KTBB News, Weather, Talk

TYLER – A former Smith County woman is the object of a missing persons report. She is Martha Ann Hawkins, 76. She use to live in the Flint area and has ties to Smith County. She has and been missing since December 21st, 2016. Around Thanksgiving she was discovered in Oklahoma, where she was treated at a local hospital for a mental illness. Hawkins was then taken to The Miracle House, in Dallas. Martha AKA “Marty” has walked away from that facility and is off her medications. Family members indicate there is no activity on her bank account. If anyone has any information regarding Ms. Hawkins and her whereabouts, please contact the Smith County Sheriff’s Office at 903-566-6600.

TATUM – The Gladewater school superintendent will be returning to a school district where he previously worked. On Wednesday, The Tatum school board named Dr. J.P. Richardson as the lone finalist for their superintendent’s post. They have scheduled a March 2nd meeting to make it official. Richardson has been the Gladewater school superintendent since 2008. He succeeded Dee Hartt who retired. Richardson worked in the Tatum school system before coming to Gladewater. He was a school principal and later the district’s director of human resources and community relations.

TYLER – A Tyler curfew for young people remains in effect. The Tyler city council on Wednesday approved reauthorizing the curfew ordinance. The ordinance is reevaluated every three years. The only one to speak on the ordinance was Police Chief Jimmy Toler, who said it was a useful tool for law enforcement. Under the ordinance, the curfew is for persons 17 and younger. It is is in effect from 11:00pm to 6:00am on weekdays and Sunday, and from midnight to 6:00am on Friday and Saturday. It was first enacted in 1994.

TYLER – The 12th court of appeals in Tyler has upheld the murder conviction of a Smith County man in a 2015 slaying. James Bales, 33, was found guilty just over a year ago in the slaying of Bias Lott, 61. He was sentenced to life in prison. He had been accused of using a baseball bat to kill Lott. It happened in March of 2015 in the 22000 block of Lakeway Harbor Drive in Bullard. Deputies initially responded to a disturbance call and, upon arrival, found two men involved in an altercation. Officials said one of the men had been attacked and repeatedly hit in the head with a baseball bat.

KILGORE – Kilgore police are looking for a man in connection with a theft case. They are trying to find Joshua D. Donovan, 36, of Kilgore. He is wanted for questioning in an ongoing investigation of copper theft. There are currently warrants out for his arrest. One of those warrants is out of Kilfore. If you know where he can be located, you are asked to call Detective Charles Dukes by email at charles.dukes@cityofkilgore.com or call him at 903-218-6904. You can also contact Gregg County Crime Stoppers at 903-236-STOP (7867) to provide an anonymous tip.

LUFKIN — A sex offender, who the public had been warned about in Angelina County, has been arrested. Lufkin Police Wednesday issued the warning about David Williams Adams, 65. Thursday morning, the Angelina County Sheriff’s office reported Adams was stopped for a traffic violation. He was arrested near the Lufkin ISD bus barn on South Timberland Drive for failure to comply with sex offender registration. He moved from another county into Angelina County without registering. Continue reading Convicted Sex Offender Arrested in Angelina County

KILGORE – Texas Mutual Insurance has awarded a $100,000 grant to the Kilgore College Risk Management Institute. The grant was presented during a ceremony Thursday morning. This is the 10th year in a row that Texas Mutual has awarded the grant to the college. The grant pays for workplace safety courses for community employers, workers and the general public. Since Kilgore College’s Risk Management Institute began in 2008, employees from more than 800 companies have traveled to KC from 79 Texas counties to take advantage of these free courses. More than half of these employees lived in KC’s four-county service area of Gregg, Harrison, Rusk and Upshur counties. Over the past nine years, the KC Risk Management Institute has hosted more than 363 workplace safety classes for 5,053 persons , and 1,778 individuals have received OSHA training cards through available courses.

EAST TEXAS — The Dallas FBI Violent Crimes Task Force is seeking the public’s assistance in identifying a serial bank robber dubbed the “Barrel Chested Bandit. According to KETK, he’s believed to be responsible for eight bank robberies or attempted bank robberies across Texas, Arizona and New Mexico between August 24, 2016 and February 4, 2017. North Texas Crime Stoppers is offering a reward of up to $10,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of this individual. Continue reading FBI Needs Help Identifying Bank Robber

LUFKIN — Lufkin Police are warning residents to be aware of a sex offender who is under suspicion. David Williams Adams, 65, was found guilty and convicted of a “stranger rape” of a 25-year-old woman in 1985. According to KETK, a criminal trespass warning was issued for Adams at all Brookshire Brothers locations after store employees received a complaint about Adams watching and following a woman. Police questioned Adams about the incident but he denied any wrongdoing. He also told officers his conviction of rape involved him following a woman in a Houston grocery store parking lot, then raping her at knife point in a nearby wooded area. Continue reading Police Warn Public of Convicted Rapist

LONGVIEW – The Gregg County Sheriff’s Office is seeking the public’s assistance in locating a suspect. Sabrian Alexander is wanted for credit card or debit card abuse in the Henderson and Longview areas. Anyone with information is asked to call Investigator Ben Reynolds at 903-236-2544 or call Gregg County Crime Stoppers at 903-236-STOP.

QUITMAN – The Jail Administration for the Wood County Sheriff’s Office has resigned amid an investigation of his actions. David McGee resigned during an investigation of allegations of possible inappropriate conduct between him and a jail inmate. The Texas Rangers were called in to conduct an investigation. During the investigation, McGee was arrested and charged with two counts of tampering with evidence. He was later released from jail on bond. Further information is unavailable. Records in the case have been sealed by a state district judge in Wood county.

TULSA, Okla. (AP/STAFF) — The state of Oklahoma has joined a civil lawsuit that accuses Emergency Medical Services Authority and its director of a kickback scheme with its former ambulance services provider. Earlier, the United States filed a complaint intervening in an alleged kickback scheme involving East Texas Medical Center Regional Healthcare System, Inc.; East Texas Medical Center Regional Health Services, Inc. (together, “ETMC”); Paramedics Plus, LLC; Emergency Medical Services Authority (“EMSA”); and EMSA’s President, Herbert Stephen Williamson. The intervention alleges, among other things, violations of the False Claims Act and the Anti-Kickback Statute. Continue reading State of Oklahoma Joins Kickback Lawsuit

LONGVIEW – A man accused of passing counterfeit bills has been arrested in Longview. The suspect, Kevin Madden of Longview, 45, was first said to have come into a store on South High Street and made a small purchase with a counterfeit $100 bill. A short time later, he is said to have attempted to pass another $100 bill at a store on Alpine Road. That is where police arrested him. He was booked into the Gregg County Jail, and later released under a $10,000 bond. Continue reading Counterfeit Money Leads to a Longview Arrest

LONGVIEW – A Harrison County man has been arrested in Longview for forgery. Tuesday afternoon, police received a report of a man who was attempting to cash a forged check at a bank drive-thru on North Fourth Street. As officers arrived, he fled. about 20 minutes later, Dalton Shane Brewer, 20, of Hallsville was arrested in North Longview on Patton Drive. He has been charged with Forgery of a Government/National Instrument, and evading arrest in a vehicle. He also had two outstanding felony warrants from Upshur County for forgery of a financial Instrument. He remains in the Gregg County Jail under bonds totaling over $45,000.

TYLER — The Smith County Fire Marshal’s Office is warning East Texas residents of a lake wind advisory and high fire danger for today after similar conditions prompted an advisory yesterday. The National Weather Service has issued the wind advisory from noon to 7 p.m. for Smith, Upshur, Wood, and Camp counties, as well as portions of Southeast Oklahoma. For the second day, Smith County Fire Marshal Connie McCoy is warning the public to not burn outside. Avoid burning outdoor trash and do not toss lit cigarettes out of your vehicle. Use extreme caution with outdoor grilling or campfires, which will raise the potential for grass fires. If you see a grass fire, contact the nearest fire department or law enforcement agency.

TYLER — The winners of this year’s Brick Award for contributions to downtown Tyler are Rebecca Ballard and Crysti LaRocca. They’re described by outgoing Heart of Tyler President Brooke Droptini as the “creative minds” behind the organization’s biggest fundraiser, Black Tie Bingo. The award announcement was made at the annual meeting of Heart of Tyler, the city’s downtown revitalization group. The gathering was held at the new Innovation Pipeline, a facility for budding entrepreneurs. Continue reading Heart of Tyler Holds Annual Meeting

AUSTIN (AP) – The Texas Senate has confirmed Gov. Greg Abbott’s three nominees for the University of Texas System Board of Regents. Tuesday night’s 29-0 vote with two abstentions means Former UT regent Janiece Longoria, ex-state Sen. Kevin Eltife, Tyler, and businessman Rad Weaver will serve six-year terms. Abstaining were Houston Democratic Sen. Borris Miles and Sen. Royce West a Democrat from Dallas. The only two black members of the Senate, the pair has criticized Abbott for not nominating any African-Americans for the UT Board of Regents. The three new regents succeed Wallace Hall, Alex Cranberg and Brenda Pejovich. Hall ruffled campus feathers by suing UT Austin to get access to hundreds of thousands of pages of emails, interview notes and other records.

TYLER – A second TJC student has been arrested for a Fort Worth murder. The United States Marshal Service arrested Cedrick Ladarius Richardson, 20, of Fort Worth. He was booked into the Smith County Jail on $100,000 bond. Last month, TJC student Keoddrick Polk, 19, of Fort Worth, was arrested on a murder charge. The Tarrant County Crime Stoppers Facebook page say Polk was placed on the 2016 Fort Worth Police Department’s Most Wanted List in September. Polk was booked into the Smith County Jail on a charge of capital murder for remuneration, also known as murder for pay. His bond was set at $150,000.

NACOGDOCHES – The former chairman of the Nacogdoches County Republican Party is free on bond today following his indictment and arrest for felony theft. Andrew Elijah Higdon, 37, was released from jail on a $5,000 bond. The indictment says the theft occurred between December 7, 2015 and July 22, 2016. The indictment indicates Higdon stole money from the State of Texas while he was party chairman. Higdon resigned the post last September 1st.

TYLER – The Better Business Bureau of Central East Texas held its annual awards program Tuesday. It was to honor businesses and charities for their outstanding achievements. The Large Business of the Year Award went to East Texas Copy Systems. The The mid-size business of the year award went to The Park of East Texas, the parent company of the East Texas State Fair and the Academic Rodeo. The small business of the year winner is Travis J Consulting, a web design and social media marketing company. The Children’s Advocacy Center of Smith County was named the nonprofit organization of the year.

MARSHALL – The Harrison County grand jury has handed up just over two dozen indictments. Two of those were sealed. Among the persons indicted was Joshua Warren Westberry, 28, of Hallsville. He has been indicted on two counts of aggravated sexual assault of a child and three counts of indecency with a child by sexual contact. His victims were said be under the age of 14 and 17. According to the indictment, the incidents took place last year, twice on August 27 and three times on September 24.

TYLER – Two more arrests have been made in the January 28th robbery and homicide at the Conoco station on Tyler’s NNE Loop. The latest suspect in custody is Kiera Shasta Oliver, 25, the sister of Kedarius Hays Oliver who is already in custody. She has been charged with making a false report to an officer and hindering apprehension. Also arrested in the case is Shamecca Staley, 28. She has been charged with tampering with physical evidence and hindering apprehension/prosecution. She is the sister of Dameon Jamrc Mosley and is believed to be the person that drove Mosley to Dallas after the robbery took place. Continue reading More Arrests in a Smith County Robbery/Murder

LONGVIEW – The Gregg County Sheriff’s Department is asking for the public’s help in identifying two suspects. The man and woman are wanted in a credit card abuse case. If anyone has any information in regards to the couple in the photograph please contact Lieutenant Hope at 903-234-3118 or Investigator Ben Reynolds at 903-237-2544 or Gregg County Crime stoppers at http://www.greggcountycrimestoppers.org or call 903-236-7867.

TYLER – The Smith County Fire Marshal’s Office is warning you not to do any outdoor burning today. Because of a dropping humidity and high winds, there is a high fire danger in Smith County. According to an alert received from the National Weather Service based in Shreveport, an enhanced fire danger will exist until humidity values increase and wind speeds decrease after 6:00pm today. Smith County Fire Marshal Connie McCoy-Wasson says to avoid burning outdoor trash and do not toss lit cigarettes out of your vehicle. Use extreme caution with outdoor grilling or campfires, which will raise the potential for grass fires.

TYLER – Smith County Commissioners have named a new Facility Services Director. Named to the post at the Tuesday morning meeting is Ed Nichols. He succeeds Steve Christian who recently retired. Nichols began working as an electrician/maintenance man for Smith County Facility Services more than eight years ago. Most recently he served as facility services supervisor. As Facility Services Director, Nichols will oversee the department’s more than 20 employees, who care for and maintain the county’s 25 buildings and grounds, including the T.B. Butler Fountain Square and Camp Ford. Nichols grew up in Longview and graduated from Gilmer High School.

LONGVIEW – Gregg County authorities say they have located the victim from a shooting last Friday. But there are still a lot of questions about the case. The shooting occurred around 4:00 Friday afternoon at the Green Top gas station on U.S. Highway 259 north of Longview. But, when Gregg County sheriff”s deputies arrived, the victim was not there. They announced Tuesday morning they have identified the victim and found him over the weekend, but police spokesman Josh Tubb said they are moving the case to the inactive file because of lack of cooperation by the victim and the witnesses. They say his injuries were not that serious. They have determined he was shot with a BB gun.

KILGORE — A Kilgore man was being held Monday in the Gregg County Jail in connection with a stabbing early Sunday. According to KETK and the Longview News-Journal, Brandon Anthony Portales, 28, was charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. His bond was set at $25,000. Gregg County sheriff’s deputies arrested him just after 1:00 Sunday morning on Old Highway 135 in Kilgore while responding to a report of a possible disturbance. Portales had a swollen eye, swollen nose and bleeding from his hand while walking north on Old 135 north of Addie Street. Continue reading Kilgore Man Charged in Sunday Morning Assault

LONGVIEW – The Longview Chapter of the NAACP has a new president today. He is the Rev. Lamar Jones, who has been pastor of Galilee Baptist Church in Hallsville for 22 years. He became president on Sunday. Jones is a longtime member of the chapter and lifelong Longview resident. According to the Longview News Journal, one of his first focuses is on growing an active membership, recruiting new people and revitalizing members who are not active. He said he will pattern his leadership after that of immediate past President Branden Johnson and his predecessors.