NC Ride Operator Charged With Assault With Deadly Weapon - East Idaho News
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NC Ride Operator Charged With Assault With Deadly Weapon

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GETTY 102713 STATEFAIR?  SQUARESPACE CACHEVERSION=1382880732646 Ethan Hyman/Raleigh News & Observer/MCT via Getty Images(RALEIGH, N.C.) — The operator of a ride at the North Carolina State Fairgrounds in Raleigh that injured five people has been arrested and charged with assault with a deadly weapon.

Timothy Dwayne Tutterrow, 46, of Georgia is facing three felony counts of assault with a deadly weapon inflicting serious bodily injury, Wake County Sheriff Donnie Harrison said.

Harrison said the ride had been tampered with after an inspection that was carried out Monday. “After inspection of the ride, we determined that it had been tampered with and critical safety devices were compromised,” Harrison said.

Harrison said he expects that there would be more arrests.

The “Vortex,” a pendulum ride that flips passengers upside down, malfunctioned Thursday night. Ambulances initially rushed five victims, ranging in ages from 14 to 39, to a nearby hospital, Debbie Laughery, vice president for public relations at WakeMed Health and Hospitals, told ABC News.

Three people were still in the hospital in good to critical condition as of Saturday night.

No information was given on the kinds of injuries sustained.

The Vortex ride will not reopen at this year’s fair, officials told ABC station WTVD-TV in Raleigh-Durham.

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