KECHI – Law enforcement authorities are asking the public to be on the look out for a stolen white 2002 Ford F-250 Super Duty, with Kansas tag 940 CWB.

This vehicle was stolen from the 1600 block of east Tigua. This incident is possibly connected to the search of William Roberts, who ran from a car stop last night near 61st and Woodlawn. Robert is considered to be armed and dangerous, do not approach him or the stolen vehicle if spotted. Please continue to be vigilant and contact 911 is you see the suspect or the stolen vehicle.

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HARVEY COUNTY – Law enforcement authorities continue to search for a felony suspect who led police on a chase in central Kansas.

Just before 9p.m. Wednesday night, William Jason Roberts led police on a chase from Harvey County into Sedgwick County where he abandoned a vehicle and remains at large, according to North Newton Police Chief Randy Jordan.

Roberts is wanted on felony charges in Colorado for alleged vehicular assault and is also accused of ramming an officer’s vehicle near Dillon.
He was last seen near 61st Street and Woodlawn in north Sedgwick County, according to Jordan.

Roberts is described as 6-feet tall, weighs approximately 230 pounds, has brown hair and some facial hair and was wearing a gray tank top, black shorts or pants.

Roberts should be considered armed and dangerous. Anyone who may see him should call 911.

TREGO COUNTY — A man serving five consecutive life sentences for the first-degree murders of five people in northwest Kansas has been denied parole.

According to the office of the Trego County Attorney, Francis Donald Nemechek was denied parole after a hearing in July in front of the parole board.

He will not be eligible for parole for another 10 years in 2027.

Nemechek was sentenced in March 1977 for the crimes, which included three separate incidents.

According to court documents, Sheryl Lynn Young, 21, Colorado Springs, Colo.; Diane Lynn Lovette, 19, Fort Madison, Iowa; and Guy William Young, 3, Colorado Springs, were picked up by defendant on Interstate 70 near Ogallah on Dec. 13, 1974, after experiencing car trouble. The two women were taken to an abandoned farmhouse in Graham County where the two women were shotgunned to death and Guy, a 3-year-old boy, was left to freeze. The bodies were found on Jan. 13, 1975.

Carla Baker, a college student, was abducted on the evening of June 30, 1976, as she rode her bicycle near the west edge of Hays. Her remains were recovered Sept. 21, 1976, in a deserted area at Cedar Bluff Reservoir in Trego County after Nemechek told police where to look for her body.

Paula Fabrizius, 16, WaKeeney, worked as a park ranger at Cedar Bluff State Park during the summer months. On Aug. 21, 1976, she was abducted from her duty post. After an extensive search, her body was found the next day near Castle Rock in Gove County.

Nemechek was arrested on Aug. 24, 1976. He is now 67 years old and has been an inmate of Lansing Correctional Facility since his sentencing, according to the Kansas Department of Corrections.

“The state introduced extensive evidence connecting defendant to the crimes, with the most damning evidence being defendant’s confession to the five crimes,” court documents stated.

Prior to the July parole hearing there were be three opportunities for friends and families of victims to appear in person and testify.

EDMOND, Okla. (AP) — The Latest on the recent cluster of earthquakes in central Oklahoma. (all times local):

1:40 p.m.

At least seven earthquakes have struck the Oklahoma City area in the last three days, including one that knocked out electrical service to nearby residents and shook areas of Kansas.

The Oklahoma Corporation Commission says the quakes rattled the area from Tuesday to Thursday morning. Each had a magnitude of 3.0 or stronger.

Commission spokesman Matt Skinner says there are no wastewater injection wells in the immediate vicinity, but he says previous well activity may be the cause. Scientists have linked a dramatic increase in quakes in Oklahoma, Kansas and Texas to the underground disposal of wastewater from oil-and-gas production.

Skinner also notes there’s a fault line in the area. The area hit is about 15 miles (25 kilometers) northeast of Oklahoma City.

The strongest quake registered a magnitude of 4.2 Wednesday night. It knocked out two electric substations, leaving about 1,900 customers without power for about an hour. The most recent was a 3.3 magnitude quake Thursday morning.

No injuries or significant damage have been reported.

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OKLAHOMA- A series of earthquakes in northern Oklahoma rattled portions of Kansas Wednesday night.

The U.S. Geological Survey reported a 4.4 quake just before 10p.m. was centered north of Edmond. They later downgraded the magnitude to 4.2.  The quake knocked out two electric substations, leaving about 1,900 customers without power for about an hour.

4.4 magnitude earthquake near E. Covell Road was widely felt in northern Oklahoma City and Edmond at 9:57 pm CDT this evening. #okquake pic.twitter.com/JbGKLOZMsO

— USGS in Oklahoma (@USGS_Oklahoma) August 3, 2017

The agency reported six quakes in the region over the past 24-hours. They ranged in magnitude from 2.6 and 3.5 to the larger one at 4.4. Emergency management officials are working to determine possible damage as a result of the larger quake.

The Oklahoma Corporation Commission says its Induced Seismicity Department and the Oklahoma Geological Survey are investigating the quakes.

 

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas has unveiled a new driver’s license design meant to comply with federal identification requirements for airport security purposes.

The new licenses will contain either a gold circle with a white star cutout proving the holder is lawfully in the U.S. and that it is acceptable federal identification, or the words “not for federal ID.”

The revamped licenses come three years before they are required.

Anyone seeking the “Real ID” credential must provide Social Security number documentation, and their birth certificate or valid U.S. passport. People without such documents can get the “not for federal ID” card, which will not be acceptable identification for boarding domestic flights or entering designated federal sites after Sept. 30, 2020. Those cards still will be valid as state identification or as a driver’s licenses.

SALINE COUNTY – Four people were injured in an accident blamed on inattentive driving just after 2p.m. Wednesday in Saline County.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2017 passenger vehicle driven by Deborah Straus, 60, Cincinnati, Ohio, was westbound on Interstate 70 three miles west of Hedville.

The Toyota rear-ended a semi.

Straus and three passengers Beatrice A. Seals, 84, and two children all of Cincinnati, OH., were transported to the hospital in Salina.

The semi driver Charles R. Little, 60, Springfield, MO., was not injured.

All five were properly restrained at the time of the accident, according to the KHP.

SEDGWICK COUNTY – Law enforcement authorities are investigating report of a suspicious camera.

Just after 12:30p.m. Saturday, police responded to the Palace Movie Theatre, 535 South Ridge in Wichita, according to officer Paul Cruz.

An employee told police he found a small camera in the box office area. The camera showed video of a bathroom at the theatre. Police took the camera and turned it over the Exploited and Missing Child Unit of the Wichita Police Department.

Police have made no arrests and say staff at the Theatre are cooperating with the investigation.  Cruz also reminded the public if you see anything suspicious, especially with electronic devices, call police.

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas man who was Topeka’s first openly gay mayoral candidate says he received death threats during his unsuccessful primary campaign.

A day after failing to advance to the November general election in the five-candidate race, Chris Schultz told the Topeka Capital-Journal on Wednesday that the threats he suspects were related to his sexual orientation were “kind of traumatizing.”

Schultz says said he didn’t report the texts he received by text and email to law enforcement in an attempt to avoid thinking about them.

Michelle De La Isla and Spencer Duncan moved on to the general election. Schultz finished third.

De La Isla callsthe threats “horrendous” and said she’s “very sorry to hear Chris experienced that.” She called Schultz “a great person” who “ran a wonderful campaign.”

 

GRAY COUNTY– A Kansas man was injured in an accident just before 9:30p.m. Wednesday in Gray County one mile west of Charleston.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2007 Cadillac driven by Joseph D. Durham, 62, Cimarrom was eastbound on U.S. 50

The vehicle left the roadway, entered the south ditch and rolled.

Durham was transported to the hospital in Garden City. He was not wearing a seat belt, according to the KHP.

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — A federal appeals court ruling will force Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach to answer questions under oath about plans to change U.S. election law.

The 10th Circuit Court of Appeals on Wednesday denied the Kansas Republican’s request for an emergency stay of his deposition by the American Civil Liberties Union.

Kobach’s office declined to comment on the decision.

Judges in Kansas found Kobach misled the court about the contents of a document he took into a November meeting with then-President-elect Donald Trump and a separate draft amendment to the National Voter Registration Act.

The lower court fined Kobach $1,000 and ordered him to testify on Thursday.

The ACLU lawsuit challenges a Kansas election law requiring proof-of-citizenship documents.

Kobach is vice chairman of Trump’s Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity.

WICHITA – The owner of a hunting guide company in Elk County pleaded guilty and was sentenced Wednesday for violating state and federal laws while taking clients on hunting trips, according to U.S. Attorney Tom Beall.

Josh Hedges, 35, Grenola, Kan., owner of Eagle Head Outfitters, LLC, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to violate the Lacey Act and one count of violating the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. He was sentenced to five years on probation and ordered to pay $15,000 restitution to the Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism Restitution Fund. In addition, he was forbidden to hunt, trap or guide for 12 years. Hedges also agreed to divest himself of the company.

Hedges admitted directing his guides to:

Place corn, wheat and soybeans around ponds as bait for waterfowl.
Help hunters to exceed their daily bag limits by offering to say they shot some of the birds the hunters shot.
Fail to tag, process and transport birds as required by state and federal law.
In addition, Hedges admitted that he shot a hawk from his vehicle while sitting on a county road near Grenola.

Beall commended the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism and Assistant U.S. Attorney Matt Treaster for their work on the case.