The gun was among 20 weapons – pistols, rifles and shotguns – that investigators found during the house search on Wednesday, along with cocaine, psilocybin mushrooms and marijuana. The police also seized about $ 2,300 in cash.
“Firearms of this type, while not illegal, are of concern for law enforcement,” the statement said. “Firearms, in general, are commonly seized in conjunction with searches in which criminal quantities of narcotics are present.”
Damien Alonzo Burch, 35, of Catawba was arrested and charged with criminal possession of cocaine, criminal possession of mushrooms and misdemeanor possession of marijuana, the statement said.
CNN is trying to contact him or a lawyer who will represent him for comment.
Catawba County Sheriff’s spokesman, Captain Aaron Turk, said Burch was released for $ 20,000 on unsecured bail on Wednesday. Burch was formally informed of the charges against him at a first hearing in the Catawba County District Court on Thursday.
Turk said he did not know when Burch’s next hearing was due or whether he was represented by a lawyer. He said investigators have no reason why the gun was made to look like a Nerf toy.