Two Kinston residents were arrested Sunday after being stopped in a stolen SUV with an expired and fictitious license plate.

At approximately 4:30 p.m., Sunday, a State Highway Patrol trooper pulled over a black Nissan Rogue SUV for an expired and fictitious registration plate. During the trooper’s investigation, the trooper ran the vehicle’s VIN (vehicle identification number) and the vehicle came back as being reported stolen to the Lenoir County Sheriff’s Office in 2023.

LCSO deputies from A shift and D shift responded to the area of N.C. 11 and Felix Harvey Parkway to assist in the trooper’s investigation. The driver, Donald Oneal Edwards, 61, and passenger, Tina Ann Williams-Ray, 63, both of 421 N. Davis Street of Kinston, were arrested, taken into custody and transported to the W.E. “Billy” Smith Detention Center.

Both Edwards and Williams-Ray were charged by the LCSO with felony possession of a stolen vehicle. Additionally, the State Highway Patrol charged Edwards with driving with license revoked (impaired revocation), fictitious vehicle registration, expired vehicle registration and inspection violation.

Edwards and Williams-Ray each received a $5,000 unsecured bond by the magistrate’s office and were released.

NOTE: There is no photo of Williams-Ray because she was released by the magistrate’s office before one could be taken.