The Livingston County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a case of financial exploitation of funds belonging to a woman diagnosed with dementia.

Susan Mobley of Utica is charged in Livingston County with a felony of receiving stolen property.

The Livingston County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release, that an investigation into the possible financial exploitation/stealing began April 18 which resulted in Mobley’s arrest.

According to court documents, while having durable power of attorney Mobley is accused of stealing nearly $11,000 from a bank CD of a woman who had been diagnosed with dementia.

Mobley is currently out on $10,000 cash bail. An arraignment is scheduled for May, 25.

Missouri Western State University’s Department of Theatre, Cinema and Dance will present “The Wedding Singer” musical beginning this weekend. 

Dr. Bob Willenbrink is directing the production. He said the musical is based on the Adam Sandler movie and it takes a trip back to the 80s. 

“So anybody that remembers the 80s and the songs of the 80s, the dress of the 80s, the hair of the 80s, they’ll really enjoy it,” Willenbrink said. “We had our first (dress) rehearsal (Tuesday) with hair and seeing the girls in the 80s hair really brought a lot of memories back for me. It’s really been interesting because none of the students were even alive in the 80s, but the faculty were, so the faculty are out there chuckling.”

Former Missouri Western basketball coach Tom Smith will be playing the role of Ronald Reagan in the production. Smith said he always wanted to be in a play. 

“It really started with Dr. Vartabedian because when I retired I just mentioned that one of the things I’ve always wanted to do is be in a play and I hadn’t done it since high school, I was the emcee of a talent parade,” Smith said. “But I always wanted to do it and he’s been pushing me to do it and I finally get the opportunity.” 

Performances will be at 7:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, April 21-22 and April 28-29 at the Potter Hall Theater. A Sunday matinee will be held at 2 p.m. on April 23.  

For tickets or more information, click here.

A Camden Point man was killed in a four vehicle crash on I-29 in Platte County Wednesday night.

According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol, 63-year-old Carl D. Braddock of Geneva, Nebraska, was driving a Freightliner north on I-29 around mile marker 24 at 6:46 p.m., when the semi crossed the median and hit a Ford Focus, a Ford F-150 and a Chevrolet Cruze in the southbound lanes.

The driver of the Ford Focus, 37-year-old Nathan A. Danneman of Camden Point was pronounced dead at the scene. A 3-year-old passenger in Danneman’s vehicle was taken to Children’s Mercy Medical Center for treatment of minor injuries. The driver of the Ford F-150, 23-year-old Ronald A. Wilson of Kansas City, Missouri, was transported by ambulance to North Kansas City Hospital for treatment of minor injuries. The driver of the semi was transported to Mosaic Life Care in St. Joseph with minor injuries.

No injuries were reported for the driver of the Chevrolet Cruze.

An investigaton is underway in southeastern Nebraska after a prison inmate died under suspicious circumstances. Prison officials received word that the inmates family had agreed to take him off life support after he was found unresponsive in his cell on Monday.

The Tecumseh State Correctional Institution received notification Wednesday from the Johnson County coroner that medical staff at the Bryan Medical Center West Campus in Lincoln would begin the process to remove Terry Berry from life support. According to the coroner, the actual date of death will be noted on the death certificate as Monday, April 17, 2017, when doctors declared him legally brain dead.

At approximately 7:45 p.m. on Saturday, April 15, Berry was found unresponsive in his cell. Staff members were alerted to his condition by Berry’s cellmate. Berry was not breathing and responding staff members immediately began CPR. Berry was transported to Johnson County Hospital and then to Bryan West in Lincoln.

The decisions regarding removal of life support and possible organ donation were made by Mr. Berry’s next-of-kin. The Nebraska Department of Correctional Services offered condolences to Mr. Berry’s family and said the staff recognizes the very difficult decisions the family made.

Berry was serving a 2-3 year prison term for 2nd degree forgery and an additional one-year term for assault by a confined person. Both crimes occurred in Platte County, Nebraska, according to online inmate records.

The Nebraska State Patrol is conducting a criminal investigation into Mr. Berry’s death. No further details were released.

Northwest Missouri State University has announced it plans to close its St. Joseph location later this year.

The university said the closing is due to the movement of programming to other locations and students’ desires for access to the experience and services its Maryville campus. Also, the school said it is trying to focus on creating financial efficiencies. Northwest expects to save between $450,000 and $500,000 in FY18 by closing Northwest-St. Joseph. The closure will result in the elimination of one staff position.

“Students enrolled in our information systems master’s program have regularly provided feedback to faculty and leadership in the School of Computer Science and Information Systems about their desire to study in Maryville,” Northwest Provost Dr. Timothy Mottet said. “We also believe Northwest can continue to serve St. Joseph through the quality programing we offer at our Maryville campus as well as Northwest-Kansas City.”

Mottet said there will be no disruption in program delivery by closing Northwest-St. Joseph. Northwest’s master’s program in information systems will begin instruction on the Maryville campus by fall 2017 for new students, and current students will transition by December 2017.

Northwest-St. Joseph moved into its current location, the Historic Green Acres building at 3500 North Village Drive, near the city’s Belt Highway and Interstate 29, in 2012. It had maintained a presence on Felix Street in downtown St. Joseph from 2007 to 2012. Prior to that, the University had offered post-baccalaureate courses in St. Joseph for more than 40 years, but always in classrooms provided by other schools.