SALINA- Law enforcement authorities in Saline County are investigating an attempted home burglary.

Benjamin Vidricksen, 63, walked into his home in the 1300 Block of Beverly Drive just before noon on Monday and found Gerald Brown, 39, Salina inside attempting to steal tools, according to Salina Police Captain Mike Sweeney.

Vidricksen confronted Brown who was in the process of taking items that were valued around $60 including a pair of pliers, a pocket knife, a tape measure, a magnetic drill bit, and a headlamp.

Vidricksen called police and Brown was taken into custody.

He faces requested charges of aggravated burglary and theft.

FORT BRAGG, N.C. (AP) — The latest on the case of U.S. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, who disappeared in Afghanistan in 2009 and was held by the Taliban for five years (all times local):

10:40 a.m.

U.S. Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl made his first appearance before a military judge to face charges of desertion and misbehavior before the enemy.

Bergdahl was arraigned Tuesday during a short hearing. He deferred entering a plea and did not decide whether he wants to face a court-martial with a jury or one with just a judge.

Bergdahl answered “yes” and “no” to questions about whether he understood his rights and the court proceedings. He wore an Army dress uniform with a dark blue jacket and pants and had closely cropped hair. He mostly sat still in his chair and walked with his head down as he left the courtroom.

The arraignment was held at Fort Bragg. If convicted at a general court-martial, Bergdahl could get life in prison on the misbehavior charge and up to five years for desertion.

Bergdahl, 29, of Hailey, Idaho, walked off his post in eastern Afghanistan’s Paktika province on June 30, 2009. He was released in late May 2014 as part of a prisoner swap, in exchange for five detainees in Guantanamo Bay.

HASKELL COUNTY- A Kansas woman died in an accident just before 1:30a.m. on Tuesday in Haskell County.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2008 Jeep Wrangler driven by Jill L. Kelman, 56, Sublette, was westbound on county road 170 two miles north of U.S. 56.

The jeep failed to yield at stop sign and collided with the passenger side of a semi that was northbound on U.S. 83.

Both vehicles left the road. The jeep rolled and the driver was ejected.

The semi jackknifed as it left the roadway and came to rest with the truck tractor facing southwest and the trailer facing northwest in the ditch west of U.S. 83.

Kelman was pronounced dead at the scene and transported to Swaim Funeral Home in Sublette.

A private vehicle transported the semi driver Tony Lee Gemmones, 37, Guyman, OK., to the Satanta Hospital.

Kelman was not wearing a seat belt, according to the KHP.

by DAN MARGOLIES

A Johnson County resident is the latest person to fall ill with an E. coli infection that may be linked to Chipotle Mexican Grill.

The resident reported having eaten at a Chipotle on Shawnee Mission Parkway in Shawnee, Kansas, in the week before becoming ill.

“The big thing for people to know is this was around Nov. 23 that they ate at that location,” said Sara Belfry, a spokeswoman for the Kansas Department of Health and Environment.

Belfry said anyone who became ill within three or four days of eating at the restaurant and had symptoms, including bloody diarrhea, should contact their health care provider.

Federal health officials have identified five people, including the Johnson County resident, who have been infected with what they said was a “different, rare DNA fingerprint of Shiga toxin-producing E. coli026,” or STEC 26.

All five infected people reported eating at a Chipotle Mexican Grill restaurant in the weeks before they got ill. However, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said it’s not known if the latest outbreak is related to a larger, previously reported E. coli outbreak linked to Chipotle.

One of the other five cases was in North Dakota and three were in Oklahoma.

As of Dec. 18, the CDC had reported 53 people in nine states infected as part of the earlier outbreak of STEC 026, a common type of E. coli that causes foodborne outbreaks. Forty-six reported eating at a Chipotle. Twenty people were hospitalized. There have been no reported deaths.

The CDC says evidence suggests that a common meal item or ingredient served at Chipotle is the likely source of the earlier outbreak.

At least 120 people in Boston were sickened by norovirus earlier this month in another separate outbreak of foodborne illness linked to Chipotle.

Chipotle says it’s implementing new programs to ensure the safety of its food supply.

More information is available at https://www.cdc.gov/ecoli/2015/o26-11-15/index.html or at https://www.kdheks.gov/ecoli/.

Dan Margolies, editor of the Heartland Health Monitor team.  You can reach him on Twitter @DanMargolies.

MANHATTAN – A Kansas man accused in connection with the September 4, robberies that prompted the lockdown at Kansas State University appeared in Riley County Court on Monday.

Sean Johnson, 20, Manhattan, is charged with three counts of felony-aggravated robbery, felony conspiracy to commit aggravated robbery and two counts of misdemeanor theft.

A three day trial was scheduled for March 29, 2016.

Johnson was arrested on September 9, after an investigation into several robberies on September 4 in the Manhattan that caused K-State University and Manhattan Christian College to lock down their campuses.

Johnson was arrested along with Johnathon Elliott, Carson Buckley and Janir Vega.

Johnson’s bond was originally set at $150,000. Elliott appeared in court on November 10, for a preliminary hearing where officers with the Riley County Police Department and victims testified about the incident. Read their testimony here.

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Spirit AeroSystems says it will temporarily lay off up to 70 production workers in Wichita, Kansas, at the start of 2016.

The Wichita Eagle reports that while the duration of the layoffs remains murky, affected workers still will get benefits.

Spirit has roughly 11,000 employees in Wichita.

The company says the temporary layoffs come after fewer production workers retired or quit than were projected, and improvement in some production activities have led to a need for fewer workers.

LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — A carbon monoxide leak inside a Lawrence gym has sent two people to the hospital.

The Lawrence Journal-World reports that emergency responders were called to Genesis Health Club around 7 a.m. Thursday. Firefighters discovered the leak in the gym’s pool area.

Lawrence-Douglas County Fire Marshal Jim King says two people exposed to the gas were taken to a local hospital. Further information on their conditions wasn’t immediately available.

Gym owner Rodney Steven II says a faulty flue vent connected to boilers that heat the pool caused the leak. He says the vent has been fixed.

Steven says all gym members who had visited the facility that day were notified of the gas leak.

CHAUTAUQUA COUNTY -A Kansas man died in an accident just before 4p.m. on Monday in Chautauqua County.

The Kansas Highway Patrol reported a 2003 International semi driven Juan Carlos Garcia, 60, Wichita, was westbound on U. S.166 six miles West of Kansas 99

The truck went left to center, entered the south ditch, struck a rock embankment, rolled and caught on fire.

Garcia was transported to Sedan City Hospital where he died. No additional details have been released.

OVERLAND PARK, Kan. (AP) — A Kansas City man is accused of killing a musician outside of an Overland Park bar.

The Kansas City Star reports  that 34-year-old Dale Maurice Willis is charged with first-degree murder in the fatal shooting of 24-year-old Jurl L. Carter.

Carter was shot to death Sept. 16 outside of Roxy, a bar in north Overland Park.

Bar owner Jim Kilroy says the shooting broke out after a group of men began fighting outside. He says Carter entered a car and started to back away when some men ran after him.

Carter was a rapper from Olathe who performed under the names Boogy and Yunglyfe Carter.

Willis is being held in jail under a $15 million bond. It wasn’t immediately known if he has an attorney to speak on his behalf.

RYAN J. FOLEY, Associated Press

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — A lottery industry insider allegedly fixed two jackpots in Kansas, bringing to five the number of states connected to the widening investigation.

Iowa prosecutor Rob Sand said in court documents Monday that investigators recently linked the Kansas jackpots to Eddie Tipton.

Sand says evidence will show that others claimed the prizes and half of the winnings were returned to Tipton in cash in 2011.

The documents don’t provide additional details. Tipton’s attorney, Dean Stowers, dismissed the latest allegations as a publicity stunt.

Tipton is former security director of the Urbandale, Iowa-based Multi-State Lottery Association and managed its random number generators.

Tipton was convicted of fixing a $16.5 million Hot Lotto jackpot earlier this year. Since then, prosecutors have charged him with fixing jackpots worth millions in Colorado, Wisconsin and Oklahoma.

EDGERTON, Kan. (AP) — A 32-year-old man is accused of second-degree murder in connection with a death at a bar in Edgerton.

The Kansas City Star reports that Johnson County prosecutors also charged Gregory B. David Cooper of Edgerton on Monday with attempted aggravated battery. Cooper’s bond was set at $250,000.

Authorities say deputies were called to a reported physical disturbance at the Boxcar Bar & Grill about 9:45 p.m. Saturday.

The criminal complaint against Cooper alleges that he was swinging a pool cue at a third person’s head when Tyler Knudsen was killed.

It’s not immediately clear if Cooper has an attorney.

 

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EDGERTON, Kan. (AP) — One man has been arrested after another was killed at a bar in Edgerton.

The Kansas City Star reports  that deputies were called to a physical disturbance at the Boxcar Bar & Grill in north Edgerton around 9:45 p.m. Saturday.

A 32-year-old Edgerton man was being held in the Johnson County jail Sunday on suspicion of second-degree murder. Formal charges have not been filed in the case.

The name of the victim was not immediately released. A sheriff’s office spokeswoman says that an investigating into the cause of death is still ongoing.

MANHATTAN – Police in Riley County responded to the area surrounding and the residence of 3303 Shady Valley Drive outside of the city limits of Manhattan, Kansas at approximately 10:07 a.m. on December 21, 2015. This response came after police received a report of a female brandishing a firearm in the backyard of the residence and firing multiple rounds.

Officers arrived on scene and found that the adult female had gone inside of her home and barricaded herself inside. Police made contact with this female via telephone and communicated with her for several hours. At approximately 6:35 p.m. police were able to take this female into custody with no significant injury.

 

Shawn Nichole Muller, 28,  was booked for aggravated assault; use of a deadly weapon. Bond was set at $20,000.

The Riley County Police Department was assisted by the Junction City Police Department, the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, Riley County Emergency Management, and Riley County EMS during this incident. RCPD would like to thank these agencies for their support. The Riley County Police Department would also like to thank the American Red Cross for their assistance in providing accommodations for displaced residents and law enforcement personnel during this nearly 8 and a half hour long incident.

Officers and detectives continue to investigate this matter and anticipate additional information to be released on Tuesday

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MANHATTAN – As of 4 p.m., police continued to work to find a peaceful solution to the situation at  3303 Shady Valley Drive in Manhattan.

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MANHATTAN- Law enforcement authorities in Riley County are outside a home near Shady Valley Drive and Valleywood Drive in Manhattan after a report of shots fired just after 9.am. on Monday and a woman barricaded inside a home.

The area is still closed to traffic and residents in the are were asked to stay indoors.

The Riley County Police mobile command center and additional officers arrived on the scene just before 11a.m. The officers are equipped with tactical gear and rifles.

It is unclear at the time of call to police if shots were fired, according to police spokesman Mat Droge on the scene. “Original reports were of shots fired,” he said. As officers arrived, the suspect barricaded herself in the residence. She is

talking to officers by phone as they work for a peaceful resolution, according to Droge.

“The tactical team was called in because of their training with barricaded suspects,” he said. “To our knowledge, she is the only person in the home and a hostage negotiator is talking to her.”

Check the Post for additional details as they become available.

 

 

OTTAWA, Kan. (AP) — Lawyers for a man accused of killing four people in eastern Kansas have filed motions focused on the death penalty.

Kyle Trevor Flack is charged with capital murder in the 2013 slayings of Kaylie Smith Bailey and her daughter. He’s also charged with premeditated first-degree murder in the deaths of Andrew A. Stout, and Steven White. If convicted, Flack could face the death penalty.

The Topeka Capital Journal (https://bit.ly/1O3ViLE ) reports that Flack’s attorneys filed a motion asking the judge to explain to prospective jurors that they can sentence Flack to life in prison, rather than impose the death penalty. They also asked to question potential jurors about their views on the costs of execution versus lifetime imprisonment.

Flack is set to appear at a motion hearing in district court Tuesday.