KTBB News, Weather, Talk

TYLER – A Grand Saline woman has pleaded guilty in Tyler to embezzling bank funds. Lori Smith Pickens, 39, pleaded guilty to embezzlement by a bank employee in an appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge John D. Love. According to authorities, from May 2008 to July 2010, Pickens was employed as a bank teller at the Grand Saline branch of Austin Bank. During that time, Pickens made unauthorized cash-outs from the accounts of multiple bank customers resulting in defrauding the bank of more than $100,000. Pickens was indicted by a federal grand jury on Sep. 15, 2011. This law enforcement action is part of President Barack Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force. Pickens faces up to 30 years in federal prison at sentencing. A sentencing date has not been set.

TYLER — Tyler investigators have arrested three suspects allegedly responsible for the aggravated robbery of Roberto Lara Barroso, 28, of Tyler. The three suspects arrested are identified as Patrick R. Warthsaw, 23, of Tyler; Bobby Kim Green, 26; and Brittany Lynn Gilpin, 23, all of Tyler.

All three suspects were charged with aggravated robbery, a 1st degree Felony. Judge Christi Kennedy set bond at $500,000 on each suspect. Warthsaw and Green were also charged with engaging in organized criminal activity, another 1st degree felony. Judge Randall Rogers set bond at $500,000 on each suspect on that charge. All three suspects have been booked into Smith County Jail. Investigators recovered the victim’s stolen vehicle from the William Booth Apartments on Golden Road, where the robbers had left it. Barroso remains in a local hospital in stable condition recovering from his injuries.

Last Sunday morning shortly after 4:15, the police received a suspicious person call stating that a man was sleeping at the car wash located at 1820 W. Gentry. When officers arrived on scene, they discovered Barroso lying on the ground in one of the wash stalls, in and out of consciousness and badly injured. During the investigation, an investigator with the Major Crimes Unit learned that the victim had been beaten and robbed by two men and a woman. After the robbery, the assailants left the scene in the victim’s vehicle. Barroso was transported to a local hospital for treatment of his injuries.

WASHINGTON (AP) – The U.S. Supreme Court has refused to review a lower court decision requiring Lufkin Industries Inc. to pay $5.5 million for discriminating against black employees. The ruling Monday means the money can be divvied up among 1,000 current and former employees and ends a class action lawsuit initiated 14 years ago by two black employees who have since left the company. Lufkin Industries had filed a writ in September asking that the court review a 2009 ruling by U.S. District Judge Ron Clark that awarded damages for what the judge called unlawful discrimination in awarding promotions. The publicly traded company manufactures oil field equipment and employs about 3,000 workers worldwide. It was founded in Lufkin 109 years ago and remains headquartered there.

SMITH COUNTY — The Smith County Commissioners Court has voted to lift the county-wide burn ban, effective immediately, but urges citizens to exercise extreme caution and diligent supervision in their burning activities. Smith County Fire Marshal Jim Seaton recommended to the court that the ban be lifted, with the stipulation that the County Judge can reinstate the burn ban if drought conditions revert.

Officials say, even when there is no burn ban in effect, it is illegal to burn when winds reach 23 miles per hour or above. The Fire Marshal’s Office strongly advises against burning when winds are in excess of 15 mph. Seaton stressed that citations for reckless damage will be issued for fires that cross property lines. Under state law, burning must take place during daylight hours and certain items may never be burned on private property including: tires, electrical insulation, treated lumber, plastics, heavy oils, non-wood construction/demolition materials, asphaltic materials, potentially explosive materials, chemical wastes, and items containing natural or synthetic rubber.

LONGVIEW — Troopers have determined that the Nissan pickup authorities were searching for in connection with a hit and run that left a 4-year-old boy dead was not the vehicle involved in the fatal crash. DPS officials were dispatched at about 8:15 p.m. Monday to Texas 149 near Younger Road when a vehicle traveling north struck and killed 4-year-old Cesar Pedro Cruz. Cruz was pronounced dead at the scene at about 9:15.

The preliminary investigation shows that the youngster was walking in the road, northbound on 149 when it appears that he was struck from behind. Investigators believe that crash happened between 6:00 and 8:00pm Monday night.

Department of Public Safety Trooper Clay Steelman said the truck was originally suspected in the crash because the driver stopped at a nearby gas station and told the store clerk he hit a deer. Steelman said troopers determined during the investigation that the pickup did actually hit a deer. Investigators now believe to be involved in the crash is a vehicle in the Chrysler family, possibly a 2001 Dodge Durango or Dodge Dakota, silver or gray in color. The vehicle may have damage to the right front area, with damage to the fog lamp or headlight as well as the turn signal.

Steelman said Tuesday morning he was following leads in the investigation in hopes of finding the driver who struck the boy.

Cruz had been reported missing to authorities about an hour before his body was found, which was about a mile from his home. Anyone with information on this crime are asked to contact the Longview DPS office at 903-758-1789, or Gregg County Crime Stoppers at 903-236-STOP.

TYLER — Tyler Firefighters answered the call for help at a house fire. It happened along the 3100 block of Autumn Drive. According to authorities, the family was cooking fish when the fire broke out. The family made an attempt to extinguish the blaze themselves but were unsuccessful. No injuries were reported. The house was destroyed.

ELKHART – One person has been killed and four injured in a two vehicle accident in Anderson County. The accident happened on U.S. Highway 287 near Elkhart just before 1:30 Sunday morning. Killed was Betsy Salazar, 40, of Waco. She was a passenger in a SUV that was hit by an SUV driven by Erik Shaun Green, 30, of Arlington. The Department of Public Safety report said Green’s SUV crossed over the center line of the road and hit the other vehicle. Anna Pecina, 22, Marysol Pecina, 21, and Luebin Garcia, 24, also all of Waco, were listed in “fair” condition at a pair of East Texas hospitals as of late Monday afternoon. Green, who suffered minor injuries, was later booked into the Anderson County Jail on a charge of intoxicated manslaughter.

Shortly after the head-on collision, a second wreck occurred when a 27-year-old Elkhart man struck a helicopter operated by Corsicana-based PHI Medical which had just landed in the middle of the roadway to transport Garcia to Tyler. Matthew Mitchell, 27, of Elkhart was charged with DWI after colliding with the helicopter in his 2000 Chevrolet Impala, according to the DPS.

GRESHAM — A shooting just south of Tyler has turned out to be self inflicted. A passerby found the woman in her car off Farm Road 2813 off U.S. Highway 69 south. The woman had earlier told Winnsboro authorities she had been kidnapped. After being found Monday afternoon she was transported to the hospital for treatment of a non-life threatening gun shot wound. Investigators say the woman shot herself with a gun she had bought in Tyler Monday morning.

LINCOLN, NEB. (AP) — The speaker of the Nebraska Legislature says the developer of a contested oil pipeline will move its route away from the state’s Sandhills area and the Ogallala aquifer, an underground water supply.
Mike Flood made the announcement Monday during a special session. Lawmakers were considering a bill that would give Governor Dave Heineman routing authority over the Keystone XL pipeline. The proposed pipeline would carry crude oil from Canada to Texas Gulf Coast refineries. The proposed route carries the pipeline through eastern Smith County.

The decision follows the federal government’s announcement last week that it would delay a decision on a federal permit for the project until it studies new potential routes that avoid environmentally sensitive areas of Nebraska. TransCanada, the company proposing the pipeline, declined to comment but planned to hold a news conference.

JACKSONVILLE — Authorities in Cherokee County say a road rage incident has resulted in the seizure of cocaine, money, and a vehicle. On Sunday at approximately 10:55 p.m., Sgt. Matthew Poole with the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Department observed two vehicles traveling south on Jackson Street in Jacksonville at a high rate of speed. One vehicle, a red 2008 GMC 4 door pickup truck, appeared to be pursuing a silver colored passenger car as they approached the intersection of Jackson and Tena St. Because other vehicles were stopped at the intersection, the red pickup truck veered into the left hand turn lane, and continued through the red light.

Sgt. Poole and a Jacksonville PD officer who was traveling north on Jackson at the time stopped the red pickup truck in front of the LaQuinta Inn. Sgt. Poole identified the driver of the pickup truck to be Milton Cynell McFarland, 41, and the passenger as Tynecia Patton, 17, both of Jacksonville. It was also discovered at that time there was a 5-year-old male child asleep in the back seat.

Deputy Greg Ray located and stopped the silver colored sedan further down the road. He was advised by that individual that the driver of the red truck had discharged a firearm at him in an apparent “road rage” incident, and had then begun to chase him down the roadway. Deputy Ray relayed this information to Sgt. Poole, who then ordered McFarland and Patton to exit the vehicle. As Patton exited the vehicle, Poole reportedly observed her attempting to conceal an unknown object in a jacket and ordered her to drop the jacket. An inspection of the jacket revealed it was a 6.9 ounce package of suspected powder cocaine. The street value of the powder cocaine is estimated to be $7,000.

The adult occupants were arrested at the scene, and a further search of the vehicle uncovered $894.00 in cash. The red truck was seized by the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office. Bonds set by Pct. 1 Justice Of The Peace Brenda Dominy are as follows:

McFarland:
Charge: Manufacture or Delivery of Substance (Felony 1) – $250,000
Charge: Ran Red Light (Misdemeanor C) – $150
Charge: Driving To Left Of Center Of Roadway (Misdemeanor C) – $170
Charge: Unrestrained Child (Misdemeanor C) – $123.50
Total Bond: $250,443.50 – Other charges may be pending

Patton:
Charge: Manufacture or Delivery of Substance (Felony 1) – $250,000

TYLER – TrinCARE Clinical Laboratories, an affiliate of Trinity Mother Frances Hospitals and Clinics, has selected Mayo Medical Laboratories as its primary reference laboratory. Trinity Mother Frances says the selection will give TrinCARE access to Mayo Clinic’s extensive menu of laboratory tests and clinical expertise.

According to a news release, TrinCARE Clinical Laboratories is the largest hospital-based reference lab in East Texas. Trinity Mother Frances officials say TrinCARE offers a comprehensive test menu and a full range of support services for area health care providers utilizing state-of-the-art instrumentation.

Through its worldwide network of more than 4,000 clients, Mayo Medical Laboratories enables hospitals, medical centers, and health care organizations around the world to send tests to the laboratories of Mayo Clinic, which Trinity Mother Frances officials term some of the most sophisticated in the world. Through this arrangement, according to the news release, TrinCARE will offer its communities immediate, collaborative access to complex tests performed by Mayo Clinic.

“We are committed to providing prompt and accurate laboratory services delivered with the latest information technology,” said Todd Hancock, COO, TrinCARE. “Most laboratory testing will continue to be done locally by TrinCARE with only the most specialized tests being sent to Mayo Clinic. For those in need of laboratory testing, specimens will continue to be collected either at the health care providers’ clinic or one of the TrinCARE Patient Service Centers. The selection of Mayo Medical Laboratories will offer East Texas physicians and the patients they serve access to the same advanced clinical diagnostic testing available at the Mayo Clinic. We are proud to be able to make this announcement.”

According to Trinity Mother Frances officials, specimens provided to TrinCARE Clinical Laboratories will be transported via air to Mayo Clinic, with test results often available the following day through a computer interface. Additionally, Mayo Clinic physicians and scientists in every specialty laboratory will be available for consultation regarding test selection, utilization and methodologies, and result interpretation.

LONGVIEW — Longview police say they’ve arrested three burglary suspects who also face other charges. On November 12 at 1:07 p.m. officers were dispatched to a residential burglary that had just occurred in the 900 block of Coushatta Trail. Officers were told that the homeowner had just arrived home to find a man coming out of the victim’s laundry room. The suspect was carrying the victim’s generator. The victim told police the suspect saw him and threw the generator and another item into a maroon Mitsubishi Galant and left.

Police in the area were able to locate the suspects in the 1600 Block of Wood Place. During a search of the car officers also located approximately 9/10 of a gram of methamphetamine and a pipe used to smoke methamphetamine. Officers identified and arrested the three suspects, who are all from Longview. They’re Shaina Marlea McDowell, 22; Corey Dean Williams, 20; and Trevor Joseph Warnix (pictured), 23. All three suspects were charged with possession of a controlled substance and burglary of a habitation. All three suspects also had additional warrants they were arrested for as well.

ATHENS (AP) — The remains of a Korean War veteran have been finally laid to rest in his East Texas hometown more than 60 years after he was declared missing in action. The Tyler Morning Telegraph reports that Cpl. Benny Rogers was buried on Saturday in Athens amid a sea of flag-waving veterans, supporters and family members, some of whom recalled his mother’s anguish over the unknown whereabouts of her “good son.”
Rogers’ remains were recently found in North Korea and confirmed through enhanced DNA testing.

His family last heard from Rogers in a letter he sent to them on October 30, 1950. Three days later, the 20-year-old soldier was caught in the Battle of Unsan, which claimed the lives of more than 1,000 soldiers.

TYLER — The Tyler Police Department kicked off a special speed enforcement effort on Monday and continues it through November 18. Police say this effort is to promote safety for drivers and passengers traveling on very busy streets and highways during this holiday season.

The Tyler Police Department continues participating in a DWI and Red Light enforcement program being conducted through the month of November. The enforcement detail of officers will be on the look-out for intoxicated drivers and red light runners in the City of Tyler. This enforcement program is funded by a state grant that was awarded to the Tyler Police Department. Police urge everyone who is drinking and considering driving to have a designated driver, or to hire a cab to get home safely. They also encourage drivers to slow down when approaching an intersection with a yellow light and not enter into an intersection on a red light. The Police Department Friday wrapped up a seat belt enforcement program, also funded by a state grant, that began November 8.

LONGVIEW – The East Texas Council of Governments, in partnership with the City of Longview, is conducting a Full Scale, Regional Safety Exercise through November 17. This 72 hour, around the clock event began at 7:00am on November 14, and will incorporate local, regional and state emergency responders as well as private business partners. The purpose of the full scale exercise is to test interoperability between agencies, to practice use of the incident command system, and to train on techniques such as search and rescue. To simulate how an event would actually occur, the incidents will be conducted in real time with a hands-on format.

Over the course of the 72-hour exercise, emergency response will be staged in Longview and the surrounding area including Gladewater. The exercise begins with a scenario of a tornado that touches down in various locations across Longview. Emergency responders will attend to mass casualty and structural collapse scenarios at the former Stroh’s Brewery Complex, located at 1400 W. Cotton St. There will also be search and rescue operations done by Mounted Horse Patrol at the Swinging Bridge Water Treatment Facility. The former Colonial Apartments on Judson Road will also serve as a search and rescue location.

There will be an active shooter scenario held at the former Foster Middle School, located at 410 South Green Street. There will also be an “officer- down” event in Gladewater that requires a manhunt. Daytime and nighttime aircraft landing zones will be established and coordinated for the removal of victims to nearby hospital facilities.

Community Emergency Response Teams (CERT) will perform various search and rescue operations. Behind the scenes, a Base of Operations will be established, incorporating major aspects of the Incident Command System, Communications Inter-Operability, and various IT related events, i.e., WEB EOC, video conferencing. Regional hospital facilities will receive injured patients in their respective emergency rooms. The State of Texas Type III Incident Management Teams will be providing the Command and Control element. Command and control activities, as well as Level II Staging and Aerial Operations, will be conducted from Lear Park, 100 H.G. Mosley Parkway.

LONGVIEW — Ray Street in Longview remains closed at Sabine Street to through traffic. The closure, which began November10th, will allow for water and sewer work at the intersection of Ray and Sabine Streets as part of the Annexation Sewer and Water Improvements Project. Access to Ray Street will be at Loop 281. The closure will be effective for two weeks. This project is providing water and sewer service to areas annexed by the city in 2009. This project is being constructed by Texas J and D Construction of Bronson, Texas.

TYLER — Here’s a quick look at work planned in the Tyler District of the Texas Department of Transportation.

SMITH COUNTY — Texas Department of Transportation maintenance crews on Monday were scheduled to conclude base and pavement repairs on westbound Interstate Highway 20 near State Highway 110. Once that work is complete, crews are scheduled to move Tuesday to SH 110 in Whitehouse between Hagan Road and the southern city limits. Daytime lane closures will be in effect in each location while the work is in progress. Motorists are encouraged to be prepared to reduce speed and merge in and around the work zones.

GREGG COUNTY — Texas Department of Transportation maintenance crews this week are scheduled to perform pavement repairs on State Highway 300 (Gilmer Road) between U.S. Highway 80 (Marshall Avenue) north to the Gregg County line. Daytime lane closures will be in effect while the work is in progress, and flaggers will control traffic.

VAN ZANDT COUNTY — Texas Department of Transportation maintenance crews this week are scheduled to continue resurfacing operations on State Highway 64 between Farm Road 859 and Interstate Highway 20. A second crew is scheduled to continue similar operations on Farm Road 1995 between State Highway 110 and Farm Road 773. Motorists are encouraged to be prepared to reduce speed and merge in and around the work zones.

CHEROKEE COUNTY — Texas Department of Transportation maintenance crews this week are scheduled to perform resurfacing operations in various locations on U.S. Highway 84 east of Rusk. Daytime lane closures will be in effect in each location while the work is in progress, and flaggers will control traffic.

RUSK COUNTY — Texas Department of Transportation maintenance crews this week are scheduled to continue pavement-repair operations on U.S. Highway 259 between State Highway 315 and the bridges south of U.S. Highway 84. Daytime lane closures will be in effect in each location while the work is in progress, and motorists are encouraged to be prepared to reduce speed and merge in and around the work area.

HENDERSON COUNTY — Texas Department of Transportation maintenance crews this week are scheduled to perform fog sealing operations in various locations on Ranch Road 2588, Ranch Road 2970, Farm Road 2752 and Farm Road 2709. Daytime lane closures will be in effect in each location while the work is in progress, flaggers will control traffic.

ANDERSON COUNTY — Texas Department of Transportation maintenance crews this week are scheduled to continue resurfacing operations on State Highway 294 west of Farm Road 323. Daytime lane closures will be in effect while the work is in progress, and flaggers will control traffic.

WOOD COUNTY — Texas Department of Transportation maintenance crews this week are scheduled to make pavement repairs on State Highway 154 near Farm Road 288 and in various locations on Farm Road 778 between Quitman and Hainesville. Daytime lane closures will be in effect in each location while the work is in progress, and flaggers will control traffic.

TYLER – A report of a man sleeping at the car wash located at 1820 West Gentry turns into a robbery investigation. Shortly after 4:15 Sunday morning, officers found a 28 year old Hispanic male lying on the ground in one of the wash stalls. He was in and out of conciseness and was badly injured.

During the investigation it was learned that he had been beaten and robbed by two black males and one white female. After the robbery, the suspects left the scene in the victims gray 1996 Jeep Cherokee Laredo bearing Texas license plate number P37VFB. The victim was transported to a local hospital for treatment of his injuries.

TYLER – Tyler police are investigating the break-in of an apartment at the Cumberland Place Apartment Complex, 2051 West Cumberland Road. The call came in shortly after 2:00 Sunday morning. Officers were there quickly but the suspects had fled. A search of the area turned up no trace of the men.

The woman told officers she was asleep in her bedroom and awoke to find a man sitting on top of her. According to the victim, she struggled with the suspect for several minutes before retrieving a gun and fired one round in the direction of the man. It is believed the suspect was not injured during the incident; however, the victim did sustain minor injuries and was treated by EMS at the scene. The victim was not able to provide a description of the suspect.

GLADEWATER (AP/STAFF) — A twin-engine airplane carrying five people ran off the runway after landing at an East Texas airport. Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Roland Herwig in Oklahoma City told The Associated Press that all five were taken to a hospital. One is in critical condition and the others suffered minor injuries.

Herwig said crosswinds may have caused the pilot of the Cessna 401 to lose control of the aircraft as it landed at Gladewater Municipal Airport about 4:30 Saturday afternoon. The plane ran off the runway, collapsing the landing gear. The plane, which is owned by an Alabama man, had taken off from Nacogdoches Regional Airport.

LONGVIEW — Dr. Tim Watson, LeTourneau University’s director of church and campus relations for the Center for Faith and Work, has been asked to lead a new interdenominational ministerial alliance called the Longview Clergy Coalition. The LCC was formed in early 2011 to promote community wholeness and build bridges of communication and cooperation among ministers from a variety of the160 congregations in the Greater Longview area. Membership currently includes about 30 ministers who seek to provide a unified voice from a Christian perspective to the community and give spiritual leadership to important community-wide events such as the Martin Luther King Jr., worship service and the National Day of Prayer.

“LETU is privileged to have a leader like Dr. Tim Watson whose experience uniquely equips him to help build relationships among local churches and the university,” said Bill Peel, executive director for the Center for Faith and Work. “Our new Center for Faith and Work at LETU encourages developing strong relationships among pastors and improving communication and cooperation. We are committed to the local church.”

Watson has been a pastor for 25 years, most recently as senior pastor of First Baptist Church in Longview. His experience, both as a pastor and as a director working in church relations at LETU, provides him with unique perspective as he leads this clergy coalition. “I see the partnership with the university and the Longview Clergy Coalition as vitally important, since LETU’s new Center for Faith and Work attempts to strengthen and equip pastors and congregations in the area of workplace discipleship,” Watson said.

LONGVIEW – A Gregg County man has surrendered to authorities after it was learned he had failed to register as a sex offender. He is identified as Charles Franklin Williams, Jr., 49, who lives in the 400 block of Alexander Street in Kilgore. He was booked into the Gregg County Jail is lieu of a $10,000 bond. Seven years ago Williams was convicted and sentenced to five years in prison for sexual assault of a child. He had been accused of raping a 15 year old girl in December, 2003.

LUFKIN — A woman got more than she bargain for when she approached a man sitting in his car in Lufkin in an attempt to solicit prostitution. It was after she discussed exchanging money for sexual acts that she found out the man was an off duty police officer. He requested a uniformed officer meet him in the 400 block of Locke where Tracey Marie Bryant was arrested. But that was only the beginning of her problems. She was found to have a crack pipe, less than a gram of crack cocaine, eight Seroquel pills, and one Metronidazole pill in an over-the-counter pain reliever bottle. Bryant was booked into the Angelina County Jail for possession of a controlled substance – cocaine and possession of a dangerous drug.

LUFKIN – A woman said to be responsible for a rear-end collision in Lufkin has been booked into the Angelina County Jail. Investigators say Amy Jane Cox, 34, failed roadside sobriety tests. To make matters worse, Cox hand a one year old child in the SUV with her. She has been charged with driving while intoxicated with child under 15 years of age”.

BILLINGS, MONT. (AP) — The White House plan to seek alternate routes for a Canada-to-Texas oil pipeline presents a tangle of new problems for the project, with the potential to sink it altogether. Shifting the route around a major aquifer could mean more perilous stream crossings and put the line closer to populated areas. Major changes also risk alienating pipeline supporters. Some observers said Friday the dilemma could force TransCanada to bypass U.S. markets and ship fuel to China instead.

The company’s proposed $7 billion Keystone XL line would ship up to 700,000 barrels of crude daily from Alberta’s tar sands to Texas refineries near the Gulf of Mexico. On the current proposed route, the pipeline would go through eastern Smith County.

Following complaints from Nebraska’s governor and state lawmakers, federal officials plan to study new routes to avoid parts of the sprawling Ogallala aquifer which irrigates the High Plains.

LONGVIEW — A man shot during a holdup Wednesday has been released from the hospital. According to KETK and the Longview News-Journal, Longview police continue their search for the people responsible for that shooting. It happened in North Longview at the intersection of Kathy and Skyline Drive shortly after ten Wednesday morning. Longview police say the victim was on his way to the bank when he was ambushed by three men.

LONGVIEW — A nearly $1 million demolition and replacement of the Longview Rodeo Arena received a necessary blessing Thursday from the Longview City Council, which could approve the plan in one month. According to KETK and the Longview News-Journal, the city closed the arena after learning of structural damage.

Public Works Director Keith Bonds said demolishing the arena and constructing new 5,060-seat grandstands with a 300-square-foot elevated announcer’s booth and arena lighting would cost $928,000, likely paid from municipal reserves and savings from past capital improvement bond packages. “I think we need to fix it and make it safe for our citizens,” District 2 Councilman Daryl Williams said. The council could make a final decision on the matter at its Dec. 8 meeting.

MARSHALL — The final suspect involved in a May aggravated robbery of an EZ-Mart on Pinecrest Drive in Marshall has been sentenced to 20 years in prison. The robbery ended with one suspect being shot and killed by a Marshall Police officer. The defendant, Roy Lee Martin Jr., 19, Longview, pleaded guilty to the charges. The sentence will run concurrently with a 10 year sentence and 15 year sentence from Gregg County that Martin is currently serving for burglary-related charges and probation violation.
In September, co-defendant, Anthony Lamar Harvey, 25, also of Longview, was sentenced to 40 years in prison in connection with the aggravated robbery. The other suspect, Kendrick Tyrone Hall, 24, died during a pursuit following the robbery. According to information released at the time of the incident, Hall tried to escape from the scene by foot through a wooded area just east of the store. The pursuit ended when a Marshall officer shot and killed him. The officer was “no billed.”

TYLER – A Tyler man has been indicted for capital murder by a Smith County Grand Jury, in the death of a two year old girl. Dramon Rashon Green, 20, was indicted in the death of one of his twin daughters, A’yanna Webb, back in August. The other little girl was not injured.

Green was taken into custody after investigators determined that he assaulted the little girl outside his apartment at 4400 Paluxy. Police contend Green beat the girl after his nap was interrupted by the noise the toddler and her twin sister were making.

Emergency room personal at East Texas Medical Center contacted police. They told officers that the child had been brought to the hospital by her parents and was being treated for major, life threatening internal injuries. She underwent emergency surgery to stop bleeding in her abdomen. However, she died as a result of her injuries.

LONGVIEW –A Longview man remains behind bars after being accused of attacking a woman with a Samurai sword. Placed under a bond of $10,000 bond was Arturo Rico Navarro, 31. He was charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.

The woman told officers Navarro pulled her hair, threatened to kill her and her children, hit her with the case to a Samurai sword and attempted to strike her with the sword. She was able to escape him by climbing out a bedroom window.