A Topeka man has been sentenced to seven years in federal prison for taking part in an armed robbery at a Little Caesars Pizza restaurant, U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom said today.

David Pierre Wigfall, 28, Topeka, Kan., pleaded guilty to aiding and abetting a robbery in which the robber brandished a firearm.  In his plea, Wigfall admitted that on March 1, 2013, he drove a white Cadillac occupied by co-defendants Alonzo Nathan Lax, Johnnie Lee McCall and Jordan Lucas.  

At McCall’s direction, Lax agreed to rob Little Caesars Pizza at 2620 SW 6th Street, Suite B, in Topeka. Wearing a blue hooded sweatshirt, gloves and a black ski mask, Lax entered the restaurant, brandished a firearm and demanded money.  A clerk saw him leave the restaurant and get into the passenger side of the Cadillac.

A few minutes later, officers of the Topeka Police Department found the Cadillac parked at a residence in the 1000 block of SW Plass and determined that it was registered to Wigfall.  They kept watch on the car until he got in and drove away. When they stopped him they recovered a mask and coins from the robbery.

Co-defendants include:

• Johnnie Lee McCall, who is set for sentencing Oct. 7.
• Jordan Christopher Lucas, who is set for sentencing Oct. 28.
• Alonzo Lax, who is set for sentencing Oct. 7.

Grissom commended the Topeka Police Department, the FBI and Assistant U.S. Attorney Jared Maag for their work on the case.

Saline County Authorities have arrested two people thought to be involved with a beating and kidnapping case in Reno County. Authorities took 25 year old Thomas

Beatty and 27 year old Chivon Leon, both of Salina, into custody Saturday morning after a man reported that he was abducted and beaten. The man reported the incident to authorities when he managed to escape.

Reno County Sheriff Randy Henderson says investigators are still trying to piece together what happened but it appears the incident started in the city of Hutchinson and then moved out into the county, and eventually to Salina. Both suspects are booked into the Saline County jail on charges of kidnapping, aggravated robbery, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, and criminal restraint. Bond for Leon is set at 40-thousand 500-dollars while Beatty is being held with out bond at this time.

(AP) — New figures show that the number of charter schools in Kansas has been declining, with only 11 still operating.

In 2012, Kansas had 15 charter schools, which receive public funding but are usually managed by outside boards or private companies. There were 33 in 2010.

Charter school supporters say they’re intended to provide competition to the public school system, offering different management and a different educational approach. Supporters of traditional schools say while charter schools can offer an alternative for some students, they also siphon off public funds that could be used to improve all schools.

Jessica Noble, who coordinates charter and virtual school programs for Kansas, said many school districts are choosing to convert the charter schools back into regular schools.

 

(AP) — The flooding along the South Platte River continues to set records in western Nebraska, but the defenses communities built are generally holding and the

floodwater is slowly flowing east across the state.

The National Weather Service says the South Platte rose to a record of 14.36 feet early Monday morning.

The river had continued to rise since Sunday when it exceeded the old record of 14 feet that was set in June 1935.

The South Platte declined slightly to 14.1 feet by 8 a.m. Monday. The gauges upstream from North Platte show that the water flowing in from Colorado has started to decline.

But the Weather Service predicts minor flooding this week in several central Nebraska cities. The river is already rising near Lexington and Overton.

 

On this final episode of the 2013 golf season, Steve Gotsche looks back at former episodes and gives some pointers on what we can do during the Winter months.