KTBB News, Weather, Talk

TYLER – The University of Texas at Tyler announced that Dr. Barbara Haas will serve as the university’s new provost. She has served as interim provost since June. Haas succeeds Dr. Amir Mirmiran who recently transitioned to a new role as the Dean of the Graduate School and Chief Research Officer. Haas earned her PhD in nursing from The University of Texas at Austin, master’s in nursing from Marquette University, and bachelor’s in nursing from the University of Wisconsin – Eau Claire. You can read the school’s full press release here.

SMITH COUNTY – Whitehouse ISD has officially teamed up with the University of Texas at Tyler to provide discounted tuition rates for its employees pursuing advanced degrees, according to a report from our news partner KETK.

This partnership aims to support the professional growth and lifelong learning of Whitehouse ISD staff, while also strengthening ties with higher education partners. The initiative is expected to benefit district employees by making higher education more accessible, ultimately enhancing the quality of education within the district.

Whitehouse ISD and UT Tyler held a ceremonial signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to launch this agreement on Wednesday morning.

WINNSBORO — The Winnsboro Police Department announced on Wednesday that a man was arrested following the burglary of a convenience store, three more suspects remain at large, according to our news partner KETK.

The Winnsboro Police Department said that Alex Fowler was detained as a suspect in the burglary that occurred at the Armadillo Convenience Store around 2 a.m.

The department was alerted to a business alarm. When officers arrived, several suspects were spotted wearing black with face coverings. The suspects fled from the scene. One of them was caught trying to pickup another suspect in a car. Fowler, the driver, was taken to a local jail and booked on similar warrants that were previously issued out of Parker County, Winnsboro Police said. Warrants are now being issued for Fowler’s connection with the convenience store burglary. Continue reading Suspect arrested following convenience store burglary

MARSHALL — An East Texas man has been charged with solicitation of prostitution in Marshall, and now the police department is searching for potential victims. According to our news partner KETK, a search warrant was executed in Jefferson on Aug. 21, where Trevor Lee Lohr, 33, was arrested for solicitation of prostitution stemming from various incidents that occurred in Marshall. Earlier this month, Lohr had been arrested for harassment and solicitation of prostitution.

The criminal investigation division of the Marshall Police Department is leading the case and continues to follow leads to protect all victims. The investigation is ongoing, with additional charges expected to be filed.

At this point, investigators believe there “may be multiple victims.” Continue reading Police seek victims in Marshall prostitution case

ARP — An assistant principal at Arp Elementary has been arrested for failing to report that her adult son was in a sexual relationship with a minor, resulting in the minor becoming pregnant at the age of 14, an arrest affidavit revealed.

Our news partner KETK has created a timeline of the Arp Police Department’s investigation into Karla and Blake Florence and how it led to their arrests based on a Smith County affidavit. You can view the entire timeline here.

TRINITY COUNTY — All bodies have been recovered after three men died from inhaling toxic sewer gas Wednesday afternoon in Southeast Texas.

According to our news partner KETK, Trinity County Sheriff office received a call at around 3:52 p.m. that the men were found unconscious at a sewer plant in the Westwood Shores area. Deputy Chief Jeremy Carroll said two of the bodies were recovered just before 7 p.m. and the third a short time later.

The victims were ages 46, 47 and 52. Authorities said two of the men worked for H2O Innovate and the third for Hydroclear. According to Carroll, one of the crew members was working on the manhole and attempted to cap a line after a water leak that would cause sewage to back up the line they were working and during this time, he lost consciousness.

“We believe a crewmember jumped inside to cap the line to prevent the sewage from backing into the area that they were working,” Carroll said. “The gas buildup started giving him some type of medical issue or caused a medical issue, at which time one of his partners with the same company went into the manhole after him.” Continue reading Three dead from toxic manhole gas

KILGORE — The Kilgore Fire Department has named Ryan Riley its new fire chief according to our news partner KETK. Riley has been a firefighter since 1987, beginning his career as a volunteer in New London. He has been a member of the Kilgore Fire Department since 2017, serving as the rescue chief, emergency management coordinator and fire marshal.

“His leadership and dedication have been invaluable to our community,” the City of Kilgore said.

Riley will be replacing former Kilgore Fire Chief Mark Henderson.

TYLER — A new hotel is coming to downtown Tyler. According to our news partner KETK, the Blackstone Hotel is being developed by Houston-based company, Valencia Hotel Group. The hotel is expected to have 144 rooms, a 5,700 square-foot meeting space and a ballroom terrace overlooking downtown Tyler.

The Blackstone Hotel is expected to bring in new jobs, create business opportunities and improve city services funded by tourism-driven tax revenue. Incentives for Tyler for the project will be capped at $12 million and will be entirely funded from dollars generated by the hotel. Doyle Graham, the CEO of Valencia, says construction will start immediately, and take about 42 months to complete construction.

LINDALE — Our news partners at KETK report a Lindale man was arrested on Monday evening after officer obtained a video of him “slamming” his eight-month-old infant on her side and back, an affidavit revealed. According to a Smith County arrest affidavit, on Monday, deputies responded to a home on County Road 4145 in Lindale due to a call claiming a child was being abused by the father, Tyler Kovalick. The caller also said Kovalick was aware there was a video of the incident. The affidavit explained that deputies spoke with Kovalick, who said that he got off work around 3 p.m. and picked up his children from the babysitter. Continue reading Father arrested for ‘slamming’ 8-month-old on side, back

SMITH COUNTY — Our news partners at KETK report that human remains found in Smith County on Tuesday morning are believed to be those of a woman who went missing over two years ago. According to the Smith County Sheriff’s Office, a Texas DPS dive team began searching for human remains at around 8:30 a.m. near a pond on 10068 County Road 42 near McDougle Road in New Harmony, the western part of Smith County, after a person found a backpack belonging to a missing person, Courtney Taylor Martin. The sheriff’s office said two young men found her backpack next to the pond on July 3. However, law enforcement had to postpone the search of the pond due to the Kerr County flooding. The human remains that were found will be taken to a forensic institution in Dallas. Continue reading Human remains believed to be Smith County woman missing since 2023

ARP, Texas – The assistant principal of Arp Elementary School was arrested Tuesday morning after police said she gave false information to investigators. According to the Arp Police Department and our news partner KETK, Karla Florence was taken into custody for failure to report and false report to a peace officer. Police said she failed to provide “accurate and truthful information to investigators” and did not fulfill her legal duty under Texas law to report knowledge of a felony while serving as an educator. Blake Florence, was also arrested and charged with sexual assault of a child and tampering with physical evidence. Both were booked into the Smith County Jail.

Arp ISD’s Official Statement

Update: The Wood County Sheriff’s Office said Meinert was found safely and is with his family.

MINEOLA– The Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) has issued a Silver Alert for a missing man with a cognitive impairment, last seen in Mineola on Monday night, according to a report from our news partner KETK.

DPS says that 72-year-old Lawrence Meinert was last seen around 11 p.m. on the 280 Block of CR 2798 wearing a gray striped shirt, gray shorts and brown flip flops. He is described as being five feet, eleven inches tall, and weighing 150 pounds with white hair and hazel eyes.

His vehicle is a gray 2005 Chevrolet Silverado with the Texas license plate number HKX4749.

If anyone sees Meinert or his truck, they are encouraged to contact the Wood County Sheriff’s Office at 903-763-2201 or their local law enforcement agency.

PALESTINE – A Palestine man was arrested on Aug. 18 after police discovered drugs and more than 40 guns in his vehicle and home. According to our news partner KETK, officers with the Palestine Police Department attempted to stop Llewellyn Lynn, 47, for alleged traffic violations around 2 p.m. on August 18, but Lynn did not stop and instead drove into the driveway of his house.

Upon exiting the vehicle, Lynn was reportedly uncooperative, but police eventually managed to arrest him. A search of Lynn’s vehicle revealed more than five pounds of marijuana and two guns, the police department said. Search warrants for the residence and two storage units were secured from 87th State District Judge Amy Thomas Ward. During the searches, police said more than five ounces of meth, an additional three pounds of marijuana and over 40 guns, some of which were allegedly stolen.

Lynn was then booked into the Anderson County Jail for possession of more than five pounds of marijuana, evading arrest and unlawful carrying of a weapon. His bond was set to $85,000, and he was released from jail on Aug. 20. The police department said additional charges are expected as the investigation continues.