UPDATE: Two people were taken into custody Tuesday afternoon in St. Joseph at a local book store.
32-year-old Linda Sue Pennell, who also goes by the last name Helton was arrested along with 33-year-old Jason Claycomb at 2 p.m. Tuesday at Hastings Entertainment located at 605 N. Belt Highway.
Commander Eric Protzman with the St. Joseph Police Department said Pennell was arrested in connection with outstanding warrants and as the subject of interest in several thefts. Claycomb was arrested on a Parole Violation.
He said information from the public was helpful in locating the individuals.
Police released surveillance photos last week of a woman asking the public for help identifying who she was. Protzman said Pennell was identified by help from the public. However, as of Monday her whereabouts were still unknown. That’s when the department went to the public for help once again asking for anyone who knew her whereabouts to contact authorities.
“We wish to thank the media and citizens for their assistance,” Protzman said.
ST. JOSEPH, Mo. – The Missouri Department of Transportation said travelers along Interstate 29 in Andrew and Buchanan counties will soon have a smoother ride after a resurfacing project continues later this month.
Some preliminary patching and guardrail work has already occurred, but beginning Monday, July 27, contractors working with MoDOT will begin milling and repaving I-29 between Business Route 71 in Andrew County and 1.5 miles south of Route O, south of St. Joseph. All work will be conducted at night, after peak travel times. One lane in each direction will remain open.
The on and off ramps will also be resurfaced throughout this section of interstate. Every effort will be made to keep all ramps open during the work, but some closures may be required to ensure the safety of both motorists and workers. If a ramp will close, advance notice will be provided.
ST. JOSEPH, Mo. – Work to the signals at U.S. Route 36 and Interstate 229 will briefly close the ramp from westbound U.S. Route 36 to southbound Interstate 229 this week.
Crews from the Missouri Department of Transportation will close the ramp to perform maintenance to the signals at this location on Wednesday, July 15, from approximately 9 to 9:30 a.m.
Motorists should use an alternate route during the closure.
All work is weather permitting and could be rescheduled.
The Humane Society of Saint Joseph has given $1,000 grants to three local animal-care organizations.
The money is designated for food, water, shelter, or medical care at: Whistle Creek Livestock Preserve, Soaring Hope Equestrian Center, and Spirit Horse of Broken Creek Youth Ranch.
The Humane Society of Saint Joseph is also continuing to help pay medical and food bills for the animals of low-income pet parents. Over the past ten months the Humane Society has spent more than $3,500 to help needy animals.
Donations to the Humane Society of Saint Joseph can be made through the Community Foundation of Northwest Missouri.
A preliminary hearing will be scheduled next week for a St Joseph man charged with manslaughter for the death of his passenger in a crash in January.
Richard Osborne was a passenger in a vehicle driven by Daniel Maddock, who police say ran a stop sign at 12th and Church streets January 3. The vehicle struck a Toyota driven by Adindi Okemba of Kansas City. Osborne was killed in the crash. Mr Maddock suffered serious injuries in the crash. Mr Okemba was taken to the hospital as well.
Maddock was arrested on Friday. During a hearing Tuesday Judge Keith Marquart scheduled a preliminary hearing docket call July 24, and was asked to lower Maddock’s bail. Instead Judge Marquart raised it to $60,000. Officials told the judge that the defendant moved out of the area to avoid prosecution.
Courthouse officials say Mr Maddock has paid part of a retainer fee for an attorney in the case, but not all of it, and thus it’s not clear if Mr Maddock has legal representation. By Tuesday afternoon, there had been no notice to the court of a formal appearance by the lawyer.
Maddock is charged with one Class-C felony count of vehicular involuntary manslaughter involving intoxication.
TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — An email from a Kansas Department of Revenue official says the department hasn’t started accepting joint tax returns from same-sex couples, despite earlier comments from the attorney general’s office.
Richard Cram, policy director for the Revenue Department, said in an email the department’s waiting for instructions from Gov. Sam Brownback’s office before accepting joint tax returns from same sex couples.
Cram said he’s hoping for instructions from the governor’s office early this week.
Two assistant attorneys general argued in a legal brief last week that a federal lawsuit against the state should be dismissed because state agencies are recognizing same-sex marriages.
Jeannine Koranda, spokeswoman for the Kansas Department of Revenue, would not clarify whether joint tax returns are currently being accepted in Kansas.
A suspect was due in court Tuesday on charges stemming from a fatality traffic accident January 3. Daniel Maddock is charged with Involuntary Manslaughter.
The 36-year-old St Joseph man is charged in connection with a traffic accident at 12th and Church streets in St Joseph that claimed the life of Richard Osborne. Mr Osborne was a passenger in a Chevy Cavalier driven by Maddock that police say ran a stop sign.
Mr Maddock was seriously hurt in the accident.
Authorities believe Mr Maddock was drunk at the time of the crash. Investigators said at the time excessive speed may also have contributed to the accident.
St. Joseph’s largest arts festival said it’s in need of a few helping hands.
Trails West! ® announced Monday that it’s looking for community volunteers to assist with various tasks for the 2015 festival.
This year’s festival celebrates the “heART for the City” and will run August 21-23.
The festival is looking for volunteers to help with festival set up, clean up in the food court, site preparation, site decorations, removal of decorations, and delivery of Trails West!® marketing materials.
“This is a great opportunity for volunteers this year, because they can easily sign up to be a part of Trails West!®and show their heART for the City,” said Jolene Dempster, festival volunteer chair.
To volunteer fill out a volunteer application on the Trails West!® page, www.trailswest.org, by clicking on the volunteers tab.
Three Colorado men pleaded guilty in federal court Monday to illegally trafficking in paddlefish caviar after being caught in an undercover operation in the Warsaw, Mo., area.
In support of Missouri’s paddlefish conservation efforts, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Missouri Department of Conservation conducted a covert investigation, “Operation Roadhouse,” centered on an area known as the Roadhouse in Warsaw. As part of the covert operation, state and federal officers operated a paddlefish snagging business. Covert officers also sold paddlefish to people who were interested in buying them.
“Federal law protects our natural resources, such as Missouri’s paddlefish, which have been over-fished until their population has suffered a steep decline,” Dickinson said. “We take seriously the environmental protections provided by federal and state laws, and will investigate and prosecute those who violate them.”
“The American paddlefish is an important cultural and sport-fishing resource to the people of Missouri. This investigation reaffirms our commitment to work with our state wildlife law enforcement partners to protect our nation’s wildlife resources and hold violators accountable for their actions,” said Edward Grace, Deputy Chief for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Office of Law Enforcement.
“We appreciated the support and partnership of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the Department of Justice’s Environmental Crimes Section in helping to protect Missouri’s natural resources,” said Missouri Department of Conservation Protection Chief Larry Yamnitz.
Arkadiy Lvovskiy, 54, of Aurora, Colo., and Dmitri Elitchev, 49, of Centennial, Colo., pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Matt J. Whitworth to participating in a conspiracy to illegally traffic in paddlefish and paddlefish eggs in violation of the Lacey Act. Artour Magdessian, 48, of Lone Tree, Colo., pleaded guilty to trafficking in paddlefish and paddlefish eggs in violation of the Lacey Act.
By pleading guilty today, Lvovskiy and Elitchev admitted that in April 2011 they traveled to Warsaw, where they illegally purchased five female paddlefish and a container of paddlefish eggs. They processed the eggs from all of those paddlefish into caviar and transported them from Missouri to Colorado. Lvovskiy and Elitchev further admitted that they returned to Warsaw, in March 2012 and purchased eight more female paddlefish. As they had in 2011, they processed the eggs into caviar and transported them from Missouri to Colorado.
Lvovskiy, Elitchev, and Magdessian further admitted that they traveled to Warsaw in April 2012 with co-defendant Felix Baravik, 50, of Aurora, Colo. While in Warsaw, the men befriended covert Fish and Wildlife Service agents who were posing as fishermen staying in the same area. The defendants purchased two female paddlefish from the covert agents. The defendants also purchased three more female paddlefish from other sources and harvested paddlefish in excess of the Missouri take and possession limits. The defendants processed the eggs from all of those paddlefish into caviar and transported them from Missouri to Colorado.
The retail value of the paddlefish caviar at issue in this case is estimated to be between $30,000 and $50,000.
Baravik pleaded guilty on Aug. 19, 2014, to illegally trafficking in paddlefish in violation of the Lacey Act.
Under federal statutes, Lvovskiy, Elitchev and Magdessian are each subject to a sentence of up to five years in federal prison without parole, plus a fine up to $250,000. Sentencing hearings will be scheduled after the completion of presentence investigations by the United States Probation Office.
PRATT, Kansas – If you want an office with a view, enjoy the outdoors and like working with both wildlife and people, the Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism (KDWPT) may have an opening for you. KDWPT invites qualified applicants to test for entry-level game warden positions in the Law Enforcement Division. Successful applicants will enter a pool of eligible persons who may receive offers to become a Natural Resource Officer I, commonly known as a Game Warden. There are six to ten vacancies to be filled.
The deadline for submission of applications is July 24th, 2015. The testing event will be held August 22nd, 2015 at the Crisis City Complex southwest of Salina, Kansas.
Interested applicants must have a Bachelor’s degree in Natural Resources, or a Bachelor’s degree with a minimum of 24 semester hours of Natural Resources coursework. The preferred degrees include Fisheries, Wildlife, Conservation Ecology/Management/Biology, Biology with field coursework emphasis, Environmental Ecology, Wildlife Range Management, Wildlife and Outdoor Enterprise Management. Coursework in the following or similar courses is preferred: ornithology, ichthyology, mammalogy, entomology, limnology, fisheries/wildlife management, parasitology, population biology, wildlife and fisheries related ecology courses, conservation related coursework that covers wildlife and fisheries related topics, range ecology and management, and those courses that are closely related to the above listings.
Degrees and courses that are not preferred include animal science, geology, geography, pre-medical, pre-dental or pre-veterinary, microbiology, human biology and park and resource management.
Kansas game wardens are responsible for enforcing wildlife laws and regulations, patrolling the waters of Kansas, investigating hunting and boating accidents and conducting boat safety inspections and BUI checks. Wardens also promote outdoor safety by conducting hunting and boating safety programs and teaching hunter education and boating safety courses. As certified law enforcement officers, Game wardens also assist other law enforcement agencies with search and rescue operations, fugitive searches, illegal drug investigations and more.
