Month: July 2025

Matthew Sanders

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A man electrocuted while tampering with power lines in Moberly nearly a week ago had copper wire with him and was using pliers, according to a police report.

The report identifies the man as Gary W. Keehart. Other personal information, such as his age, is redacted.

Keehart was found last Tuesday morning in the 1800 block of Leah Lane and flown to a hospital, where he later died.

A police officer found Keehart’s bicycle on the ground at the scene with copper wire and other items in a basket attached to the seat, the report states. Police also found a pair of pliers with a burn mark on them.

A ground wire had been detached at the top of the utility pole and come in contact with a live wire, the report states. Police also found blood on the ground and the bicycle.

Moberly police did not respond to a message seeking more information.

Moberly electrocutionDownload

Click here to follow the original article.

Matthew Sanders

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A county official in Mid-Missouri has given up his seat after being charged with child sex crimes.

Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey said in a news release Monday that Richard Renno, Benton County treasurer, had resigned his office. Renno submitted his resignation after Bailey took legal action last week to remove him from office in a process known as “quo warranto.”

Renno, 62, of Lincoln, was charged in Benton County with child enticement and sexual misconduct involving a child younger than 15 years old. The probable cause statement says that Renno used the dating application Grindr in August to speak to a child younger than 15 years old. A witness allegedly gave a screenshot to law enforcement of Renno’s face and a nude photograph he sent through Grindr, court documents say.

A family member was able to identify Renno to law enforcement, the statement says.

“At this time, I have decided to take time to spend with my family and friends, as personal time is a valuable asset, not to be taken for granted,” Renno wrote in his resignation letter.

Benton County Treasurer Resignation LetterDownload

Renno remained out on bond Monday with special conditions, including no contact with anyone under age 18 except for supervised contact with family members, according to court records. His next court appearance is scheduled for Sept. 22.

Click here to follow the original article.

Keriana Gamboa

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A boom that triggered emergency dispatchers to send out a warning about an “underground explosion” in a residential area of Columbia might have been fireworks, a city employee told ABC 17 News on Monday.

” I think maybe a firework, somebody probably threw one into the storm drain, ” City of Columbia stormwater supervisor Derek Altus said when asked what might have triggered the response that closed down part of Worley Street on Sunday.

Ronald Mooney, who lives in the area, said firefighters told him they had seen smoke coming from the sewer shortly after the initial reports.

“Well, I was sitting in my rocking chair watching TV, and I heard an explosion which sounded like an M-80 or cherry bomb or something like that,” Mooney said. “And it frightened me because I wasn’t expecting it.”

Columbia firefighters found no physical evidence to support the theory that fireworks caused the incident, and therefore could not verify that claim.

The Columbia Fire Department responded to reports of smoke and a loud noise coming from a storm drain at the corner of West Worley Street and Pennant Street.

Initial calls to 911 described it as an “underground explosion,” prompting Boone County Joint Communications to send an alert to residents.

The message read, “BCJC Urgent: Worley from Stadium to at least West Blvd is closed due to an underground explosion. Choose alternate route.”

Boone County Joint Communications director Christie Davis said Monday that the responding supervisor decided to send out that message due to the information they received at the time.

However, when crews arrived, they found no visible hazards, no injuries and no damage to nearby homes or infrastructure. It has been described since as a “non-event.”

“‘Nonevent,’ we mean that upon arrival and a thorough investigation, fire crews found no hazards present, no damage to homes or infrastructure, and no injuries. There was nothing active for our crews to mitigate,” CFD spokeswoman Katherine Rodriguez said in a statement.

City crews conducted routine inspections of a manhole and storm drain near the area Monday.

Click here to follow the original article.

Matthew Sanders

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A woman found dead Saturday night in her car was shot in her vehicle after an argument with her boyfriend, according to court documents.

Isaiah N. Goins, 26, of Columbia, was arrested Sunday at work on suspicion of killing the woman, whose name has been kept under wraps by the sheriff’s department. She is identified by the initials “M.G.” in the statement.

Goins was charged Monday with second-degree murder and armed criminal action. He was in the Boone County Jail on no bond.

M.G. had been out of town and returned to Columbia on Saturday night, the statement says. Goins had accused her of being unfaithful, investigators say.

Goins met M.G. and got into her car Saturday night before pulling out a gun on Lake of the Woods Road and demanding that M.G. let him out, the statement says. When M.G. pulled onto Geyser Road and stopped, Goins allegedly shot her during an argument and ran from the scene.

A deputy later found the car next to a house, where it had rolled to a stop but not hit the building, the statement says.

No court hearings for Goins are scheduled.

This marks the third homicide reported outside city limits in Boone County so far in 2025. For comparison, there were only two homicides recorded in all of 2024, one in February and another in June.

Click here to follow the original article.