KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — A 43-year-old man has been sentenced to eight years in federal prison without parole for operating a $4.7 million investment fraud scheme involving cattle.

Cameron Hager, of Clinton, Mo., was sentenced Tuesday and ordered to pay $3.2 million in restitution to the victims of his crime. Hager pleaded guiltyin June to wire fraud and money laundering.

Hager operated 5A Holdings. He admitted that from July 2015 to September 2017 he solicited victims to invest in a “cattle fund” that would buy herds of cattle to be sold later at a substantial profit. He said he never intended to buy any cattle.

Hager received $4.7 million dollars from 92 investors. The total loss was $3.2 million. Prosecutors say he used the money for personal expenses like mortgage payments and vehicles.

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly and other advocates have ramped up a campaign for her proposal to expand Medicaid in Kansas after conservative lawmakers showed they currently hold enough power to block it.

Kelly held a news conference Thursday with four business leaders and kicked off a two-hour seminar on the potential economic benefits of expanding state health coverage for the needy. About two-dozen religious leaders also were at the Statehouse, partly to lobby for expansion, and supporters plan a March 19 rally.

I’m pleased to join former Senate President Dave Kerr and other business leaders to support Medicaid Expansion. Not only will it help our families, it will have significant positive economic impact in KS. #ksleg pic.twitter.com/xXkNooZUuV

— Governor Laura Kelly (@GovLauraKelly) March 7, 2019

The new Democratic governor is trying to crack Republican leaders’ hard opposition to Medicaid expansion as she seeks her first major victory in the GOP-dominated Legislature. Advocates believe they have bipartisan majorities for her proposal but are still trying to figure out how to get around Republican leaders.

“We’re seeing that there doesn’t seem to be a path forward right now,” said Moti Rieber, a Kansas City-area rabbi and executive director the clergy group lobbying Thursday. “I don’t know that we recognized the implacable opposition that was going to develop to the governor’s agenda.”

Kansas legislators hit the halfway point of their annual session last week. They are scheduled to take an extended spring break in April and wrap up in mid-May.

While the House’s health committee had “round-table” discussions on Medicaid expansion this week, there’s no indication any committee in either chamber plans to ever vote on a bill.

“Nothing has changed in Medicaid expansion: It’s a bad deal,” said House Majority Leader Dan Hawkins, a conservative Republican.

Three dozen states have expanded Medicaid or seen voters approve ballot initiatives for expansion, including Republican-led Idaho, Iowa, Nebraska and Ohio. The federal Affordable Care Act of 2010 encouraged expansion by promising states that the federal government would pick up the bulk of the extra cost.

Kelly, a former state senator, told reporters, “I’m anything but naive,” but added, “I’m confident we can get this done.”

Supporters argue Medicaid expansion is likely to be a net financial plus to the state, leveraging $1 billion or more a year in federal dollars to boost struggling rural hospitals and generate new health care jobs and tax revenues.

“The net cost to the state is modest for an enormous amount of good,” said GOP former state Senate President Dave Kerr.

Kansas resisted Medicaid expansion because former Republican Govs. Sam Brownback and Jeff Colyer and many GOP legislators were strong critics of the 2010 health care overhaul championed by former President Barack Obama, a Democrat.

Medicaid expansion supporters passed a bill in 2017 with large bipartisan majorities, only to see Brownback veto it.

Conservative Republicans argue that expanding Medicaid could saddle the state with unexpected and rising health coverage costs while greatly expanding government’s reach.

The nonprofit, nonpartisan Kansas Health Institute said this week that Kelly’s plan would provide Medicaid coverage for about 129,000 residents and nearly 55,000 of them would be adults and children switching from private insurance.

The institute projected a net cost to the state of $47 million for the first full year of expansion — 40 percent higher than the $34 million projected by Kelly’s administration.

“If they just want to cram it down people’s throats, it’s going to be a mistake and they’re going scream and holler when people have to get cut off from services because we’ve got a hole coming in our budget,” said Rep. Brenda Landwehr, a conservative Republican and chairwoman of the House health committee.

While Kelly’s proposal has the backing of the Kansas Hospital Association and local chambers of commerce, their support and advocates’ arguments don’t seem likely to sway the opponents holding key leadership jobs in the Legislature.

“Am I going to change? No,” Hawkins said.

___

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP) — Missouri lawmakers are advancing legislation that would make it a crime to fly a drone near a prison or mental hospital because of concerns that drones could be used to deliver drugs or weapons.

A bill passed Thursday by the Senate would make it a felony offense, with punishments getting increasingly tougher if the drone was delivering drugs, aiding an escape or bringing guns, knives or other weapons to inmates.

A version passed by the House last month carried similar felony penalties while also making it a misdemeanor to purposely fly a drone within 300 feet of a prison, jail or mental hospital — even if it’s not delivering contraband.

For a bill to go to the governor, both chambers must pass identical versions.

LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — A University of Kansas engineering professor says administrators removed him from teaching a course for the rest of the semester after he told a student to “learn English.”

Gary Minden, a professor of electrical engineering and computer science, said he was told Thursday that students were upset by his comment.

Minden says he made the comment because the student was using a translator on a cellphone. He says the student didn’t seem to be offended but other students complained. The comment prompted an hour-long discussion in the class.

University spokeswoman Erinn Barcomb-Peterson said the university assigned a different instructor to the class because several students raised concerns about the comment. The instructor will remain in the class while the investigation continues.

ST. LOUIS (AP) — The operators of a sweepstakes scam that affected senior citizens and others will forfeit $30 million in cash and assets under a record settlement announced Thursday by the Missouri Attorney General’s Office and the Federal Trade Commission.

Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt said in a statement that the settlement sends “a clear message” that those who commit fraud in Missouri won’t “go unpunished.”

Kevin Brandes, William Graham and Charles Floyd Anderson sent deceptive mailers to consumers worldwide starting in 2013, the agencies said. The trio operated out of Kansas City  along with corporations under their control.

The mailers falsely stated the recipients won large cash prizes but had to pay fees of up to $140 to get them, according to the agencies. Other mailers invited recipients to play “games of skill,” but failed to disclose the fees to play or the fact that the final round of the game involved a complex mathematical puzzle that was virtually impossible to solve.

“These defendants tricked millions of people — many of them older adults — into paying money to collect prizes that never materialized,” said Andrew Smith, director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection.

The defendants must turn over more than $21 million in cash along with property that will be liquidated to help pay back the victims. The property includes two luxury homes, a yacht and a Bentley automobile.

Originally filed in February 2018, the attorney general’s office said many victims in this case paid several times before realizing they had been scammed.

The agencies said the settlement is a record for a sweepstakes scam for both the attorney general and FTC.

LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — Prosecutors have upgraded charges against a 35-year-old Kansas man accused of shooting at police during a standoff last year.

Abdul Jalil Hussein was charged with several crimes after a June 29 standoff at his house.

Prosecutors upgraded a charge of aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer to attempted first-degree murder.

However, Hussein was found incompetent to stand trial last year and is being treated at Larned State Hospital.

In June 2018, Hussein allegedly battered an officer before going inside his home. He allegedly came back outside wearing body armor and pointed a gun at the officer. The two men exchanged fire but neither was hit.

He faces several other charges after an hours-long police standoff in December 2017 and violent incidents at his mother’s home.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — A groundbreaking celebration is planned for late March for the new single-terminal Kansas City International Airport.

The Kansas City Aviation Department and the project developer announced Thursday that the celebration will be March 25 at the airport.

The announcement is another step toward a new airport in the city, which was a source of controversy for years before voters in November overwhelmingly approved demolishing the current three-terminal airport and replacing it with a single terminal.

The City Council last week approved agreements between the city and developer Edgemoor over the design and construction of the airport.

The new terminal will have 39 gates and more than 1 million square feet.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (AP) — Authorities say a Springfield man has died after a house fire.

The fire department reported that crews were called to the home around 7:30 a.m. Thursday. Firefighters found the man while searching the home, but resuscitation attempts weren’t successful. The man’s name wasn’t immediately released, pending notification of relatives.

The post provided no details on the cause of the fire. It says no working smoke alarms were found in the home.