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.

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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.

AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — A 27-year-old convicted felon on the Texas 10 Most Wanted sex offender list has been captured in Kansas.

The Texas Department of Public Safety on Monday announced Billy Don Urango was caught Feb. 26 in Wichita. Investigators say Urango was wanted for parole violation and failure to register as a sex offender.

Records show Urango has a 2010 conviction for aggravated sexual assault of a child and indecency with a child-sexual contact in a Grayson County incident with an 11-year-old boy.

DPS says a tipster will be paid $5,000 as a result of the arrest of Urango, who was wanted since mid-2017 after fleeing from Dallas.

MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) — A 38-year-old man accused of trying to kill a Manhattan police officer is now scheduled for trial in August.

Mark Harrison faces one count of attempted capital murder of a police officer. Prosecutors say he fired 33 shots during a three-hour standoff with police in January 2018.

One shot hit Riley County Police Sgt. Pat Tiede in the leg. The defense has argued that shot hit Tiede after it ricocheted off a sidewalk.

In February, Harrison was found not guilty on two counts of attempted capital murder, stemming from shots that hit an armored SWAT vehicle with two officers inside. The jury couldn’t reach a verdict on the count involving Tiede.

Harrison’s new trial is scheduled for Aug. 6.

NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — Customs agents have seized the biggest shipment of cocaine recovered at the ports of New York and New Jersey in 25 years.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection says 3,200 pounds of the drug in 60 packages were seized at Port New York/Newark on Feb. 28. The street value is estimated at $77 million.

3,200LB COCAINE SEIZURE–#CBP coordinated with U.S. and international partners to seize 3,200lbs of cocaine worth an estimated $77M! It was the second largest cocaine seizure at the Port of New York/Newark, and the largest in nearly 25 years! Learn more: https://t.co/N2Nnzyq1Du pic.twitter.com/70Jl4Or7Hm

— CBP (@CBP) March 11, 2019

It’s the biggest cocaine seizure at the ports since 1994.

A Customs spokesman says the container was recovered from a ship that originated in South America.

Customs officers turned the drugs over to federal Homeland Security officials for investigation.

By JOHN HANNA

TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) — A “poison pill” in Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly’s plan for expanding Medicaid aimed at reassuring wary Republican legislators wouldn’t actually end the expansion if the federal government backed off its promises to cover most of the cost.

Kelly has said her proposal is based on an expansion plan that passed in 2017 with large, bipartisan legislative majorities, only to be vetoed by Kansas’ then-conservative GOP Gov. Sam Brownback. But the new Democratic governor’s “working group” of Medicaid advisers suggested a key, one-word change when it comes what would happen if the federal government backed off its commitment to cover 90 percent of the expansion.

The 2017 bill said the state “shall” end expanded Medicaid health coverage for tens of thousands of Kansas residents if the federal government drops its funding percentage. Kelly’s proposal says the state “may” end expansion — meaning she or a future governor could opt to continue with less federal money.

Documents obtained by The Associated Press through an open records request show that an initial draft of Kelly’s proposed legislation contained the 2017 “poison pill.” Kelly’s advisers on Medicaid expansion suggested the weaker language and it changed before Kelly released her proposal to the GOP-controlled Legislature.

“The working group wanted to provide the state with some flexibility in managing the new Medicaid program, while also protecting the state’s finances should federal funding be reduced,” Kelly spokeswoman Ashley All said Monday.

It’s not clear how many legislators are aware of the change. Top Republicans remain adamantly opposed to Medicaid expansion, viewing it as costly to the state despite the promised federal funding, and no committee has had a hearing on Kelly’s specific proposal.

House Majority Leader Dan Hawkins, a conservative Wichita Republican, said if the federal government backed off its funding promises, “screaming and the gnashing of teeth” over ending an entitlement program would prevent state officials from doing it.

“The only way it can be shut down is if it’s forced by law,” he said.

Kansas is one of only 14 states that have not expanded their Medicaid programs or had voters approve a ballot initiative. Supporters argue that expansion would cover thousands of struggling families and boost troubled rural hospitals.

The 2010 federal Affordable Care Act encouraged states to expand Medicaid by offering to cover almost all of the cost.

With conservatives questioning how long Congress would stand by its promise, given federal budget deficits, Kansas’ 2017 bill stipulated that if the federal government’s share of funding dropped below 90 percent, the state was required to end the expanded coverage within a year. A poison pill has been included in a majority of expansion proposals since 2013.

“I think that’s going to have to be an element of any bill,” said Rep. Russ Jennings, a moderate Lakin Republican who supports expansion. “Because of the cost implications.”

Emails released to the AP show that members of Kelly’s team were working on a draft of her bill in December. The Medicaid working group met Jan. 18 in a Statehouse conference room, four days after Kelly took office.

A suggestion to change the poison pill language came from that meeting, according to notes circulated to members by email afterward by a Kelly staffer. The notes did not say who suggested the change, but “shall” became “may.”

“There were a lot of little tweaks that were done, but that was the only substantive change, at least in my mind, from the 2017 bill,” said April Holman, executive director of the pro-expansion Alliance for a Healthy Kansas and a member of Kelly’s group.

Rep. Kathy Wolfe Moore, a Kansas City Democrat and another working group member, said it wanted to avoid ending expansion because the federal government “went down one point” on its funding percentage.

But she said she would support a full-strength poison pill “if that’s the hold-up between passing Medicaid expansion and not.”

DETROIT (AP) — Honda is likely to recall around 1 million older vehicles in the U.S. and Canada because the Takata driver’s air bag inflators that were installed during previous recalls could be dangerous.

Documents posted Monday by Canadian safety regulators show that Honda is recalling many of its most popular models for a second time. The models are from as far back as 2001 and as recent as 2010.

Canadian documents say about 84,000 vehicles are involved. That number is usually over 10 times higher in the United States.

Affected models include the Honda Accord from 2001 through 2007, the CR-V from 2002 through 2006, the Civic from 2001 through 2005, the Element from 2003 through 2010, the Odyssey from 2002 through 2004, the Pilot from 2003 through 2008 and the Ridgeline from 2006. Also covered are Acura luxury models including the MDX from 2003 through 2006, the EL from 2001 through 2005, the TL from 2002 and 2003 and the CL from 2003.

Transport Canada, the country’s transportation safety agency, said vehicles covered include those that were under previous recalls and others that had air bags replaced after collisions.

Takata used the chemical ammonium nitrate to create a small explosion to inflate the air bags. But the chemical can deteriorate over time due to high humidity and cycles from hot temperatures to cold. It can burn too fast and blow apart a metal canister, hurling shrapnel into drivers and passengers.

At least 23 people have died from the problem worldwide and hundreds more were injured.

The recalls are part of the largest series of automotive recalls in U.S. history. As many as 70 million will be recalled.

Honda spokesman Chris Martin wouldn’t give details Monday evening, but said the company is communicating with the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration “and plans to issue a public statement tomorrow.” Messages were left after business hours Monday seeking comment from NHTSA.

Owners will be told to take their vehicles to dealers to have the inflators replaced.

SALINE COUNTY- A Kansas man with ten previous conviction and on the Saline County Most Wanted list was arrested in the self-checkout line at a local store.

Just after 5:30a.m. March 8, police received a tip that Drew Phillips, 38, of Salina, was at Walmart, 2900 S. Ninth Street, according to Salina Police Captain Paul Forrester.

According to the Saline County Sheriff’s Most Wanted list, Phillips was wanted on suspicion of felony conspiracy to distribute Methamphetamine and Alprazolam and trafficking contraband in a correctional facility.

During the arrest, officers found a black Taurus 9mm handgun and a large amount of cash, including $1,040 in counterfeit $100, $50, and $20 bills, according to Forrester.

In addition to the warrants, Phillips also was arrested on suspicion of criminal possession of a weapon by a felon and counterfeiting currency.

Phillips has ten previous convictions that include charges for burglary, drugs and weapons violations, according to the Kansas Department of Corrections.

KANSAS CITY, KAN. – A Miami County man was sentenced Monday to nine years in federal prison on child pornography charges, according to U.S. Attorney Stephen McAllister.

William Bresee, 32, Fontana, Kan., pleaded guilty to three counts of distributing child pornography and one count of possessing child pornography. At sentencing, the prosecutor told the court Bresee admitted that federal agents downloaded child pornography from his computer using an online file sharing program.

Bresee was a staff member at Lakemary Center in Paola, Kan., working an overnight shift when investigators tracked child pornography to an IP address at the center. Breesee no longer works there.

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.

LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — A judge has rejected a motion to drop charges against a 21-year-old man accused in a triple homicide in Lawrence.

Douglas County District Court Judge Sally Pokorny on Friday ruled that Anthony Roberts Jr., of Topeka, had not provided evidence to justify his claim that he acted in self-defense during the shootings in October 2017.

Roberts’ trial is scheduled for June 10. He is charged with two counts of first-degree felony murder, second-degree murder and attempted second-degree murder.

The shootings in downtown Lawrence involved two groups of Topeka men who had earlier confrontations. They fired about 20 shots, killing three and injuring two others.

One co-defendant is scheduled for trial in April. A third pleaded no contest last week to misdemeanor battery and was released from jail.

COWLEY COUNTY — A man has died in an accident in Cowley County.

Just after 2p.m. Monday, the Cowley County Sheriff’s Office, along with Winfield EMS and Burden First Responders were dispatched to the 400 block of North Elm in Burden, Kansas for an unresponsive subject, according to Sheriff Dave Falletti.

Upon arrival, emergency officials found 26-year-old George Fletcher under a vehicle. It was determined that he had been working on a car and the car fell on him causing his death.

GEARY COUNTY — Law enforcement authorities are investigating three suspects on drug charges after a traffic stop on Interstate 70.

Just before 5a.m. Sunday, deputies stopped a vehicle on Interstate 70 just west of the Milford Lake exit for a defective tag lamp, according to the Geary County Sheriff’s Department.

During the traffic stop, deputies arrested Morgan Macpherson, 20, New Port Richey, Florida, on suspicion of Defective Tag lamps, Possession of Marijuana, Possession of Drug Paraphernalia and No Drug Tax Stamp.

In addition, deputies arrested Cody Lambert, 22, Port Richey, Florida and Alyssa Drake, 20, Manhattan  on suspicion of Possession of Marijuana, Possession of Drug Paraphernalia and No Drug Tax Stamp.