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TYLER — Our news partner KETK reports that The National Institutes of Health has issued UT Tyler a $441,000 grant for funding to develop cancer-targeting nanotechnology.

“At UT Tyler, we’re committed to advancing research that can save lives,” interim dean of UT Tyler Fisch College of Pharmacy Dr. Pamella Ochoa said. “This NIH grant not only affirms the excellence of our faculty but also highlights our continued role in driving scientific innovation that can benefit East Texas and beyond.”

1 in 10 adults has received a cancer diagnosis, according to UT Tyler. Dr. Santosh Aryal’s and Dr. Farah Deba’s research will focus on using immune system cells to target cancer with nanotechnology. Continue reading $441K grant given to UT Tyler to develop cancer-targeting nanotechnology

COOKVILLE – A man in connection to the death of his wife who was found dead in Cookville on Sunday, according to a report from our news partner KETK.

The Titus County sheriff’s office said they responded to a possible murder reported on Sunday in the 500 block of County Road 3130 in Cookville. When deputies arrived at the scene they found a dead woman that was identified as Amy Denmon Allen, 54.

Amy’s husband, Michael Paul Allen, 52, was taken in to custody at the scene. According to the sheriff’s office, he was then interviewed by the Titus County Criminal Investigation Division and arrested for murder.

Allen was arraigned on Monday and his bond has been set at $1 million. The sheriff’s office is continuing to investigate this case.

FLINT – Our news partner KETK reports that a Flint man was arrested on Saturday evening after shoving his disabled mom’s head into a wall and elbowing her in the mouth.

According to a Smith County arrest affidavit, a deputy talked to the victim at her home on Frederick Circle about an assault that happened on Saturday between her and her son.

The victim told the deputy that her son, Kerry Dewayne Campbell, “has changed ever since he has gotten into a relationship,” and he was upset because she wasn’t letting him bring his girlfriend to his house.

The affidavit said that Campbell attempted to enter her home, but she was holding the front door closed to prevent him from coming in. “Then [the victim] stated that Campbell grabbed her torso and moved her out of the way,” the document said. “Campbell grabbed her by the face and shoved her head into the wall, and then Campbell elbowed Kerry’s mouth.” Continue reading Flint man arrested after injuring family member

CROCKETT – Our news partner KETK reports that a Crockett woman has been arrested after allegedly selling counterfeit pills laced with fentanyl that led to a man’s death.

The Crockett Police Department said that they received reports of an unresponsive man on May 21 and went to the person’s apartment on Sallas Street at around 11 p.m. Once on the scene, officers along with Houston County EMS discovered the individual had died, which was believed to be caused by a drug overdose.

Inside the victim’s apartment, officers reported finding small blue pills marked “M 30” which are known to resemble oxycodone or Percocet. Further investigation led officials to believe that the pills were counterfeit and contained fentanyl, causing the victim’s death. Continue reading Woman arrested for selling fentanyl-laced pills, leading to a death

WOOD COUNTY – Our news partner KETK reports that an East Texas man has been sentenced to 30 years in prison after pleading guilty to sexually assaulting his adopted children.

In 2018, the Wood County Sheriff’s Office began investigating Kevin Ray Larsson after one of his adopted children reported he had been sexually abusing them. According to officials, the child reported that Larsson had improper relations with her when she was 5-years-old.

As the investigation continued into 2023, at least six of Larsson’s adopted children claimed that he had sexually assaulted them, according to a press release from the Wood County District Attorney’s Office. Larsson later admitted to having inappropriate sexual conduct with one of the children. Continue reading Man sentenced to 30 years for sexually assaulting six adopted children

UPDATE: KAUFMAN COUNTY – According to the Kaufman County Sheriff’s Office and our news partner KETK, 32-year-old Trevor McEuen, wanted for murder, was taken into custody early Monday morning.

McEuen is being held at the Kaufman County Jail on the charges of capital murder by terror threat/other felony, five counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, arson, and murder.

Authorities said more information about his arrest will be released later. Continue reading UPDATE: Murder suspect in custody after a month on the run

TYLER – According to our news partner KETK, a woman was arrested after attempting to steal a wig from a corpse at a funeral home in Tyler. The funeral director notified the Tyler Police Department on May 23 that Tonya Boyd had gone into the preparation room and had removed the wig from a body, according to a Smith County arrest affidavit. Officials spoke with the funeral director on May 28, who stated that Boyd had been at the funeral home earlier in the day before the incident and was asked to leave. Later that day, Boyd returned to the funeral home, and employees witnessed her exiting the building with a wig in hand but did not realize it belonged to one of their clients.

According to the affidavit, the witness stated that he knew Boyd and that she had a problem with drugs. It was also reported that Boyd had been involved in several criminal activities around the funeral home in the past. The director reported that he had purchased a new wig to replace the stolen one and the family had been notified. Following the investigation, Boyd was charged with theft of property from a human corpse.

GUN BARREL CITY – According to our news partner KETK, the Gun Barrel City Police Department is currently searching for a man that led Henderson County law enforcement on a search to Eustace overnight. Gun Barrel City PD said officers were doing a traffic stop in the 100 block of Trailwind Street in Gun Barrel City on Saturday at around 9:36 p.m. when a man ran from the vehicle.

According to a post from Gun Barrel City PD, the man was identified as Terrence Marshawn Carter, a Black man from Henderson. Officials said Carter has a active patrol violation from the Texas Pardon and Parole Board. Gun Barrel City PD and other agencies searched the area and K9 Aygo was able to track Carter into a creek near the 1000 block of East Main Street, Gun Barrel City PD said. Aygo was unable to track any further at that point.

Then at around 3 a.m. on Sunday, officials said a Henderson County Sheriff’s Office deputy found Carter on Highway 175E but he ran again. The K9 was called out to search for him again but during their search the sheriff’s office was called out to a gas station at 206 Highway 175 in Eustace where a person was seen trying to enter semi-trucks. Continue reading Gun Barrel City Police searching for man

CROCKETT – The City of Crockett city administrator John Angerstein, State Rep. Cody Harris and State Rep. Trent Ashby have all expressed their opposition to a new permit application for wells in Anderson County according to our news partner KETK.

Redtown Ranch Holdings LLC in Anderson County has submitted a groundwater production permit application for 21 high-capacity groundwater wells that he said could extract 10 billion gallons of water a year from the Carrizo and Wilcox aquifers. Angerstein said the permit application also lists 11 more wells in Houston County that could drain another 5 billion gallons of water a year but aren’t covered by the Neches and Trinity Valleys Groundwater Conservation District (NTVGCD) like the 21 proposed wells in Anderson County.

According to Angerstein, the 21 wells would extract 52 times more water than the city of Crockett uses for its population. Continue reading Officials express opposition to new high-capacity wells

SMITH COUNTY – Our news partners at KETK report a passenger was reportedly ejected from a vehicle following a crash in Smith County this afternoon. According to the Community Outreach Coordinator for Smith County ESD2, Nikki Simmons, the crash occurred at FM 2908 at around 12:40 p.m. Simmons did confirm the crash was a rollover, causing one person to be ejected from the vehicle. One person was taken to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, according to Simmons.

TYLER – A student from the University of Texas at Tyler was selected by Governor Abbott to serve a second year as a student regent on the University of Texas System Board of Regents, according to our news partners at KETK. Luke Schwartz, who is currently a graduate student at UT Tyler, was selected to represent students as the student regent for the University of Texas System Board of Regents. Schwartz received his bachelor’s degree in nutrition from Texas A&M University and is currently pursuing a doctorate of medicine at UT Tyler. Abbott appointed several other student regents for public university boards across the state. A board of regents will govern the activities of each university in their system. In Texas, public university boards are appointed by the governor. Continue reading UT Tyler student chosen for UT System Board of Regents

TEXARKANA – The Texarkana Arkansas Police Department said that Omarion Owens was arrested at the Hookah Lounge in Texarkana on Friday night, according to our news partners at KETK. The Texarkana, Texas and Texarkana, Arkansas Police Departments received multiple tips about Owens being at the lounge. When officers converged on the building a foot pursuit began and lasted for two blocks before Owens was arrested. Owens was then taken to the Miller County Jail and was charged for his felony warrants.

CHEROKEE COUNTY – Our news partners at KETK report the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office is currently investigating a string of car burglaries that happened overnight on Wednesday and Thursday. According to Cherokee County Sheriff Brent Dickson, 15 vehicles were broken into at around seven different locations near FM 2138, County Road 1714 and County Road 1814 on Wednesday night and into Thursday morning. Continue reading Fifteen cars broken into in Cherokee County