Month: September 2026

By Olivia Young

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    Colorado (KCNC) — Colorado Parks and Wildlife has given out $1 million in grants to local communities to help reduce conflicts with bears.

The Human-Bear Conflict Reduction Community Grant was created in 2021. This year it may be more important than ever.

We know the drought has led to record bear activity as the hungry animals are pushed closer to humans in search of food.

One of the biggest places now to find that food is in the trash.

Seventeen projects in our state received this funding, and they’re all planning to use it for trash-related bear-proofing upgrades.

That includes projects in Parachute, Ward, Aspen, Boulder County, and Manitou Springs.

Manitou Springs is no stranger to bears.

“Bears are part of our lives,” said Manitou Springs Mayor Natalie Johnson.

But this year, activity is significantly higher.

“We did have one bear that did, in fact, get in someone’s car. And as you can imagine, a trapped bear in a car can cause a lot of damage,” Johnson said. “Our police chief and fire chief had to sort of figure out a way to get the door open, and the bear did get out.”

This year, bears are finding their way into cars, backyards, and dumpsters in Manitou Springs.

“We talk to our customers, and they’re saying the bear problem is really bad, then we see it,” said Jonathan Stevens, sanitation worker with Republic Services.

Stevens knows one man’s trash is a bear’s treasure.

“We’ve seen a lot of babies get into the trash cans,” Stevens said. “We’ll pick the trash up early in the morning, so the cans are just spilled over and then they dig the garbage out and look for whatever they’re looking for that smells good.”

It’s why the City of Manitou Springs applied for a Human-Bear Conflict Reduction Community Grant from the state.

“This has been part of an ongoing project for this community,” Johnson said.

In 2024, Manitou used the same grant to purchase 64 bear-proof trash cans. They gave them to residents on a first-come, first-served basis.

“They went very, very quickly. I think within 24 to 48 hours,” said Frederick Rollenhagen, planning director for Manitou Springs.

This year, they received $100,000 to give out more trash cans to neighbors.

“I see the need everywhere. I know that the community sees the need, and so we will take full advantage of those dollars,” Johnson said.

And replace city trash cans in busy areas that are damaged or not up to bear-proof standards.

“I would say between 80% to 90% are bear-proof. So we have a high number, but they’re getting old. They’re becoming damaged,” Rollenhagen said.

Stevens can attest the bear-proof cans work, and make his job easier.

“There’s just clips on the bottom of them that you just have to squeeze together with your fingers, and it pops a little bit. But the bear can’t figure that out, so that’s a good thing,” Stevens said. “It’s horrible to try and pick up all this trash spread out everywhere and get it back in the can and then in our truck.”

The city will start getting quotes from trash can manufacturers to see how many they can get with this money, they’re hoping to have more than 100 available for residents. Those should be available to neighbors early next year.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Bo Evans

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    TEXAS (KTVT) — Clippers buzzing, fresh cuts coming – everybody is getting cleaned up at this barbershop.

But most of these stylists don’t even have their driver’s licenses.

“We’re at Skyline High School in the barber room,” said Sahul Espinoza, a junior at Skyline High School.

These barbers are still studying for their SATs.

But students like Espinoza and Keyla Arias are following their dreams.

“When I was a kid, I used to get messed up, and this one time I got a good haircut, and that gave me confidence, and I want to give that confidence to other people,” said Espinoza.

“I’ve always liked hair. I’ve always loved dolls, and my dad always let me cut his hair,” said Arias.

Now, they’re under the tutelage of Manzell Robertson, who runs the barber program at Skyline.

“The district decided they wanted a barber program, and they gave me a call, and I was like I’m with it,” said Robertson.

He’s been leading the program since its inception four years ago, and when he’s done with students like Espinoza and Arias, they’ll have 1,000 hours of training, a class-A barber license, and a school year spent working in a real barbershop.

“Absolutely, they will be in someone’s establishment servicing the clients they have,” said Robertson.

Robertson says that training might cost students up to $20,000 at beauty school. They just pay for their clippers and supplies. It’s a huge head start for these students.

“I was planning on going to business school so I can learn how to open barbershops up,” said Espinoza.

The 16-year-old has big dreams of making sure everyone looks their best.

“You get to make people feel better about themselves,” said Espinoza.

Anyone can get a haircut from the student barbers – every Wednesday, you can stop by the barbershop and get cleaned up for just a $5 donation. Just call Skyline High School ahead of time to set the appointment; no walk-ins accepted.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Marvin Hurst

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    TEXAS (KTVT) — A routine trip to a Lewisville ATM could have changed one man’s financial life a bit. Instead, it revealed something rich about his character.

Lewisville police say a 37-year-old man found a bag stuffed with $128,514 in cash sitting on top of a Bank of America ATM on West Main Street on Aug. 3. There was also a smaller bag containing 19 checks.

Not a dollar of the cash was missing when the police got it.

“I’ve never had a case like this before, ever,” Lewisville Police Detective Gina Miller said.

According to a police report, the man and a 42-year-old woman had gone to the ATM to withdraw money when they spotted the bags. The information on one of the bags pointed to Chick-fil-A.

The man, who is a barber in Lewisville, asked not to be identified. He told CBS News Texas he couldn’t speak about the incident. Police said he was the person who called 911.

Police say he drove to a nearby Chick-fil-A, believing the money might belong to the restaurant. A manager told him it did not.

Inside the cash bag was a bank receipt showing exactly how much money was supposed to be there: $128,514.

That’s exactly how much police counted.

An officer counted the money twice and verified the total with a digital currency counter before the cash was sealed and secured in the Lewisville Police Department property room.

“I think to find that kind of money, or that amount of money, is certainly rare,” Lewisville Police Chief Brook Rollins said. “That’s very unusual. And then to not find it connected to any criminal activity is certainly unusual.”

How $128,514 was left behind at a Lewisville ATM Police reports show the money belonged to Bank of America and was being handled by its cash vendor, Brinks.

Investigators said a Brinks technician serviced the ATM and was supposed to take the money, but accidentally left the funds on top of the machine.

Police found no indication that the cash was connected to a crime.

“The bag was just sitting there,” Miller said. “There was no indication of a crime occurring. It looked like it was just left there by accident.”

Bank of America has since recovered the money.

Brinks declined to discuss the specifics of the incident, saying in a statement that, as a general practice, it does not comment on law enforcement matters involving the safety of its employees or others.

Lewisville police want to honor the man who returned the money Police say they now want to recognize the man whose decision made the unusual case even more remarkable.

Miller has handled cases involving people returning wallets, IDs and other lost property. But six figures in cash?

“I’ve had cases where good Samaritans have turned in property that they found, wallets, IDs, things like that,” Miller said. “But in the case of $128,000, I’ve never had somebody turn in that kind of money before.”

Rollins said the episode also demonstrates how much police departments depend on the communities they serve.

“We are one half of the equation, the police; the other half is the community,” Rollins said.

As for why the man handed over a bag containing enough cash to make almost anyone stop and stare, Rollins offered a simple explanation.

“I just think he just thinks it’s the right thing to do and doesn’t think it goes beyond that,” Rollins said.

For Lewisville police, the case came with no robbery, no theft and no missing money. Just $128,514 — and one man who decided every dollar belonged to somebody else.

Miller said there is no “Finders keepers, losers weepers.” The detective said people have to do due diligence to return what’s discovered or end up in trouble with the law.

The man told CBS News Texas that if the police department honors him, he’ll gladly attend a private ceremony.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

By Tania Francois

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    MIAMI (WFOR) — Former Haitian First Lady Martine Moïse broke down in tears Tuesday while testifying about the night gunmen stormed the presidential residence in Haiti, fatally shooting her husband, President Jovenel Moïse, and leaving her severely wounded.

Taking the stand in Miami federal court as the prosecution’s star witness, Moïse recounted the July 7, 2021, attack during the trial of Christian Emmanuel Sanon, a Haitian American pastor accused of participating in the assassination conspiracy.

Moïse testified that gunfire woke the couple at around 1 a.m. at their home in Pétion-Ville, Haiti. She said her husband stayed awake working at a desk before telling her, “Honey, we are dead”.

Crawling on her hands and knees to reach her adult children’s bedrooms, Moïse found them holding the family dog’s mouth shut to keep her from barking. After instructing them to hide in a windowless bathroom, Moïse returned upstairs to be with her husband, telling her children she “couldn’t leave their father”.

Moïse described trying to get underneath the bed when gunfire erupted again, wounding her and killing her husband. She wept uncontrollably as prosecutors displayed photographs of the bedroom, showing her husband’s body lying on top of Haiti’s constitution.

She testified that the attackers spoke Spanish, using the names “Jefe” and “Pipe,” as they rummaged through the room. Before leaving, someone grabbed her leg, rolled her onto her back, shone a light into her eyes, and stepped on her foot.

After the gunmen fled, groundskeepers found Moïse bleeding from her nose and mouth and used one of her husband’s neckties to try to stop her bleeding. She noted that none of the 40 to 50 security officers assigned to protect the family came to help.

Moïse was treated in Haiti before being flown to Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami, where she underwent several surgeries to reconstruct a shattered right elbow.

During cross-examination, defense attorneys questioned Moïse about her husband’s political conflicts. She testified that her husband had “a lot of enemies” and clashed with wealthy Haitian business interests after moving to cancel contracts that benefited a small elite.

“One percent of the population has taken 99% of the wealth while the rest of the country lives in poverty,” she testified, adding that her husband wanted to “feed the people”.

Questioned about former President Michel Martelly and former Prime Minister Ariel Henry, Moïse stopped short of direct accusations. She testified she believed the investigation would lead to answers regarding Martelly, and recalled a meeting with Henry where he told her not to expect elections or justice for her husband.

Federal prosecutors allege Sanon conspired to remove Moïse from power to become president himself. Sanon, a U.S. citizen who had not lived in Haiti for at least five years, is ineligible for the presidency under Haiti’s constitution. Four co-defendants were convicted earlier this year, while Sanon’s trial was delayed due to health issues, including a cancer diagnosis and diabetes.

Moïse is expected to return to the stand Wednesday as cross-examination continues. Her daughter, Jomarlie Moïse, who hid during the attack, is also scheduled to testify.

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.