A man accused of murdering his girlfriend turned himself in to authorities Monday night, according to Charlotte-Mecklenburg police.

Investigators say Davon Londell Thomas, 27, shot his girlfriend, 23-year-old Tigist Yemane, shortly before 5 a.m. Saturday at his parents' home on Willowglen Trail near Reedy Creek Park.

They say he then fled into nearby woods.

A murder warrant was issued for his arrest, but Thomas eluded search dogs, a helicopter and dozens of officers combing the area for him. Police warned the public that he had military training from serving in the Army National Guard and should be considered armed and dangerous.

But on Monday he surrendered at CMPD headquarters uptown.

Court records show Thomas pleaded guilty in 2008 to assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill. His sentence was suspended and he was given probation until 2011.

Last month, he pleaded guilty to resisting a public officer and was given probation and ordered to perform community service. -- Ely Portillo

Regional briefs

Former Observer writer and columnist Dan Huntley is among three people being honored at the 11th annual Keepers of the Culture awards ceremony tonight at the McCelvey Center in York, S.C.

Huntley, of York, along with fellow winners Lindsay Pettus of Lancaster and the Jeff Wilson family of Lowrys, are being honored by the Culture & Heritage Museums of York County. The award is given to people who display a deep commitment to preserving, communicating and connecting the cultural history of the community.

The guest performer at Tuesday's awards ceremony will be musician-storyteller David Holt, whose most recent CD, "Live and Kickin' at the National Storytelling Festival," has been nominated for a Grammy award.

The awards ceremony is at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $8 for members and $10 for non-members, and they will be on sale at the door.

The McCelvey Center is at 212 East Jefferson Street, in York. -- Steve Lyttle

North Carolina

Baptists gathering for their annual convention today in Greensboro will vote on a much more modest 2010 budget - one that reflects not only the recession, but also the contraction of a once formidable organization.

The nearly $35 million budget proposed for 2010 is an 11.4 percent reduction from this year's budget, as churches pass on fewer dollars to the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina - the state's largest religious group.

Baptists also will elect a new president, first vice president and second vice president. No one is expected to challenge the presidency. The Rev. Ed Yount, pastor of Woodlawn Baptist in Conover, is the only announced candidate. If he wins, which is likely, he could run for re-election next year.

The Rev. Mark Harris, who pastors 3,400-member First Baptist of Charlotte, is the only announced candidate for first vice president.

Harris' election would move him closer to running for president after Yount steps down. Harris, now second vice president, said his job for the next year or two would be to support Yount. -- Yonat Shimron and Tim Funk

Kure Beach

N.C. officials say they have identified a Civil War shipwreck that burned at sea more than 145 years ago.

The state Underwater Archaeology Branch said Monday that a silver-plated spoon inscribed with the name of a crew member from the CSS Appomattox confirmed the ship's identity.

A four-member diving team discovered the shipwreck in August 2007 in the Pasquotank River. They had been searching for the Appomattox for more than 10 years. -- Associated Press

Raleigh

A legislative report says North Carolina's program to clean leaking gasoline and oil from commercial underground storage tanks won't finish for another 25 years at the current rate.

The Legislature's Program Evaluation Division examined the tank program and made recommendations Monday to lawmakers.

The program began in 1985 in response to a federal mandate and concerns that petroleum was entering groundwater from old gas stations. The state created a trust fund to pay for much of the cleanup.

The division says 10,700 commercial tank leaks have been cleaned but 6,500 remain. -- Associated Press

South Carolina

Authorities say 16 of the 600 businesses checked since July have been cited under South Carolina's new immigration law.

The Greenville News reports that citations have totaled more than $60,000 in penalties. Nearly all of the penalties were waived under the law's provision that allows businesses to escape fines if they fix their verification process.

The state law requires businesses to verify a new worker's legal status within five days of their hiring. Companies can use either the federal electronic database, E-Verify, a state driver's license, or the driver's license from one of 26 approved states. -- Associated Press

Police digest

A Gaston County man is charged with killing his neighbor's dog, a pit bull mix named Sallie.

On Sunday morning, dog owner David Miller heard several gunshots. Sallie didn't respond to his calls, and when he went outside he found her dead.

Police arrested 65-year-old Larry Hartman. Officers say he shot Sallie at least four times. He's charged with cruelty to animals and firing a weapon too close to a house.

Police say Hartman shot the dog because it was barking and on his property. -- WCNC-TV

Cabarrus County

A 25-year-old Cabarrus County man was arrested by police early Monday in connection with a pair of convenience store armed robberies.

And deputies say they caught the man while he was emerging from the second robbery.

Shawn Dillard has been charged with robbery with a dangerous weapon and possession of a firearm by a felon, deputies say. He was arrested outside a Pilot service station on Lane Street, off Interstate 85 near Kannapolis. Deputies say Dillard was carrying a gun and money as he left the store - at the same time as deputies arrived.

The first robbery happened about 3:30 a.m. at the Kangaroo BP station on Copperfield Boulevard in Concord. No injuries were reported. -- Steve Lyttle

Rowan County

The Mooresville Dragway temporarily shut down over the weekend after authorities raided the operator's nearby home and reported seizing more than 1 1/2 pounds of marijuana and a cache of pills.

The drag strip operator, Jody Allen Leazer, 40, told the Observer on Monday that the strip is open again for its regular schedule and that he and his wife Wendy are innocent. They were charged with possession and intent to sell drugs.

Their son, Corie Allen Leazer, 19, also was charged. He was living in the couple's Mooresville-area home at 865 Wilkinson Road when it was raided.

The Rowan County Sheriff's Department said in a news release that investigators served a search warrant last week after receiving information that Jody and Corie Leazer were selling marijuana out of the home.

During the search, deputies say they seized 1.6 pounds of marijuana, 50 hydrocodone tablets, 19 oxycodone tablets, 82 morphine tablets, four alprazolam tablets and a semi-automatic pistol.

Jody Leazer said the pills are kept by his wife because they belong to his mother-in-law, who lives in a rest home. -- Christopher D. Kirkpatrick

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