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Stanly County Sheriff Jeff Crisco issued a statement Monday regarding an SBI investigation looking into missing evidence within the department.

Here is the text of the statement in its entirety:

“In early September, I was notified that the Evidence Custodian of the Stanly County Sheriff’s Office was reporting several items of evidence to be missing. Upon receiving this information, the District Attorney’s office was immediately notified and a meeting was scheduled. District Attorney T. Lynn Clodfelter and I requested the NC State Bureau of Investigation conduct an independent investigation of the evidence custodian and the missing items of evidence related to this inquiry.

“After a thorough investigation by the SBI, it was determined that these missing items of evidence were in no way a result of any criminal activity or intent, but were caused by a procedural error which was immediately corrected. District Attorney Clodfelter advised that no charges would be forthcoming due to the findings of the investigation.

“In order to continue to maintain the integrity of this office, as well as public confidence, an item-by-item inventory of all items contained in evidence has been conducted. In addition, a third party external audit has been scheduled. There has also been a personnel reassignment to the Evidence Custodian position.

“As a general rule, not all evidence collected leads to prosecution, therefore The Stanly County Sheriff’s Office is working in conjunction with the District Attorney’s Office to determine if any cases are affected.”