A 66-year-old grandfather and local election board leader in North Carolina was arrested after he allegedly attempted to drug his two young granddaughters by placing narcotics in their ice cream. James E. Yokeley Jr. was taken into custody earlier this week and charged with two counts of felony contaminating food or drink with a controlled substance, felony child abuse, and felony possession of a Schedule I narcotic, authorities announced.

According to a news release from the Wilmington Police Department, an officer patrolling on Aug. 8 was flagged down by Yokeley at the Sheetz gas station in the 2500 block of Shipyard Boulevard. Yokeley notified the officer that his two juvenile granddaughters had just found “two hard objects in the ice cream they had recently purchased at the Dairy Queen located at 5901 Oleander Drive.”

Emergency medical personnel responded to the scene and evaluated the two children and determined that neither of the juveniles had ingested any of the substances found in the ice cream.

“The two pills were collected, and preliminary field tests conducted indicated that the pills were illegal narcotics,” the release states. “Those pills have since been sent to the State lab for further conclusive testing.”

In the initial tests, the pills tested positive for cocaine and MDMA, also known as “molly,” according to Raleigh, North Carolina, NBC affiliate WRAL, citing the arrest warrant.

Despite Yokeley’s initial claims, investigators said they uncovered evidence allegedly showing that he was responsible for attempting to drug the children.

“WPD detectives were notified and opened an investigation,” the release said. “During the investigation, it was determined by video footage that Yokeley had been the one who placed the two pills into both victims’ ice cream.”

Following his arrest, Yokeley was transported to the New Hanover County Detention Center for processing. He was released after posting a $100,000 secured bond.

Authorities said their investigation remains ongoing.

In June, Yokeley was appointed by State Auditor Dave Boliek to serve as the chair of the Surry County Board of Elections. His term runs until 2027. Both Yokeley and Boliek are Republicans.

The North Carolina State Board of Elections sent the following statement to Wilmington NBC affiliate WECT:

“The State Board of Elections and Surry County Board of Elections are aware of the charges against Mr. Yokeley, the chair of the Surry County Board of Elections. We will continue to collect information about the situation and will provide support to the Surry County board, as needed, to ensure it is able to continue serving the county’s voters.”