A former Kansas man pleaded guilty in federal court to embezzling $3.1 million from his employer and failing to pay nearly $1 million in taxes owed to the federal government and the state of Kansas. Richard Scott Simkins, 56, now residing in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, waived his right to a grand jury and pleaded guilty […]
A Kansas man was sentenced in federal court for his role in a heroin trafficking conspiracy. Solomon B. Hawthorne, 31, of Kansas City, Kansas was sentenced by U.S. Chief District Judge Beth Phillips to 12 years and one month in federal prison without parole. The sentence includes a term of two years for violating his federal […]
Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt announced that Navient, one of the nation’s largest student loan servicers, entered into a civil settlement agreement with his office and 38 other states for abuses originating in predatory student loans. The agreement resulted in a $53 million settlement for Missourians: $2.5 million in restitution and $51 million in private […]
The Gallatin Board of Aldermen on Monday, January 10th approved a resolution involving funding for a street project and an ordinance regarding an equipment sales agreement. The resolution states the intent to seek funding through the Community Development Block Grant Program and authorizes the mayor to pursue activities in an attempt to secure funding for […]
A drug trafficker and money launderer for the Sinaloa Cartel was sentenced yesterday to 188 months in prison for supervising the smuggling of multi-kilogram quantities of cocaine, methamphetamine, and heroin from Mexico into the United States and the smuggling of drug proceeds from the United States to Mexico. Roberto Gallegos-Lechuga, 39, of Sinaloa, Mexico, was […]
A Belton, Missouri, man has been sentenced in federal court for illegally possessing firearms and for drug trafficking and money laundering conspiracies. Maurice L. Sneed, also known as “Sneedy,” 30, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Gary A. Fenner on Thursday, Jan. 6, 2022, to five years and eight months in federal prison without parole. […]
The Missouri Attorney General urged the Federal Communications Commission to put in place measures that will help stem the tide of foreign-based illegal robocalls that attempt to scam Americans. “Combating annoying, and sometimes dangerous, robocalls is an important mission of the Attorney General’s Office. Using the latest technology and working with telecom partners to control […]
(Missouri Independent) – A company denied licenses to grow medical marijuana in Missouri urged the state Supreme Court Tuesday to compel regulators to provide application info that the health department has argued it’s constitutionally obligated to protect. At issue is the Department of Health and Senior Services’ refusal to turn over applications of successful license […]
(Missouri Independent) – The omicron variant of COVID-19 has made its way to Missouri, with the first case announced Friday. In a news release, the Department of Health and Senior Services said it was notified by public health partners of a presumed positive case for the variant that came from a St. Louis resident who […]
After admitting to illegally having several thousands of rounds of ammunition in Missouri, among other crimes, a member of the Proud Boys extremist group is set to serve 87 months (7.25 years) in prison. Jonathan Cuney of New York state said he bought the ammunition at a Columbia, Missouri firearms store through a […]
Officials with the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services say they’re keeping an eye on the spread of the latest Covid-19 variant. So far, the Omicron variant has not made it to Missouri, but the first case in the United States has been detected in a man who flew into California from […]
(Missouri Independent) – Undocumented workers and immigration advocates are pushing for Democrats to keep work permits and protections from deportations in the final version of the $1.85 trillion social spending and climate package that the U.S. House is set to vote on as soon as Thursday night. Those immigration provisions face elimination when the bill […]
United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Under Secretary for Rural Development Xochitl Torres Small announced that USDA is investing $222 million to build and improve critical community facilities (PDF, 729 KB) in 44 states, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, and Puerto Rico. This community infrastructure funding will benefit nearly 2.5 million people in rural communities. It also […]
A Missouri woman has been indicted by a federal grand jury for a wire fraud scheme in which she embezzled more than $362,000 from her Springfield, Mo., employer. Carrie Leigh Long, 52, Ash Grove, was charged in a 24-count indictment returned under seal by a federal grand jury in Springfield, Mo., on Wednesday, Nov. 17. […]
(Missouri Independent) – Reducing the number of livestock will not be a priority for the Biden administration as it seeks to drastically cut methane emissions to stem climate change, according to U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack. Instead, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s “climate-smart” initiatives will focus on new types of animal feed and manure […]
U.S. Department of Agriculture Under Secretary for Rural Development Xochitl Torres Small announced that USDA is awarding $3 million in cooperative agreements to 13 organizations. These organizations will provide technical assistance to people living in rural and Tribal communities so they can apply for and access government resources for projects that will attract jobs and […]
(Missouri Independent) – Missouri and Kansas residents may be drinking unsafe amounts of arsenic, nitrates, and other chemicals — even if their provider is meeting federal drinking water requirements, according to data published Wednesday by an environmental group. The Environmental Working Group released its most up-to-date tap water database, compiling testing information for water utilities across the […]
Metal component manufacturer KAK Industry, LLC announced today it will expand its operations in Missouri by opening a manufacturing facility in Albany, investing more than $7 million, and creating 30 new jobs. The new facility will help KAK Industry meet the increasing demand for custom-made firearms parts by doubling the volume of production and eliminating […]
A man has been indicted by a federal grand jury after smuggling nearly eight pounds of fentanyl aboard a bus traveling through Kansas City, Missouri. Jonatan Gutierrez, 28, of San Diego, California, was charged with possessing fentanyl with the intent to distribute in an indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Kansas City, Mo., […]
A Trenton man pleaded guilty to three counts while six others were dismissed on Thursday following two arrests, one month apart, this summer. In Division One of the Grundy County Circuit Court, Judge Thomas Alley sentenced Stephan Elliott to four years with the Department of Corrections on each of three counts. These were driving while […]
