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Former Grandfather Mountain Highland Games Employee Arrested by SBI After Explosive Device Found at Highland Games Office

By Nathan Ham

A former office manager for the Grandfather Mountain Highland Games was charged this week with three counts of attempted first-degree murder and one count of possession of a weapon of mass destruction, according to the North Carolina SBI. 

Thomas Dewey Taylor, 43, of Newland, was charged on Monday after investigators found an explosive device in the Highland Games office in Linville. According to Angie Grube, spokeswoman for the NC SBI, Taylor was under investigation for embezzling money and committing financial credit card theft. The SBI along with the Avery County Sheriff’s Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives discovered and removed the explosive device. 

Taylor was given a $500,000 bond. His first court appearance was Wednesday.

Thomas Dewey Taylor (photo courtesy of Avery County Sheriff’s Office)