4 charged in Moberly teen’s death appear in court, hearings scheduled for next month

KMIZ on May 18, 2026

Ryan Shiner

HUNSTVILLE, Mo. (KMIZ)

Four people charged in connection with the death of a Moberly teenager appeared in court on Monday.

Alayna Mason, 20, and Hunter Ames, both of Moberly, are charged with first-degree murder and first-degree kidnapping in the death of 16-year-old Kayla Huff. Ames faces an additional charge of tampering with evidence.

Dave Kirschner was assigned as a special public defender for Mason. She has a hearing scheduled for 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, June 23, while Ames has a hearing scheduled for bond hearing at 1:30 p.m. Monday, June 1.

Christopher Hull, 23, and Julian Mason, 26, both of Moberly, also appeared in court. They are both charged with kidnapping and tampering with evidence. They have a hearing scheduled for at 1:30 p.m. Monday, June 1.

All four people are being held at the Randolph County Jail without bond and Hull, Ames and Julian Mason all applied for a public defender. A juvenile is also accused in the case.

Huff went missing earlier this month and was found dead by authorities last week.

A probable cause statement says Alayna Mason told investigators that she, with help from Ames and Hull, had taken Huff to the Rudolf Bennitt Conservation Area in Randolph County with an unknown person in the trunk of a vehicle, where they beat and shot her. Ames allegedly told investigators that the group killed Huff, court documents in previous reporting show.

Court documents in Julian Mason’s case say he helped to pour motor oil into the gas tank of Huff’s car and helped dispose of a telescoping baton reportedly used in the crime near the Chariton/Carroll County line.

Alayna Mason is also charged with stealing a vehicle, stealing a gun and escaping confinement after she allegedly stole a Randolph County Sheriff’s Office patrol vehicle.

Skyler Powell, 24, of Moberly, was accused of helping Alayna Mason evade police and was charged with hindering the prosecution of a felony. He is also being held at the Randolph County Jail and is due back in court at 1:30 p.m. Thursday for a bond hearing.

Randolph County Prosecutor Stephanie Luntsford says its unclear if Powell could be charged in connection to Huff’s murder.

“I think at this point that would be a preliminary determination on if there is any evidence that would indicate he was involved in anything in that capacity but this investigation is ongoing, so at this point I don’t necessarily know,” Luntsford said.

In some cases, suspects can undergo trial together, but Luntsford says separate trials are more common.

“There are mechanism in place where defendants can be tried at the same time when its the same evidence but most generally we would see those cases tried separately,” She added.

The five adult suspects remain in the Randolph County Jail, while the juvenile suspect is being held at a Juvenile Detention Center.

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NM Supreme Court decides to keep man’s conviction in child’s death in Las Cruces

KVIA on May 18, 2026

Gabrielle Lopez

SANTA FE, N.M. (KVIA) — Monday, the New Mexico Supreme Court unanimously ruled to keep a Doña Ana County man’s intentional child abuse conviction in the death of a 2-year-old in Las Cruces.

The state supreme court said it rejected Lalo Anthony Castrillo IV’s arguments that there wasn’t enough evidence that he caused the child’s death and he was wrongly denied a new trial.

Castrillo requested a new trial based on a photo the child’s mother posted after the trial. The court said it showed the child with a bruise on her head. Justices said the photo was taken six months before the victim’s death.

“Because the photo was taken months before both Victim’s death and the two earlier injuries Defendant claims caused her death, we conclude that the evidence was not material and therefore that the district court did not abuse its discretion in denying Defendant’s motion for a new trial,” the court said.

An autopsy listed head and brain injuries that happened about the time of the child’s death. A doctor with the Office of the Medical Investigator said “blunt injuries to her head” caused the child’s death.

Justice Briana Zamora wrote in the court decision that the injuries weren’t accidental and the injuries happened when the child was under Castrillo’s care in 2018.

The child died when Castrillo babysat her while the mother, his girlfriend, worked, the court said.

The court also said Castrillo didn’t call 911 for more than an hour after finding the child in distress. The court said he looked up “how to get blood pu[m]ping w[hen] child in shock” online during part of that time.

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Centralia home catches fire

KMIZ on May 18, 2026

Ryan Shiner

CENTRALIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Centralia home was seen smoking for hours on Monday.

Firefighters were called at 12:59 p.m. to the 23000 block of North March Road for a report of a house fire, according to dispatch logs.

Firefighters saw smoke coming from the building when they arrived, according to a Boone County Fire Protection District assistant chief.The home was still smoking when an ABC 17 News reporter was on the scene around 2:30 p.m.

There were seven fire trucks and five response trucks on the scene, as well as an ambulance.

Boone County Fire Protection District Assistant Chief Chuck Leake told ABC 17 News at the scene that there were no injuries. He also stated the age of the home, 124 years, played a role in the fire taking longer to put out.

Check back for updates.

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Power outages continue near Lake of the Ozarks

KMIZ on May 18, 2026

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Hundreds of people were still without power Monday afternoon near the Lake of the Ozarks.

Storms caused a significant number of people to lose power earlier in the day, with more than 3,700 electricity customers in Columbia at one point being without power.

The outage map for the Association of Missouri Electric Cooperatives showed there were 238 Southwest Electric Co-op customers in Hickory County without power at around 1:30 p.m., while Morgan County saw 208 Co-Mo Electric Cooperative customers without power and Camden County had 83 households without power, nearly all of which were Southwest Electric consumers.

Benton County had 159 customers without power, nearly all of which were for Southwest Electric.

Ameren’s outage map showed there were 125 consumers in Gasconade County without power, while the AMEC map showed 97 Three Rivers Electric customers did not have power and 14 Crawford Electric customers were experiencing an outage.

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Volunteers needed for beach cleanups along the Colorado River

KYMA on May 18, 2026

Dillon Fuhrman

YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA) – The Friends of the Lower Colorado River is asking the community’s help in cleaning up beaches along the Colorado River.

According to a press release, the event is taking place at Gateway Park Saturday, May 30, 2026, with the volunteer group arriving at 6:30 a.m. and check-in starting at 7 a.m.

During the event, the organization says there will be two cleanup efforts, with some volunteers loading up and heading to the California side while the other volunteers remain at Gateway Park.

The organization says they will be working with the Quechan community to cleanup highly used areas of the river.

“Our river is the lifeblood of this community, but it needs our help,” said David Sanchez for Friends of the Lower Colorado River. “I was glad to meet with the Tribal Council to work on this issue together. As a community, it is important to remember important outdoors concepts such as Pack It In & Pack It Out if there isn’t a garbage can near by.”

The organization is asking volunteers to wear study shoes, and says the cleanup supplies and water will be provided, along with Visit Yuma, who is sponsoring the event, providing coffee and donuts to the volunteers.

For more information on the event, or on how to get involved, click here.

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Pocatello Airport to get brand-new Control Tower in $750M Federal Air Traffic Control overhaul

KIFI on May 18, 2026

Seth Ratliff

POCATELLO, Idaho (KIFI) — The air traffic control tower at the Pocatello Regional Airport is officially getting a massive, state-of-the-art upgrade.

Friday, U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy announced that the department is investing over $750 million to replace eight aging air traffic control towers and Terminal Radar Approach Controls across the country with brand-new facilities. The Pocatello Regional Airport was selected alongside just seven other national locations, including cities like Sacramento and San Jose, California, based on the safety and efficiency needs of the nation’s airspace system.

According to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), many of the country’s current air traffic facilities are decades old and suffering from failing infrastructure. In a press release, Duffy took aim at the past administration, saying the investment highlights administration is “laser-focused” on ushering in a Golden Age of Transportation.

“Under the last administration’s watch, these facilities were neglected and left to deteriorate rapidly. We need a system and supporting infrastructure that is built for the future to attract top talent for our air traffic control workforce,” said Duffy.

According to the release, the new towers will feature modern equipment as part of a broader Brand-New Air Traffic Control System being built by the current administration.

“Our controllers are the best in the world, and they deserve to work in the best, most modern facilities,” said FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford. “These investments will replace aging infrastructure with modern, state-of-the-art towers and equipment that strengthens safety, improves reliability, and supports the future of the National Airspace System.”

In addition, the FAA is also rolling out a separate $85.8 million grant program to upgrade 41 Federal Contract Towers (FCTs) across 24 states.

Projects include:

Acadiana Regional Airport receiving $915,000 for facility improvements

Marana Regional Airport receiving $800,000 to support the design of a new sponsor-owned FCT

Missoula County Airport Authority receiving $1 million to modernize key infrastructure

Wiley Post Airport receiving $10 million to construct a new sponsor-owned FCT

For more information, click HERE.

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Senior Apartments in Brawley temporarily evacuated to Red Cross emergency shelter

KYMA on May 18, 2026

Jessamyn Dodd

BRAWLEY, Calif. (KYMA) – Late Friday evening, dozens of residents at the Ciudad Plaza Adult Apartments in Brawley were informed they had to vacate the premises immediately due to earthquake damage repairs and safety issues.

Residents and caregivers said they were not offered any money for motel rooms, nor were they offered any temporary rentals.

They did say that they were told their rent would be frozen until the repairs are completed.

One resident, Jose Valenzuela, said he was woken up at 11 p.m. by the owner who told him he had to leave the property.

“We got a letter. We actually had the owner; she talked to my brother. And she actually, well she told us to get out of there…they told us that it was not safe,” Valenzuela shared.

Another resident said he was concerned about getting his medication and his belongings.

Brawley Mayor JJ Galvin, and Brawley City Council member Gil Rebollar called a late night meeting at City Hall to coordinate mutual aid efforts.

The city opened the Lions Center, where the American Red Cross set up a temporary emergency shelter.

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Locals react to fire tearing through abandoned home in Westmorland

KYMA on May 18, 2026

Jessamyn Dodd

WESTMORLAND, Calif. (KYMA) – Locals in Westmorland are reacting to a three-alarm fire tearing through an abandoned home in Westmorland spreading to next door properties.

The fire happened at around 3 a.m. Sunday in the area of C Street, near the Westmorland Community Presbyterian Church.

When the Westmorland Fire Department (WFD) realized the extent of the fire, the following fire agencies were called to help them:

Imperial County Fire Department

El Centro Fire Department

NAF-El Centro Fire

Brawley Fire Department

Calexico Fire Department

Holtville Fire Department

Centinella State Prison

Calipatria State Prison

Calipatria Fire Department

“It was a second alarm, we hit a third alarm because next door, with a resident in there actually caught on fire also. So, we had fire on all areas of the building. Everywhere, we were trying. We had engines in the alley trying to stop it as much as we could, but the wind wasn’t in our favor,” said Chief Cesar Zarate with WFD.

A resident in the home on the other side of the fire was evacuated, and Social Services were called to help her with finding a safe place to go.

Chief Zarate says they were able to save the prayer area of the church, but the rest of the building was not spared, and the wind was very powerful, causing the fire to spread rapidly.

“It’s been a vacant lot next to the church for many years. An abandoned home that we knew, you know, this was our biggest fear and it happened. All of our social hall, and other buildings and Sunday school classrooms are all gone,” said Carrie Augusta with the Westmorland Community Presbyterian Church.

Church members and Westmorland Fire Marshal Jesse Zendejas say they have been reporting the abandoned property for years, and nothing has been done.

“The city, other official building officials, fire chief have determined that this property was a fire hazard and a nuisance so we wanted to get it cleaned up. And it’s been at least for the last five years we’ve been asking them to clean it up,” Fire Marshal Zendejas shared.

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Boonville man accused breaking into Rolla apartment, threatening to kill occupants

KMIZ on May 18, 2026

Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A Boonville man is accused of breaking into a Rolla apartment and threatening to kill two people on Sunday morning.

Shawn Allen, 27, is charged in Phelps County with first-degree burglary, two counts of first-degree assault and two counts of armed criminal action. He is being held at the Phelps County Jail on a $500,000 bond.

The probable cause statement says police were called just after 3 a.m. Sunday for a reported burglary. Allen allegedly woke up the victims by pounding on their apartment door while “flashing a gun he had concealed in his waistband,” the statement says.

Allen allegedly kicked in the door and pointed a gun at the two victims, the statement says. Police wrote that Allen nodded “yes,” when they asked him if he was going to kill the victims.

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Idaho Falls, Ammon, and Bonneville County team up for regional ‘Street Summit’ tonight

KIFI on May 18, 2026

News Team

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) — If you’ve got questions about road work coming this summer, local leaders want to give you answers all in one place. The City of Idaho Falls, Bonneville County, and the City of Ammon are joining forces to host a regional Street Summit tonight, Monday, May 18, at 6:30 p.m. in the Bonneville County Commissioner’s Hearing Room.

The public meeting will take place in the Bonneville County Commissioner’s Hearing Room. The summit aims to prep drivers for the upcoming 2026 summer road construction season, offering a look at how local projects will affect summer traffic.

According to regional leadership, the summit is part of a growing collaborative effort between the three agencies, aiming to improve coordination, communication, and provide a “clearer understanding of roadway improvements, traffic impacts, and infrastructure projects planned throughout the 2026 construction season.”

“Road construction and infrastructure improvements impact every community in our region, and those impacts do not stop at jurisdictional boundaries,” said City of Idaho Falls Public Information Officer Kimberly Felker in a recent news release.

After a short presentation from each participating agency highlighting major transportation and infrastructure projects, attendees will have opportunities to ask questions.

For those unable to attend in person, the event will be livestreamed and recorded. To watch online, click HERE.

In addition, residents can access interactive construction maps for all three agencies through their websites or through the links below:

Idaho Falls Construction

Bonneville County Construction

City of Ammon Construction

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