Month: June 2026

Mitchell Kaminski

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Missouri officials say they are investigating multiple cases involving alleged fake nursing credentials as authorities warn the issue is becoming more common nationwide.

A spokesperson for the Missouri Attorney General’s Office told ABC 17 News the agency is currently investigating another nursing credentials case in addition to the one filed this week in Camden County. The investigation remains open, and officials declined to release details.

The update comes alongside the case of Darcee Heath, a Linn Creek woman who was charged on Tuesday in Camden County with forgery and practicing nursing with fraudulently obtained academic credentials.

Court records allege Heath used multiple aliases and submitted falsified transcripts and diplomas to obtain nursing jobs in the Lake of the Ozarks area in 2025.

Investigators say each position ended after concerns arose about her qualifications, and an internal review later found her academic records were forged. Officials said in court documents that no patients or residents were harmed. The names of the health care facilities Heath worked at were not named in the probable cause statement.

The Missouri Board of Nursing said individuals must complete a state-approved practical nursing program, pass the NCLEX exam and submit required documentation, including transcripts, background checks and fees, to obtain an LPN license.

A spokesperson for the Missouri Department of Commerce and Insurance, speaking on behalf of the board, said all nursing licenses are verified through the national Nursys system, which allows employers to confirm licensure status and track disciplinary actions or changes. The board also encourages facilities to use Nursys e-Notify, a service that provides alerts on license updates.

However, Missouri Attorney General’s Office officials said these cases involving fake credenitals are often complex because the individuals accused are not licensed nurses, which limits the Missouri Board of Nursing’s ability to take disciplinary action. Instead, they are typically handled as criminal investigations through local prosecutors or the state’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit.

That unit sits within the Attorney General’s Office and is responsible for investigating and prosecuting fraud involving Medicaid providers, as well as abuse, neglect and financial exploitation in Medicaid-funded facilities.

Officials said nursing credential cases are assigned there because they often involve individuals working in facilities tied to Medicaid reimbursement.

The state’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit has taken on a larger role in these investigations, officials said, citing the technical nature of the cases. The unit includes two dedicated nurse investigators and is funded largely through a federal grant.

Officials said the unit was created in response to the growing complexity of health care fraud investigations, and the current nurse investigator has been on staff since 2021.

The Medicaid Fraud Control Unit is funded through a combination of state and federal dollars. According to the Attorney General’s Office, the unit receives 75% of its funding from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services through a federal grant totaling about $3.55 million for fiscal year 2026. The remaining 25%, about $1.18 million, is funded by the state.

The developments come as the National Council of State Boards of Nursing reports an increase in counterfeit diplomas, forged licenses and fraudulent job applications targeting health care workers.

The attorney general’s office said the Heath case will be among at least 13 cases highlighted June 23 as part of the 2026 National Health Care Fraud Takedown.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Seasonal retailers can begin selling fireworks on Saturday and will be able to through Friday, July 10, a press release from the state fire marshal’s office says.

Through June 11, the Division of Fire Safety issued 1,129 permits to seasonal retailers, the release says.

The release says officials expect to see an uptick in the use of fireworks this year because of the country’s 250th anniversary and the World Cup taking place.

In 2025, 358 people in Missouri went to a hospital for fireworks-related issues, with 316 being treated in the emergency rooms and released and 42 were admitted to a hospital, the release says. There were 288 fireworks-related injuries in the three weeks leading up to and after the Fourth of July, the release says.

Around the country in 2024, 11 people died in fireworks-related issued, 14,700 were treated for injuries in emergency rooms and 1,700 injuries that involved sparklers required emergency room treatment.

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Euphenie Andre

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The Kansas City FIFA World Cup 2026 group is looking to avoid a repeat of Tuesday’s long lines and delays as thousands of fans prepare to attend Saturday’s match between Ecuador and Curaçao.

Many fans took to social media after Tuesday’s match to complain about hours-long traffic delays, parking issues and difficulties reaching the stadium before the match. Fans are calling it the “Messi effect.”

Global soccer superstar Lionel Messi drew massive crowds to Kansas City for Tuesday’s match between Argentina and Algeria.

According to a KC 2026 spokesperson, transportation systems successfully moved fans throughout the region and to the stadium area. However, the biggest challenge came once fans arrived.

“We recognize that some fans experienced significant delays entering the stadium complex and understand the frustration that created,” the spokesperson said in an email to ABC 17 News.

The spokesperson said delays at the stadium gates caused backups for fans, no matter how they traveled to the venue.

Typically, fans attending Kansas City Chiefs games can enter Arrowhead Stadium through eight different gates. For Tuesday’s FIFA Club World Cup match, only two gates were open for thousands of fans entering the stadium. KC 2026 said FIFA controls stadium entry operations and has provided recommendations to improve the process before Saturday’s match.

City leaders spent months preparing for the tournament, adding shuttle services and expanding public transit options to help move fans around the city.

At the beginning of the month, Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas was encouraging people across Missouri to come experience the FIFA Club World Cup.

“If you come to Kansas City, you will find a good way to get around on transit. There’s the free streetcar system, there’s a fairly free bus system we have going around,” Lucas said before the World Cup kicked off in the city.

Despite those efforts, many fans told ABC 17 News on Tuesday they chose to drive or use rideshare services instead.

Jeff Merritt traveled from Indiana to the Show Me State to experience his first ever World Cup match, and he said watching soccer superstar Lionel Messi play was a once in a lifetime moment.

Merritt said his time at the Kansas City FIFA Fan Festival was a great experience and praised the city for putting the event together. However, he said the challenges began once fans started making their way from the festival area to the stadium.

About two hours before kickoff, Merritt said he tried using the bus service provided to transport fans to the stadium. After waiting for nearly an hour, he said he realized the line was barely moving.

Merritt believes adding more buses could help travel.

“What we saw in our hour of waiting for the bus to the Fan Fest was like seven buses total,” Merritt said. “Seven buses times 44 people on each bus, that’s not going to move thousands of people quickly.”

Eventually, Merritt found a rideshare with other fans from Costa Rica and Puerto Rico to get closer to the stadium. Due to traffic restrictions, the group could only travel so far and had to get out of the care more than a mile west of Arrowhead Stadium.

Merritt said while he and his group were able to walk the remaining distance, he worries the long walk could create challenges for other fans.

“We had the ability to walk the mile before the game, the mile after the game,” Merritt said. “If someone doesn’t have that ability, they’re really going to be hamstrung into getting into the game.”

Merritt said he understands the security measures FIFA has put in place, including limiting access points around the stadium. Despite the transportation issues, he said he felt safe throughout his experience in Kansas City.

Ecuador vs Curaçao match is set for 7 p.m. Saturday.

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Sutton Parker

COLUMBIA MO. (KMIZ)

Gas prices across the state have fallen again this week, just two weeks before Independence Day.

According to AAA, the state average for a tank of gas sits at $3.65. That’s down 11 cents from last week but still up 83 cents compared to last year at the same time. The current national average sits at $3.99, which is 31 cents more than the state’s current national average.

AAA added that around the state, drivers in Jefferson City are seeing the highest prices at the pump at $3.87, while drivers in Springfield are paying the least, with their average set around $3.40. The ABC 17 News Fuel Finder page shows the lowest prices in Jefferson City are around $3.69-$3.79.

According to AAA spokesperson Carly McKinnis, the lowering prices stem from tensions calming between the United States and Iran.

“Well, this is all in reaction to oil markets kind of calming down now that we’ve seen that truce with the US and Iran. Traffic resuming or starting anyway in the Strait of Hormuz. That is really easing tensions in the oil market,” she said.

While the prices continue to fall, McKinnis noted the downward trend could change at any moment.

“We can’t count on that lasting. This is a very tenuous truce, and anything could happen. If anything does happen, you should expect those prices to shoot back up,” she said

While any drop in gas prices is usually good news for summer road trips, the reality on the ground feels a lot different.

Eugine Calper, who was making a road trip from Lawrence, Kansas, to Alton, Illinois, said at a Phillips 66 gas station in Columbia that he is frustrated with the current prices.

“I am actually highly irritated with the gas prices. I do not know what it is going to take for gas prices to be sustainable,” he said.

David Bridgers, whose family was headed on a road trip to the East Coast, said in Columbia the cost of a flight was not affordable, so he had to drive.

“It just feels like we are kind of being held hostage as consumers. It’s just unaffordable to fly; we’re driving now, but we had to drive our smallest vehicle because of the fuel economy,” he said.

McKinnis added that before anyone hits the road for summer vacation, to make sure that your vehicle is road trip ready.

“Make sure that your battery is fully charged, and make sure that your tires are inflated properly. AAA responded to more than 600,000 roadside assistance calls during the last Fourth of July holiday travel period,” she said.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Two women were charged in Cole County with child abuse and other charges after state officials determined their home was not safe for children to live in.

Whitney Barron, 42, and Beverly Barron, 74, were charged on Thursday in Cole County with three counts of child abuse, three counts of first-degree endangering the welfare of a child and two counts of misdemeanor animal neglect. They are both being held at the Cole County Jail without bond. Court dates have not been scheduled.

The probable cause statement says law enforcement was called on Wednesday afternoon after a Children’s Division worker described concerns about the home. The Cole County deputy wrote that feces were seen smeared on walls, the stairs and floor throughout the home. Three children appeared either without clothes or in soiled diapers or underwear, the statement says.

Trash was allegedly piled up throughout the home and in the sink, the statement says. The deputy wrote that trash on the second level of the home was stacked up to his knees.

One soiled mattress was found, no children’s clothing was located throughout the home and multiple doors were locked off, the statement says. The deputy also found two cats that were in “inadequate body condition,” and no litter box, water or cat food was seen, court documents say.

Beverly Barron was home when authorities arrived, the statement says.

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