $3,000 secured bond and a first appearance was set for October 17, 2023, in Randolph County District Court.
Christopher Timothy Ward
Felony Sex Offender on Child Premises
$3,000 secured bond