OVERLAND PARK, Kan. (AP) — A proposed Islamic center in a Kansas City suburb that could serve as a centralized location for Muslims on both sides of the state line has gained approval from planning commissioners.

The Overland Park Planning Commission on Monday granted preliminary approval to the Islamic Center of Kansas for its plan to build a roughly 111,000-square-foot multi-use religious facility.

The move came after hundreds of residents petitioned for the proposal to be delayed or dismissed.

The center’s plans include a mosque, a K-8 school, a day care center and a banquet hall. The school would accommodate 270 students, while the day care could take in 110 children.

Neighbors are arguing that the size and scope of the Islamic center make it a bad fit for the area. Many expressed concerns about noise, traffic and the impact on wildlife and the area’s green space.

Residents have two weeks to file a protest petition.

Overland Park approved the site in 2007 for a proposed church, which was never built.

The Islamic Center’s attorney, John Petersen, said the project, in collaboration with the Muslim American Society-Kansas City, follows the code requirements previously approved for the church, including being subject to noise ordinances.

Attorney Doug Patterson, who spoke on behalf of about 50 residents Monday, questioned whether the proposed Islamic center is a “true place of worship” or a commercial endeavor. Patterson said that several residents wouldn’t have an issue if the space “was just a mosque.”

Residents said they’re worried about increased traffic diverting drivers to side streets or wearing out roadways, as well as noise on the weekends from the banquet hall.

“I wouldn’t mind the mosque,” said Wilderness resident Amy Korf. “I just believe as homeowners we deserve a good night’s sleep.”

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Missouri elected officials and business leaders are teaming up to study the possibility of connecting Kansas City and St. Louis with an ultra-high-speed Hyperloop system.

Republican House Speaker Elijah Haahr announced the formation of the panel Tuesday. He said he wants members to present findings by September.

Hyperloop technology involves a tubular track through which a train-like pod carries passengers at speeds up to 640 mph.

It’s not cheap. Some estimates have put the cost at $25 million to $27 million per mile, excluding land acquisition.

MONTGOMERY COUNTY — Three people died in an accident just after 8a.m. Tuesday in Montgomery County.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2005 Ford Expedition driven by Casey Andrews, 32, Tulsa, was northbound on U.S. 75 at U.S. 166.

The vehicle crossed the center line and struck a 2001 Jeep Grand Cherokee driven by Patricia Chalfant, 85, Neodesha

Chalfant and passengers in the Jeep Wilma Rowden, 82, Neodesha and Mary Compton, 85, Fredonia, were pronounced dead at the scene.

Andrews was transported to a hospital in Tulsa. All three were properly restrained at the time of the accident, according to the KHP.

By BRIAN GRIMMETT

It’s not exactly unusual for customers to complain about their electricity bills. But repeated rate hikes over the past decade have made Westar Energy’s customers particularly mad. And last year’s merger with Kansas City Power and Light only served to keep the company’s finances — and its profit margin — in public view.

Residential and industrial customers have now taken their angst to the Kansas Statehouse. The result: at least half a dozen proposals aimed at changing the way electric utilities can set rates and evaluating how they got so high in the first place.

This past September, Westar started assessing an additional demand charge on customers who generate some of their own electricity based on how much power they use between the hours of 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. on weekdays.

“I wanted to take my energy usage into my own hands,” Amerin said. “Now I feel that I am being punished for that.”

The new demand charge has prompted many solar users to completely change their daily routines or deal with monthly bills as much as $90 higher than they’ve been used to.

Advocates with the Climate and Energy Project say it’s just an underhanded move by Westar to discourage individuals from finding ways to generate their own electricity.

Amerin recently testified before the Kansas Senate Utilities Committee in support of a bill that would eliminate the demand fee and prohibit utilities from charging customers more simply because they have a solar panel or a micro wind turbine at their house.

Rachel Krause told the committee she had to start nagging her family to watch their electricity usage in the afternoons. She’s worried what will happen when the demand charge goes up in the summer.

“Is my family not going to be able to use air conditioning between 2 and 7 on weekday afternoons?,” she asked. “Kids are home during the summer, how’s that supposed to work?”

For Westar executives, that’s kind of the point. They want people to use less electricity during peak hours.

They argue the demand fee also helps offset a de facto subsidy solar and wind users get because they pay less each month, but still require the same infrastructure as customers who rely exclusively on the grid.

Clean energy groups and environmentalists have banded together with industries, and business groups to push several pieces of legislation aimed at curbing rising electric utility costs.

The Kansas Industrial Consumers group is advocating for an independent evaluation of major utility companies’ rates. They want the state to study how rates in Kansas compare to other states, what capital investments utilities have made in the past decade, and whether those investments have paid off.

Chuck Caisley, chief customer officer of Evergy, the parent company of Westar Energy and Kansas City Power and Light, said the utility would have no problem with a task force investigation. But they already submitted their own report to the Legislature as part of the merger agreement approved last year.

“I think what is important is that we study the right things and that it is based on finding a set of solutions,” he said.

What Caisley does not want to see is legislators forcing the company to change the way they are allowed to recover costs, or dictating a certain return on investment. Instead, he’d like to get all of the interested parties together to plot a long-term path for what the future of Kansas electric utilities will look like.

“If you make big changes, some of which are being suggested this legislative session,” Caisley said, “people need to realize there will be profound and large impacts to a lot of different customers.”

Brian Grimmett reports on the environment, energy and natural resources for the Kansas News Service  Follow him on Twitter @briangrimmett.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A man dubbed the AK-47 bandit and accused of holding up banks in several states has pleaded guilty to robbing a bank in Nebraska.

Richard Gathercole could face up to 35 years in prison after admitting Monday in federal court that he used an AK-47 to rob a Nebraska City bank in 2014. The 40-year-old Gathercole also pleaded guilty to a 2017 carjacking that led to his arrest.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Lesley Woods says the plea deal stipulates that Gathercole won’t be prosecuted by other jurisdictions for other violent crimes, including the shooting of a Kansas state trooper in Sherman County in 2017 and bank robberies in California, Idaho, Iowa and Washington state.

Some of the crimes had passed the five-year federal statute of limitations.

Gathercole is scheduled for sentencing in June.

CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. (AP) — A Missouri man wrongly imprisoned for 17 years on murder charges alleges in a federal lawsuit that police knew he was innocent and helped prevent his conviction from being overturned.

David Robinson’s attorneys filed a lawsuit Monday alleging he was framed for Sheila Box’s death in 2000. The suit argues that police didn’t like him and played pivotal roles in preventing his conviction from being overturned during two appeals.

Robinson was freed in May after a judge appointed to review the case by the Missouri Supreme Court found “clear and convincing” evidence of his innocence.

Investigators say Box was shot after leaving a bar she co-owned in Sikeston with $300 in cash and checks. During a hearing last year to review the case, prosecutors presented no physical evidence linking Robinson to the crime, and two witnesses who placed him at the scene recanted.

Another man, Romanze Mosby, confessed to several people in 2004 that he had killed Box, but he refused to sign an affidavit to make the confession official, according to court documents. He killed himself in his cell five years later, but his confession was never introduced as evidence.

Robinson acknowledged to The Associated Press last year that he had a criminal record that began when he was 15. It includes convictions for burglary, drugs and assault. But he said he was at a family gathering when Box was shot, and three relatives verified his alibi. Even Box’s daughter said that she believed Robinson was innocent.

Along with the city, the lawsuit was filed against former detective John Blakely and a former police captain, Drew Juden.

The city demoted Blakely following the judge’s report last year, and he later resigned. He now works at the Missouri Division of Family Services.

Juden was picked as Missouri’s public safety director just before then-Gov. Eric Greitens took office in January 2017. Greitens resigned in June after months of legal and ethical investigations. Juden resigned in August.

Blakely Juden do not have publicly listed phone numbers.

___

BOSTON – Dozens of individuals involved in a nationwide conspiracy that facilitated cheating on college entrance exams and the admission of students to elite universities as purported athletic recruits were arrested by federal agents in multiple states this morning and charged in federal court in Boston. Athletic coaches from Yale, Stanford, USC, Wake Forest and Georgetown, among others, are implicated, as well as parents and exam administrators. 

Read the complaint here

William “Rick” Singer, 58, of Newport Beach, Calif., was charged with racketeering conspiracy, money laundering conspiracy and obstruction of justice. Singer owned and operated the Edge College & Career Network LLC (“The Key”) – a for-profit college counseling and preparation business – and served as the CEO of the Key Worldwide Foundation (KWF) – a non-profit corporation that he established as a purported charity.

33 parents have been charged nationwide. #AdmissionsScam

— U.S. Attorney MA (@DMAnews1) March 12, 2019

Between approximately 2011 and February 2019, Singer allegedly conspired with dozens of parents, athletic coaches, a university athletics administrator, and others, to use bribery and other forms of fraud to secure the admission of students to colleges and universities including Yale University, Georgetown University, Stanford University, the University of Southern California, and Wake Forest University, among others. Also charged for their involvement in the scheme are 33 parents and 13 coaches and associates of Singer’s businesses, including two SAT and ACT test administrators.  

Defendants include university athletic coaches, college exam administrators, CEOs and actresses #AdmissionsScam

— U.S. Attorney MA (@DMAnews1) March 12, 2019

Also charged is John Vandemoer, the head sailing coach at Stanford University, Rudolph “Rudy” Meredith, the former head soccer coach at Yale University, and Mark Riddell, a counselor at a private school in Bradenton, Fla. 

US Attorney Lelling announces charges in largest college recruitment scam #admissionsscam pic.twitter.com/sTK5lXaJSk

— U.S. Attorney MA (@DMAnews1) March 12, 2019

The conspiracy involved 1) bribing SAT and ACT exam administrators to allow a test taker, typically Riddell, to secretly take college entrance exams in place of students or to correct the students’ answers after they had taken the exam; 2) bribing university athletic coaches and administrators—including coaches at Yale, Stanford, Georgetown, the University of Southern California, and the University of Texas—to facilitate the admission of students to elite universities under the guise of being recruited as athletes; and (3) using the façade of Singer’s charitable organization to conceal the nature and source of the bribes.   

1. College Entrance Exam Cheating Scheme

According to the charging documents, Singer facilitated cheating on the SAT and ACT exams for his clients by instructing them to seek extended time for their children on college entrance exams, which included having the children purport to have learning disabilities in order to obtain the required medical documentation. Once the extended time was granted, Singer allegedly instructed the clients to change the location of the exams to one of two test centers: a public high school in Houston, Texas, or a private college preparatory school in West Hollywood, Calif. At those test centers, Singer had established relationships with test administrators Niki Williams and Igor Dvorskiy, respectively, who accepted bribes of as much as $10,000 per test in order to facilitate the cheating scheme. Specifically, Williams and Dvorskiy allowed a third individual, typically Riddell, to take the exams in place of the students, to give the students the correct answers during the exams, or to correct the students’ answers after they completed the exams. Singer typically paid Ridell $10,000 for each student’s test. Singer’s clients paid him between $15,000 and $75,000 per test, with the payments structured as purported donations to the KWF charity. In many instances, the students taking the exams were unaware that their parents had arranged for the cheating.

2. College Recruitment Scheme

It is further alleged that throughout the conspiracy, parents paid Singer approximately $25 million to bribe coaches and university administrators to designate their children as purported athletic recruits, thereby facilitating the children’s’ admission to those universities. Singer allegedly described the scheme to his customers as a “side door,” in which the parents paid Singer under the guise of charitable donations to KWF. In turn, Singer funneled those payments to programs controlled by the athletic coaches, who then designated the children as recruited athletes – regardless of their athletic experience and abilities. Singer also made bribe payments to most of the coaches personally.

For example, during a call with one parent, Singer stated: “Okay, so, who we are…what we do is we help the wealthiest families in the U.S. get their kids into school…My families want a guarantee. So, if you said to me ‘here’s our grades, here’s our scores, here’s our ability, and we want to go to X school’ and you give me one or two schools, and then I’ll go after those schools and try to get a guarantee done.” 

As part of the scheme, Singer directed employees of The Key and the KWF to create falsified athletic “profiles” for students, which were then submitted to the universities in support of the students’ applications. The profiles included fake honors that the students purportedly received and elite teams that they purportedly played on.  In some instances, parents supplied Singer with staged photos of their children engaged in athletic activity – such as using a rowing machine or purportedly playing water polo.

3. Tax Fraud Conspiracy

Beginning around 2013, Singer allegedly agreed with certain clients to disguise bribe payments as charitable contributions to the KWF, thereby enabling clients to deduct the bribes from their federal income taxes. Specifically, Singer allegedly instructed clients to make payments to the KWF in return for facilitating their children’s admission to a chosen university. Singer used a portion of that money to bribe university athletic coaches to designate the children as student athletes. Thereafter, Masera or another KWF employee mailed letters from the KWF to the clients expressing thanks for their purported charitable contributions. The letter stated: “Your generosity will allow us to move forward with our plans to provide educational and self-enrichment programs to disadvantaged youth,” and falsely indicated that “no good or services were exchanged” for the donations. Many clients then filed personal tax returns that falsely reported the payment to the KWF as charitable donations.

The charge of racketeering conspiracy provides for a sentence of no greater than 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, a fine of $250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss, whichever is greater and restitution. The charge of conspiracy to commit money laundering provides for a sentence of up to 20 years in prison, up to three years of supervised release, and a fine of not more than $500,000 or twice the value of the property involved in the money laundering. The charge of conspiracy to defraud the United States provides for a sentence of no greater than five years in prison, up to three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. The charge of obstruction of justice provides for a sentence of no greater than 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. The charges of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and honest services mail fraud, and of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and honest services wire fraud, provide for a sentence of no greater than 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a fine of 250,000 or twice the gross gain or loss, whichever is greater. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

United States Attorney Andrew E. Lelling; Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Field Division; and Kristina O’Connell, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigations in Boston, made the announcement today. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Eric S. Rosen, Justin D. O’Connell, Leslie Wright, and Kristen A. Kearney of Lelling’s Securities and Financial Fraud Unit are prosecuting the case.

The details contained in the charging documents are allegations. The defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

Appendix

1. William Rick Singer, 58, of Newport Beach, Calif., owner of the Edge College & Career Network and CEO of the Key Worldwide Foundation, was charged in an Information with racketeering conspiracy, money laundering conspiracy, conspiracy to defraud the United States, and obstruction of justice.  He is scheduled to plead guilty in Boston before U.S. District Court Judge Rya W. Zobel on March 12, 2019, at 2:30 p.m.;
2. Mark Riddell, 36, of Palmetto, Fla., was charged in an Information with conspiracy to commit mail fraud and honest services mail fraud as well as conspiracy to commit money laundering;
3. Rudolph “Rudy” Meredith, 51, of Madison, Conn., the former head women’s soccer coach at Yale University, was charged in an Information with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and honest services wire fraud as well as honest services wire fraud;  
4. John Vandemoer, 41, of Stanford, Calif., the former sailing coach at Stanford University, was charged in an Information with racketeering conspiracy and is expected to plead guilty in Boston before U.S. District Court Judge Rya W. Zobel on March 12, 2019, at 3:00 p.m.;
5. David Sidoo, 59, of Vancouver, Canada, was charged in an indictment with conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud. Sidoo was arrested on Friday, March 8^th in San Jose, Calif., and appeared in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California yesterday. A date for his initial appearance in federal court in Boston has not yet been scheduled.  

The following defendants were charged in an indictment with racketeering conspiracy:

6. Igor Dvorskiy, 52, of Sherman Oaks, Calif., director of a private elementary and high school in Los Angeles and a test administrator for the College Board and ACT;
7. Gordon Ernst, 52, of Chevy Chase, Md., former head coach of men and women’s tennis at Georgetown University;
8. William Ferguson, 48, of Winston-Salem, N.C., former women’s volleyball coach at Wake Forest University;
9. Martin Fox, 62, of Houston, Texas, president of a private tennis academy in Houston;
10. Donna Heinel, 57, of Long Beach, Calif., the senior associate athletic director at the University of Southern California;
11. Laura Janke, 36, of North Hollywood, Calif., former assistant coach of women’s soccer at the University of Southern California;
12. Ali Khoroshahin, 49, of Fountain Valley, Calif., former head coach of women’s soccer at the University of Southern California;
13. Steven Masera, 69, of Folsom, Calif., accountant and financial officer for the Edge College & Career Network and the Key Worldwide Foundation;
14. Jorge Salcedo, 46, of Los Angeles, Calif., former head coach of men’s soccer at the University of California at Los Angeles;
15. Mikaela Sanford, 32, of Folsom, Calif., employee of the Edge College & Career Network and the Key Worldwide Foundation;
16. Jovan Vavic, 57, of Rancho Palos Verdes, Calif., former water polo coach at the University of Southern California; and
17. Niki Williams, 44, of Houston, Texas, assistant teacher at a Houston high school and test administrator for the College Board and ACT.

The following defendant was charged in a criminal complaint with conspiracy to commit mail fraud and honest services mail fraud:

18. Michael Center, 54, of Austin Texas, head coach of men’s tennis at the University of Texas at Austin

The following defendants were charged in a criminal complaint with conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud:

19. Gregory Abbott, 68, of New York, N.Y., the founder and chairman of a food and beverage packaging company;
20. Marcia Abbott, 59, of New York, N.Y.;
21. Gamal Abdelaziz, 62, of Las Vegas, Nev., the former senior executive of a resort and casino operator in Macau, China;
22. Diane Blake, 55, of San Francisco, Calif., an executive at a retail merchandising firm;
23. Todd Blake, 53, of San Francisco, Calif., an entrepreneur and investor;
24. Jane Buckingham, 50, of Beverly Hills, Calif., the CEO of a boutique marketing company;
25. Gordon Caplan, 52, of Greenwich, Conn., co-chairman of an international law firm based in New York City;
26. I-Hin “Joey” Chen, 64, of Newport Beach, Calif., operates a provider of warehousing and related services for the shipping industry;
27. Amy Colburn, 59, of Palo Alto, Calif.;
28. Gregory Colburn, 61, of Palo Alto, Calif.;
29. Robert Flaxman, 62, of Laguna Beach, Calif., founder and CEO of real estate development firm;
30. Mossimo Giannulli, 55, of Los Angeles, Calif., fashion designer;
31. Elizabeth Henriquez, 56, of Atherton, Calif.;
32. Manuel Henriquez, 55, of Atherton, Calif., founder, chairman and CEO of a publicly traded specialty finance company;
33. Douglas Hodge, 61, of Laguna Beach, Calif., former CEO of investment management company;
34. Felicity Huffman, 56, of Los Angeles, Calif., an actress;
35. Agustin Huneeus Jr., 53, of San Francisco, Calif., owner of wine vineyards;
36. Bruce Isackson, 61, of Hillsborough, Calif., president of a real estate development firm;
37. Davina Isackson, 55, of Hillsborough, Calif.;
38. Michelle Janavs, 48, of Newport Coast, Calif., former executive of a large food manufacturer; 
39. Elisabeth Kimmel, 54, of Las Vegas, Nev., owner and president of a media company;
40. Marjorie Klapper, 50, of Menlo Park, Calif., co-owner of jewelry business;
41. Lori Loughlin, 54, of Los Angeles, Calif., an actress;
42. Toby MacFarlane, 56, of Del Mar, Calif., former senior executive at a title insurance company;
43. William McGlashan Jr., 55, of Mill Valley, Calif., senior executive at a global equity firm;
44. Marci Palatella, 63, of Healdsburg, Calif., CEO of a liquor distribution company;
45. Peter Jan Sartorio, 53, of Menlo Park, Calif., packaged food entrepreneur;
46. Stephen Semprevivo, 53, of Los Angeles, Calif., executive at privately held provider of outsourced sales teams;
47. Devin Sloane, 53, of Los Angeles, Calif., founder and CEO of provider of drinking and wastewater systems;
48. John Wilson, 59, of Hyannis Port, Mass., founder and CEO of private equity and real estate development firm;
49. Homayoun Zadeh, 57, of Calabasas, Calif., an associate professor of dentistry; and
50. Robert Zangrillo, 52, of Miami, Fla., founder and CEO of private investment firm.

——-
BOSTON (AP) — Hollywood actresses Felicity Huffman and Lori Loughlin were charged along with at least 40 other people Tuesday in a scheme in which wealthy parents bribed college coaches and insiders at testing centers to help get their children into some of the most elite schools in the country, prosecutors said.

33 parents have been charged nationwide. #AdmissionsScam

— U.S. Attorney MA (@DMAnews1) March 12, 2019

“These parents are a catalog of wealth and privilege,” U.S. Attorney Andrew Lelling said in announcing the $25 million federal bribery case.

Those charged included several athletic coaches.

Prosecutors said parents paid an admissions consultant from 2011 through last month to bribe coaches and administrators to label their children as recruited athletes, to alter test scores and to have others take online classes to boost their children’s chances of getting into schools.

“For every student admitted through fraud, an honest and genuinely talented student was rejected,” Lelling said.

The racketeering conspiracy charges were brought against coaches at schools including Wake Forest, Stanford, Georgetown, the University of Southern California and University of California, Los Angeles.

Lelling said it was the largest college admissions scam ever prosecuted by the Department of Justice.

Parents spent anywhere from $200k to $6.5 million to guarantee admissions to elite schools for their children #AdmissionsScam

— U.S. Attorney MA (@DMAnews1) March 12, 2019

A former Yale soccer coach pleaded guilty and helped build the case against others.

Authorities said coaches in such sports as soccer, tennis and volleyball accepted bribes to put students on lists of recruited athletes, regardless of their ability or experience.

The bribes allegedly came through an admissions consulting company in Newport Beach, California. Authorities said parents paid the founder of the Edge College & Career Network approximately $25 million to get their children into college.

Loughlin appeared in the ABC sitcom “Full House,” and Huffman starred in ABC’s “Desperate Housewives.” Both were charged with conspiracy to commit mail fraud and wire fraud.

Court documents said Huffman paid $15,000 that she disguised as a charitable donation, so her daughter could partake in the college entrance cheating scam.

Court papers said a cooperating witness met with Huffman and her husband, actor William H. Macy, at their Los Angeles home and explained the scam to them. The cooperator told investigators that Huffman and her spouse “agreed to the plan.”

Messages seeking comment with representatives for Huffman and Loughlin were not immediately returned.

———–

BOSTON (AP) — College coaches and others have been charged in a sweeping admissions bribery case unsealed in federal court.

The racketeering conspiracy charges unveiled Tuesday were brought against the coaches at schools including Wake Forest University, Georgetown and the University of Southern California.

Authorities say the coaches accepted bribes in exchange for admitting students as athletes, regardless of their ability.

Prosecutors say parents paid an admissions consultant $25 million from 2011 through February 2019 to bribe coaches and administrators to label their children as recruited athletes to boost their chances of getting into schools.

Prosecutors allege that fake athletic profiles were also made to make students look like strong high school athletes when they actually weren’t.

Authorities say the consulting company also bribed administrators of college entrance exams to allow a Florida man to take the tests on behalf of students or replace their answers with his.