WADESBORO, NC – Anson County Sheriff’s Office agreed to settle a civil suit here this month after a man was arrested and charged with a drug crime after a deputy “planted” drugs in his car because the man was dating the officer’s ex-girlfriend, according to a statement by the plaintiff’s counsel, Pfeiffer Rudolf Attorneys At Law.
The firm, in the statement, said in 2018 Ray Kifer, Jr., was wrongfully arrested by members of the Anson County Sheriff’s Office after drugs were planted in his car by Deputy Davis Scott Burroughs.
The firm added Kifer had been dating Burroughs’ ex-girlfriend, and it was well known across the ACSO how upset Burroughs was about that.
The press release claims former deputy Burroughs was arrested in 2020 for planting drugs in Kifer’s car and was also sued for the violation of Kifer’s 4th and 14th Amendment rights for an unlawful arrest, detention, and interrogation.
The financial settlement amount was not disclosed.
In 2024, Burroughs was convicted of several crimes and this month Kifer agreed to a monetary settlement and a public acknowledgement of wrongdoing for his case against the ACSO, adds the press release.
The press release cites the following statement was published by Anson County Sheriff Scott Howell as an apology to Kifer on the Departments Facebook page:
“The Anson County Sheriff’s Office and Sheriff Scott Howell announce that a settlement has been reached between Ray Kifer, Jr. and the Anson County Sheriff’s Office concerning the unlawful arrest of Mr. Kifer by the Anson County Sheriff’s Office in 2018.
“In March 2018, Anson County Sheriff’s Deputy David Burroughs planted drugs in Mr. Kifer’s car, when he was off duty. Other members of the Anson County Sheriff’s Office stopped Mr. Kifer on a traffic stop acting on information from Burroughs that drugs were in the car.
“Mr. Kifer was unlawfully arrested after the drugs that Burroughs planted in the car were discovered by deputies. Mr. Kifer was transported to the Anson County Magistrates Office. After information from Mr. Kifer’s family was communicated to the late Sheriff Reid he requested an internal investigation.
“Mr. Kifer was released from custody that same evening. All charges against Mr. Kifer were rightly dismissed because he was innocent of all crimes for which he had been accused.
“Deputy David Burroughs was fired by Sheriff Reid and later charged for the crimes he committed against Mr. Kifer. Burroughs was subsequently convicted for his criminal conduct.
“Sheriff Howell and the members of the Anson County Sheriff’s Office apologize to Mr. Kifer and his family for all the hardships they have gone through during this ordeal.”
According to his lawyers, Kifer reflected on the apology and settlement by expressing the endured and unimaginable hardships he and his family had faced over the past few years due to the actions of law enforcement officers that abused their power.
He shared, said his lawyers, how his life was turned upside down and the trauma of the experience left deep scars, adding he struggled with PTSD, anxiety, depression, and anger issues due to what happened and that took a huge emotional and psychological toll on him.
Kifer noted, “Despite everything, I refuse to let this define me. I am focused on rebuilding and moving forward. Through it all, I’ve learned the value of resilience, the strength of my family, the strength of an amazing legal team, and the importance of standing up for what’s right.
“This chapter of my life has been difficult, but it has also shown me that justice can prevail, and better days are always ahead,” according to his lawyers’ released statement.
