Today is
Saturday June 13, 2026
ANGELINA COUNTY – According to our news partner KETK, an East Texas man has been charged with murder in connection to a missing persons case. Officials said he admitted to killing one of the men by striking the victim in the head and then strangling him.
The Angelina County Justice of the Peace Precinct 1’s Office, the Angelina County Sheriff’s Office and the Lufkin Police Department began working on the missing persons case on Jan. 31, and began the search for Robert Saxton, 79, and Michael Allen, 44. In the next two months, an extensive investigation led to the Texas Rangers being called in to assist. John Wayne McCroskey, became a person of interest after officials learned he lived on the property at Saxton Auto Sales, where both victims had been reported missing.
Witnesses placed McCroskey with Saxton on Jan. 27 at around 9:30 a.m. in Saxton’s lime green vehicle. Surveillance video from a Lufkin motel confirmed that Saxton and McCroskey were together earlier that morning. Read the rest of this entry »
HOUSTON – An impressive feat happened at this years Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. 12-year-old Dallas Martinez sold his championship market barrow pig for $501,000. That broke the old record by over $100,000. According to our news partner KETK, Martinez, who is currently in sixth grade at Center ISD, was named Junior Market Barrow Grand Champion. Dallas is also the first Hispanic student to win the Championship title.
Martinez has been competing in major stock shows since he was 9-years-old and showing pigs since he was 3-years-old . He will take home $50,000 and the rest of the money will go directly to charities supported by the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo.
TYLER – Alexander Scott has been named the new director of bands and an
assistant professor of music at The University of Texas at Tyler. As director of bands, Scott will
oversee UT Tyler’s bands including the Wind Ensemble and the newly formed Concert Band.
He comes to UT Tyler from the University of Michigan, where he served as a graduate student
instructor. Read the rest of this entry »
TYLER – 
The CEO of the East Texas Food Bank has issued a statement on federal budget cuts and the impact it will have on local services…
“The East Texas Food Bank has been notified that several truckloads of previously expected food from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) will not be delivered. This food equates to 360,000 pounds valued at $750,000. In addition, the Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement Program or LFPA of the East Texas Food Bank will incur a loss of 756,000 pounds of produce valued at $121,000. This program helps to purchase food produced in the state to support local and regional producers. If funding continues to be cut, this could severely restrict our ability to meet current demand. In fiscal year 2024, the East Texas Food Bank provided 31 million meals. This year we are on track to serve over 33 million meals this fiscal year. Currently 1 in 6 East Texas adults including 1 in 4 children are food insecure. Please advocate for ETFB by calling your local Congressional leaders, signing up for a volunteer shift or consider a donation to fund our operations.”
David Emerson
CEO of the East Texas Food Bank
TYLER – In a report from our news partner, KETK, East Texas representatives gave an update on bills filed by lawmakers for the 89th legislative session.
East Texas representatives, like State Rep. Cole Hefner (R-Mount Pleasant), who hopes to get his own bills passed. One of his top priorities is House Bill 17. This bill restricts the purchase of land in Texas from “hostile countries” such as China, Russia and North Korea.
“That bill is in the homeland security and public safety committee…in a week or two, we’re going to have a day of hearings where we hear our bills that have to do with foreign adversaries,” Hefner said.
Another big topic in the Texas House is water. Both State Rep. Hefner and State Rep. Gary VanDeaver (R-New Boston) are working to keep East Texas water in the Piney woods. Read the rest of this entry »
HALLSVILLE – Our news partner, KETK, reports that several police departments from all over East Texas had access to an abandoned school to prepare for potential threats and school shootings. Learning to work together, just like they would in real world scenarios.
“We’re finding now that if you carry a gun and badge, everybody needs this,” Longview PD alert instructor sergeant, Drew Allison said.
Mandated by the state, the training lasted 16 hours with over two days of intense instruction. The main lesson aimed to stop the threats as quickly as possible. Read the rest of this entry »
LONGVIEW – According to our news partner KETK, a Longview nursing home employee was arrested on March 20 after she reportedly left a patient tied to the bed for more than five hours. According to an affidavit, Simone Monique Barnes, was charged with unlawful restraint after exposing the victim to substantial risk of serious injuries. The victim, who is 55-years-old, has a history of falling and is unable to care for herself independently, records indicate.
On March 11, the Medical Fraud Control Unit of the Texas Attorney General’s Office opened an investigation against Barnes. According to the affidavit, investigators learned that the victim was found tied to her bed at around 8:15 a.m. on March 6. Black leggings were tied to both of the victims legs, keeping her restrained to her bed, however officials said the victim did not sustain any injuries.
Once the patient was discovered, a manager was notified and took pictures of the victim in the restraints before releasing her. The manager then sent the pictures along with a written statement from the victim to investigators. Read the rest of this entry »
MARSHALL – In a Monday night neeting, the Marshall City Council has named Melissa Byrne Vossmer as the new City Manager. Vossmer has been serving as interim City Manager since October 2024.
Vossmer has built a lengthy career with city manager posts in Lago Vista and Angleton, Texas and Lawton, Oklahoma. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in English from St. Mary of the Plains College and a Master’s degree in Public Administration from the University of Kansas.
Vossmer said in a press release from the city, “I am excited to officially step into this role. Working with Marshall’s dedicated staff and residents, I’ve discovered we have much to be grateful for here. We will keep working side by side, building on our progress, and finding new ways to strengthen and invest in Marshall’s future.”
Vossmer added, that she is committed to maintaining an open-door policy with residents in regards to city matters.
TEXARKANA – A Texarkana man was arrested after he allegedly used a mini four-wheeler to run into multiple Tesla vehicles on Tuesday. According to the Texarkana Police Department and our news partner KETK, officers received a report from the Golden Palace on Summerhill Road where surveillance footage captured a man on a mini four-wheeler intentionally ramming a parked Tesla at full speed. Officials said that officers were searching for the suspect while another report came in regarding damage to a Tesla in the Lowe’s parking lot.
Shortly after, officers spotted the suspect riding the four-wheeler near Summerhill and New Boston Road. After officers stopped the suspect, he initially gave a false name, but officers quickly identified him as Demarkeyun Marquize Cox, 33 of Texarkana. Cox was arrested and booked into the Bi-State Jail in Bowie County. Read the rest of this entry »
LONGVIEW – Making his mark one mile at a time, our news partner, KETK reports that Kyndal Ray Edwards is taking a journey across America and shining a light on a topic people have a hard time talking about.
A walking testimony, Edwards started his journey in prison, knowing that he wanted to change his life and walk for a cause bigger than himself.
“I want to shed some light on it and let people know that there is hope,” Edwards said.
In order to raise awareness for mental health Edwards will be walking across all four corners of the lower 48 states of America. Read the rest of this entry »
NACOGDOCHES COUNTY — Officials have located the body of a man they believe has been missing since January. This is the second body found as part of the missing persons investigation. According to our news partner KETK, the Lufkin Police Department discovered a body they believe to be Michael Allen in the 5900 block of Old Tyler Road in Nacogdoches County. Allen’s family has been notified, however, officials said the body has been sent for an autopsy to confirm the identity.
In February, officials said they found the body of another man, which they believe to be 79-year-old Robert Saxon, who was reported missing at the same time Allen was. The body was found in Sabine Parish, La. Despite it being more than a month since the first body was discovered, the Lufkin Police Department said they are still pending autopsy results to officially identify the body.
At this time, the Lufkin Police Department said John Wayne McCroskey is a suspect and is being questioned. He is being held in the Angelina County Jail on unrelated charges.
TYLER – Our news partner, KETK, reports that the Tyler Police Department is warning residents of scammers pretending to be local or federal law enforcement in order to ask victims for money. A victim of a scammer recently reported the incident to the Tyler PD stating that she received a call from somebody claiming to be a U.S. Marshal. The victim was instructed to pay money and received an additional call from someone claiming to be a member of the Tyler PD and told her she would be arrested if she did not pay the money.
The Tyler PD released a statement claiming that they would never ask anyone to pay them money over the phone. Read the rest of this entry »
SMITH COUNTY – Our news partner, KETK, reports that an elderly man has died after falling from a ladder while trimming trees Monday afternoon. According to the Smith County Sheriff’s Office, around 4:30 p.m., deputies responded to a home in the Chapel Hill area off of Highway 64, where they found 76-year-old Bobby Finley dead in his yard.
Officials said Finley was standing on a ladder while trimming a tree in his yard with a chainsaw when a limb he cut fell into the ladder, knocking him to the ground. The sheriff’s office believes Finley hit his head and back area when he fell to the ground, ultimately causing his death.
VAN ZANDT COUNTY – An Edgewood man was arrested after deputies reportedly found illegal narcotics inside his vehicle. According to the Van Zandt County Sheriff’s Office and our news partner KETK, on March 17, a Van Zandt County criminal interdiction deputy saw a vehicle committing multiple moving violations and initiated a traffic stop.
The deputy saw multiple indicators that the people in the vehicle were possibly concealing something illegal. A Wills Point PD K9 unit performed a search around the vehicle, and officers were alerted to the presence of illegal narcotics. During the search, officials said suspected meth was located on Timothy Dwayne Henson of Edgewood. Read the rest of this entry »
TYLER – Our news partner, KETK, reports that the fourth annual “Sources of Strength” Retreat is expected to host over 200 students from 11 different high schools from all over East Texas this week.
Next Step Community Solutions, a Texas-based nonprofit, will host this retreat on Wednesday at the W.T. Brookshire Conference Center in Tyler. Sources of Strength is a peer-led suicide prevention program. The evidence-based conference-style retreat will feature different groups and adult leaders that will rotate through sessions.
“Each year we are able to bring more students together and celebrate all that they’ve accomplished over the past school year while also teaching them new ways to grow,” Sources of Strength program manager Adriana Gonzalez said. Read the rest of this entry »