NEW HANOVER COUNTY, North Carolina — A New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office employee was arrested on May 14 following multiple allegations involving the assault of a woman he was dating, according to official court documents.
The arrest warrant issued for 27-year-old Alec Matthew Rauf details ten individual counts, which include two felony charges of second-degree kidnapping and assault by strangulation. Rauf faces an additional eight serious misdemeanor charges, including domestic violence, communicating threats, and assault with a deadly weapon. The weapon involved is identified in the warrant as a handgun that he allegedly pointed at his romantic partner and held against her head. Furthermore, he is charged with interfering with emergency communication after he allegedly deprived his girlfriend of her cellphone while she attempted to dial 911.
While the precise timeline of the events remains unspecified within the court records, the warrant and corresponding court file indicate that the incidents transpired between May 9 and May 11.
The day prior to the arrest, the court issued at least three distinct search warrants targeting Rauf’s residence, his electronic devices, and the Snapchat accounts belonging to both him and his partner.
According to daily bulletin records from the New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office, Rauf was taken into custody at the local court complex located at 316 Princess Street. Employment records show that Rauf joined the department as a detention officer at the start of 2024 and was later reassigned to the judicial division of the Sheriff’s Office, where he functioned as a bailiff or courthouse security deputy.
Court records, including release orders and warrants, confirm that Rauf secured release on a $10,000 bond shortly after the serving of his arrest warrant. The conditions of his release strictly forbid him from initiating any direct contact with the alleged victim.
Rauf has secured private legal representation, and his counsel has declined to offer a statement regarding the allegations at this time. A formal court hearing for the case is scheduled to take place next week.
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