Colorado wildlife officials say DNA from woman killed by mountain lion found on 1 of euthanized cats

CNN on January 6, 2026


KCNC

By Alan Gionet

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    Colorado (KCNC) — The family of the hiker killed by a mountain lion last week in Northern Colorado says she died doing something she loved. The Larimer County Coroner’s Office confirmed on Monday that Kristen Marie Kovatch’s death last Thursday was caused by an attacking mountain lion. Their report states she died of asphyxia due to having her neck compressed. It was the first fatal attack in Colorado by a mountain lion on a human this century.

Kovatch was 46 years old and lived in Fort Collins. Her brother released a statement on Monday about her death that read, in part:

“She died doing something she loved deeply-hiking and taking in the beauty of Colorado and its public lands. Kristen was also an ultramarathon runner and someone who found joy and purpose in caring for animals. Her energy, compassion, and independence touched everyone who knew her, and her absence leaves an immeasurable void in our lives.”

Kovatch’s body was found in the middle of the day on Thursday by two hikers on a trail southeast of Glen Haven in Larimer County. A mountain lion was nearby, and they threw rocks to scare it away. One of the hikers, a physician, attended to the victim but did not find a pulse.

Two mountain lions spotted near her body were euthanized. A necropsy revealed human DNA was found on one of those lions, Colorado Parks and Wildlife officials said.

“Those two lions — they are of a family group, a male and female sub-adult lion. The male was found to have human DNA on all four of its paws. The female lion did not have any human DNA that was detected,” said CPW spokeswoman Kara Van Hoose.

The juvenile lions were likely between one and two and a half years old. “At this point, they can go out on their own and kill a deer. So at this point, they are out trying to live like your teenager, right, being as independent as they can without the mother. Their mother is still there helping them out. They’re sharing kills,” said CPW senior wildlife researcher Mat Aldredge.

Van Hoose said the mountain lions tested negative for rabies “and other neurological diseases.”

CPW was also searching for a third mountain lion after the attack, but that search has ended. The trail where the attack happened — Crosier Mountain Trail — is back open.

Mountain lions can weigh up to 130 pounds and grow to more than 6 feet long. They primarily eat deer.

Colorado has an estimated 3,800 to 4,400 mountain lions, which are classified as a big game species in the state and can be hunted.

A Glen Haven man running on the same trail where Kovatch was killed encountered a mountain lion in November. He said it rushed him aggressively, but he fought it off with a stick. A boyfriend and girlfriend hiking near the summit on the Crosier Mountain Trail late in the month encountered lions and managed to haze them after several minutes of threatening behavior. They were two of several mountain lion encounters east of Rocky Mountain National Park in recent months, according to Van Hoose. In two of those cases, the predators killed dogs close to their owners, she said.

Western Larimer County is prime mountain lion habitat in places. It is less likely, said CPW experts, that the lions were after human targets or that the mother lion was teaching her offspring to pursue humans. Their presence in the area is more likely because of the availability of typical prey like elk and deer.

“There are a lot of resources, food resources in and around human populations. It’s a steady, constant food resource, and a lot of our research over the years has shown that females with kittens will actually use those areas more than females without,” explained Aldredge. “There are important resources there that you can utilize for food, and that is probably what is being taught in those situations. Not that humans are OK.”

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.

Uniontown swears in its first-ever woman police chief

CNN on January 6, 2026


KDKA

By Shelley Bortz

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    UNIONTOWN, Pennsylvania (KDKA) — For nearly a month, the city of Uniontown operated without a permanent police chief, raising concerns about leadership and accountability inside the department.

City leaders finally filled that vacancy on Monday, swearing in a new chief and making history in the process.

For the first time, the department is being led by a woman, Chief Alexis Metros, who is stepping into the role amid scrutiny and high expectations.

“This will be 15 years now that I’ve been involved in law enforcement. I worked hard over the years, and like anything else, you have goals, and at the end game, that was my goal one day when the chance arrived, and it arrived,” Chief Metros said.

Metros told KDKA-TV that law enforcement has always been a part of her life.

She comes from a family of law enforcement officers and says that serving the community was ingrained in her at a young age, but she also understands the significance of this moment.

As the first woman to lead this department, Metros says she hopes her appointment sends a message, especially to young girls, that they belong in leadership roles, too.

“I hope it gives little girls or teenage girls something to look up to,” Chief Metros said. “I’ve always felt like one of the team, so to me, one of us taking over a position, we’re one big family.”

Metros is no stranger to Uniontown. She is from the area and has spent her career policing the communities she knows.

Since graduating from the police academy, she worked in Brownsville and Masontown boroughs before joining the Uniontown Police Department three years ago.

The experience, she says, has prepared her for this role.

“Over those years, I have had the chance to network with a lot of the community throughout Fayette County,” she said. “I feel like I have a great working nature with a lot of them.”

It’s no secret, though, that Metros takes over a department emerging from weeks without a chief, facing challenges that include morale, staffing concerns, and public expectations.

She said her focus moving forward couldn’t be clearer, with the safety of the city as her top priority.

“This past year was a big year for us. We didn’t have any violent homicides, and we can thank that to the men and women who are out here day and night sweeping these streets, getting the guns and drugs and keeping the violence down,” she said.

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.

Former school bus aid pleads guilty to 12 charges related to abusing, assaulting students with autism

CNN on January 5, 2026


KCNC

By Austen Erblat, Ashley Portillo

Click here for updates on this story

    LITTLETON, Colorado (KCNC) — A former school bus aide in Colorado pleaded guilty on Monday to 12 out of 13 charges related to allegations that she assaulted three students with autism in 2024.

Kiarra Jones, 29, was arrested in April 2024 and later charged with 10 counts of third-degree assault of an at-risk person, two counts of child abuse causing injury, and one count of child abuse causing serious bodily injury related to the incidents when she worked for Littleton Public Schools. She initially pleaded not guilty to all of the charges.

She pleaded guilty on Monday, the day her trial was supposed to start. Attorneys for the victims’ families say the victims were three 10-year-old non-verbal boys with autism. At least one of the incidents was caught on video.

“Today marks a step toward accountability and a step closer to justice and safety for our community. Ms. Jones’ actions weren’t just criminal, they were cruel,” Ciara Anderson, an attorney representing some of the victims’ families, said at a news conference after the hearing ended.

Anderson, who works for the law firm Rathod Mohamedbhai LLC, said the families are seeking the maximum prison sentence of 15 years. Anderson estimates a prison sentence of 5 to 7 years, but said it could be more, depending on whether the judge issues consecutive or concurrent sentences for each charge.

When asked for his reaction to the plea, Kevin Yarborough, whose son, Hunter, was one of the victims, said, “mixed emotions to say the least.”

“It’s frustrating. My son is not able to speak, so I feel my job as a father is to represent him in court, so it is frustrating,” he said. “That being said, I am happy that the next step in this process is going forward. I’m happy that after 2 years of delays, she was finally able to take some accountability for what she did to our kids.”

“It is frustrating that we don’t get that day in court to display what our kids had to go through for everyone to see,” said Jessica Vestal, whose son Dax was also one of the victims.

“Between the things that the kids have all experienced with the abuse, today was their first day back at school from winter break,” Vestal continued. “Most people have to prep their kids’ teachers, like, ‘he doesn’t like carrots’ or ‘he didn’t sleep well this morning,’ we have to let our kids’ teachers know what we noticed that’s triggering them lately and what things seem to be on the forefront of their minds in terms of the trauma they experienced.”

Vestal and her attorneys say they’re pursuing legal action against Littleton Public Schools and The Joshua School, and the U.S. Department of Justice has opened an inquiry into the school and school district.

Christopher Gallo, chief deputy district attorney in Arapahoe County, said he was “very happy” with the outcome of the case.

“Any time someone’s in a position of trust, in regard to our children, takes accountability and we find justice in that situation, we’re always pretty gratified that that’s the resolution it comes to,” he said. “Any time someone endangers children, when they are charged with keeping those children safe, especially children who have special needs, children who cannot look after themselves, that’s always particularly concerning.”

Jones is set to be sentenced on March 18. She was represented by the Public Defender’s Office.

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.

Minnesota lawmakers, family condemn Trump for sharing “outrageous” conspiracy theories on Melissa Hortman’s assassination

CNN on January 5, 2026


WCCO

By Riley Moser

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    Minnesota (WCCO) — The children of former Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman are asking President Trump to remove a video he reposted on social media Saturday alleging Gov. Tim Walz is behind their mother’s assassination.

Walz responded to the president’s Truth Social post, saying it is “dangerous, depraved behavior from the sitting president of the United States.”

“In covering for an actual serial killer, he is going to get more innocent people killed. America is better than this,” Walz said.

Hortman was shot and killed alongside her husband, Mark, and their dog, Gilbert, on June 14, 2025, inside the family’s Brooklyn Park home. State Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette, were shot and wounded in their Champlin home 90 minutes earlier.

Vance Boelter, 58, faces federal charges for the shootings, including two counts of murder. He allegedly dressed as a police officer and managed to evade arrest for nearly 40 hours. According to prosecutors, Boelter had a hit list of lawmakers and other public officials, including staffers at Planned Parenthood. He pleaded not guilty in August.

Mr. Trump first reshared the video that states Boelter made the claim Walz ordered him to kill Hortman in a letter authorities say they found in his vehicle. Then-acting U.S. attorney Joe Thompson called the letter a “delusion” that seemed “designed to conceal his crimes.”

The Hortmans’ children, Sophie and Colin, on Sunday afternoon asked Mr. Trump to remove the post, saying it promotes a “false narrative.”

“The video being shared by the president is another hurdle our family must overcome in grieving the loss of my parents, Mark and Melissa, and their beloved Gilbert,” Sophie Hortman said. “I ask President Trump to please consider the pain and sadness we have faced, and to honor the spirit of the holidays we have just spent without our parents by taking down the post on Truth Social.”

Colin Hortman also debunked one of the claims made in the video shared by Mr. Trump regarding a vote his mother made shortly before her death to remove undocumented immigrant adults from the state’s health care coverage program. Hortman was the sole Democrat to vote for it in the tied House chamber, clearing the way for its passage.

“When I called her after the legislative session ended, I asked why she voted for the bill mentioned in the video shared by President Trump, and she wept. That bill and her vote had nothing to do with fraud. She voted for that bill because it was the only way to avoid a government shutdown,” Colin Hortman said. “She had never really voted against her conscience like that. It was emotional and extremely difficult.”

The White House had not responded to CBS News’ request for comment.

In a statement, House DFL Leader Zack Stephenson called out Mr. Trump, saying the claims about Hortman’s death are “untruthful” and “outrageous.”

“Tonight, Donald Trump, who couldn’t be bothered to lower the flags to half staff or even say Melissa Hortman’s name until now, is spreading outrageous lies about her death,” Stephenson said. “Here is the truth: Melissa was murdered by a right-wing, anti-abortion extremist who believed conspiracy theories about COVID. Melissa Hortman and Tim Walz were friends and allies. Anyone who claims otherwise is lying.”

Stephenson went on to say that any political leader in the state who does not condemn the president’s post “isn’t fit to hold office.”

Republican state Sen. Julia Coleman also encouraged lawmakers to “call for an end to baseless conspiracy theories” above a post mentioning Mr. Trump’s online endorsement of the accusation.

“We must all reject this behavior outright and refuse to tolerate it. The American people, grieving families, and the legacies of those lost deserve far better,” Coleman said. “Debate policies fiercely. Fight for what you believe in. But do not speculate, guess, or spread stories that are plainly false and deeply harmful. It’s time to restore dignity to our political discourse.”

Several Democratic lawmakers, including Reps. Angie Craig and Betty McCollum, called for Republican legislators to specifically condemn Mr. Trump’s post.

However, Republican state Rep. Walter Hudson disagreed.

“I’m not condemning anything, even if I disagree with it, after watching the abhorrent reaction to the death of Charlie Kirk from Democrats of every strata, and the indifference toward and election of Jay Jones. I’m not playing this stupid game,” Hudson said on X about Mr. Trump’s Truth Social post.

Republican Rep. Lisa Demuth, the speaker of the Minnesota House, did not condemn Trump’s post. She did say in a statement to WCCO that Hortman was “a friend an colleague, and her life was cut short far too soon in an unspeakable act of evil by a deranged killer.”

“She should still be here, and the man who took her life should spend the rest of his life in prison,” she said.

McCollum also demanded that the president apologize to the Hortman family, Walz and Minnesotans.

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.

Lawsuit accuses Chicago-based McDonald’s of deception on grounds that McRib has no rib meat

CNN on January 5, 2026


KTVT

By Adam Harrington, Tim Jacobi

Click here for updates on this story

     Chicago (KTVT) — A lawsuit filed late last month took Chicago-based McDonald’s to task over the McRib sandwich, calling its name a form of false advertising.

The lawsuit was filed Dec. 23 in U.S. District Court in Chicago. Plaintiffs Peter Le of Baldwin Park, California; Charles Lynch of Poughkeepsie, New York; Dorien Baker of Chicago; and Darrick Wilson of Washington, D.C., sought class-action status in the lawsuit.

McDonald’s offers the McRib during limited windows with ad campaigns to announce their return each time, most recently starting this past November.

The lawsuit said McDonald’s has “cultivated a sense of anticipation around the McRib, leveraging its scarcity to drive sales across its many locations.”

As CBS News has reported before, the notorious 520-calorie sandwich contains just five simple ingredients: seasoned boneless pork dipped in BBQ sauce, sliced onions, and dill pickles in a toasted homestyle bun.

“When everything combines, you have BBQ pork sandwich perfection,” McDonald’s has said.

But the lawsuit alleged that fans of the sandwich assume they’re biting into pork rib meat, but the McRib does not really contain any.

Despite its name and distinctive shape — its meat patty has been deliberately crafted to resemble a rack of pork ribs—the McRib does not contain any actual pork rib meat at all,” the lawsuit said. “Instead, its meat patty is reconstructed using ground-up portions of lower-grade pork products such as, inter alia, pork shoulder, heart, tripe, and scalded stomach.”

The lawsuit said actual pork rib meat cuts — spareribs and baby back ribs — are premium cuts of pork that are more valuable than lower-quality cuts. Despite not containing any rib meat, the McRib is among the most expensive single-item options offered on the menu at McDonald’s, the lawsuit said.

“The name ‘McRib’ is a deliberate sleight of hand. By including the word “Rib” in the name of the sandwich, McDonald’s knowingly markets the sandwich in a way that deceives reasonable consumers, who reasonably (but mistakenly) believe that a product named the ‘McRib’ will include at least some meaningful quantity of actual pork rib meat, which commands a premium price on the market,” the lawsuit said. “McDonald’s does this despite knowing that the sandwich in fact does not contain any meaningful quantity of actual pork rib meat — indeed, none at all.”

The lawsuit said consumers are led to believe they’re eating rib meat when they’re eating a McRib, but are actually eating “a lower-quality restructured meat product that did not contain any actual pork rib meat.”

“Put simply: consumers have been materially misled en masse as a result of McDonald’s deceptive labeling and marketing into purchasing sandwiches that they would not otherwise have purchased, or would only have paid less for, had they known the truth,” the lawsuit said.

The lawsuit further alleged McDonald’s knows or should know that customers are being misled, given the name “McRib” and the way the sandwich’s patty is shaped to look like a pork rib.

The lawsuit accused McDonald’s of fraudulent omission or concealment, fraudulent misrepresentation, negligent misrepresentation, and other counts. It demanded an order “enjoining McDonald’s to desist from further deceptive naming, marketing and advertising practices with respect to the McRib and such other injunctive relief that the Court deems just and proper,” and an award of damages to the plaintiffs.

McDonald’s USA issued the following statement on the lawsuit:

“This lawsuit distorts the facts and many of the claims are inaccurate. Food quality and safety are at the heart of everything we do – that’s why we’re committed to using real, quality ingredients across our entire menu. Our fan-favorite McRib sandwich is made with 100% pork sourced from farmers and suppliers across the U.S. We’ve always been transparent about our ingredients so guests can make the right choice for them.”

McDonald’s added that it does not use pork hearts, tripe, or scalded stomach in the McRib patty, and such items are not allowed in any of its pork products. The company said the McRib has a base of 100% seasoned boneless pork.

McDonald’s first added the McRib to menus in Kansas City in 1981, according to CBS News Austin.

The chain pulled it from its menu four years later, but the sandwich has become a cult favorite among McDonald’s loyalists in recent years. It was previously sold regionally before expanding to all of its U.S. restaurants in 2020, CBS News Austin reported.

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.

CTA State/Lake elevated station 3-year closure begins

CNN on January 5, 2026


WBBM

By Adam Harrington, Lauren Victory, Sara Machi, Benson Cook

Click here for updates on this story

    Chicago (WBBM) — The State/Lake Loop ‘L’ stop has now closed, and won’t reopen for three years, as the historic station is completely demolished and rebuilt.

The Chicago Transit Authority elevated station, which serves the Brown, Green, Purple, Orange, and Pink lines, is 130 years old. The city announced it will be completely demolished and rebuilt as a “new, fully accessible rail hub” in early December.

Preparations have been under way for some time for the project. On Sunday, anyone getting off at the Lake Street CTA Red Line subway stop on Sunday might have noticed some new signage near the station’s stairways to street level.

The updated signs direct passengers looking to transfer to the elevated lines to head for the Washington/Wabash stop, a short walk to the southeast, instead of the elevated State/Lake platform overhead.

This, again, is because there will be no elevated State/Lake platform for the next three years. Construction crews rolled into the station before dawn Monday.

The State/Lake elevated station is one of the oldest in the city’s system and has the fifth-highest ridership. Officials said the new station will have wider platforms, four new elevators with full ADA accessibility, two escalators, a glass canopy, and improved lighting and visibility.

The project will cost $444 million. Construction will take at least three years, with the new station set to open in 2029. That price doesn’t sit well with some passengers.

“I feel like it’s kind of dumb in my opinion because like we don’t really need this, and I feel like we should use his money for something else in my opinion,” said Brighton Park resident Michelle Cortes.

Until then, commuters who are used to an easy transfer from the subway will have to make some adjustments.

Little Village resident Jacqueline Sanchez was taking some photos on the platform on the station’s last day in operation.

“I went to high school downtown, and I used to work downtown, so I would use this station almost every day,” she said. “I don’t take it anymore, so I was like, you know what, this is a great way to say bye.”

Other riders were unaware it would be their last time on the decades-old platform.

“And no, I didn’t know that, and that’s actually crazy because I like this train,” said rider Kennedi Brown.

Transportation expert Joseph Schwieterman of DePaul University said three years is a long time, but hopes it’s a worst-case senario.

“There is going to be some hardship, probably walking through construction sites at certain times and even having to rethink your trip,” Schwieterman said.

Transfers between lines will be complicated in particular.

“You know, the biggest impact is people making connections between the Loop elevator and the Red Line are going to get off at a different station that involves a couple blocks of walking, and even those on buses might have impacts with State Street being a construction site so it’s a lot of things at once, and we’re going to feel the effects,” he said.

State Street has already been partially closed for months for construction, and crossing the Chicago River at State Street has not been an option. This has affected bus traffic already for months upon months — the No. 36 Broadway bus, which runs on State Street from Division Street south to Van Buren Street, has been rerouted by way of Kinzie Street, Clark Street, and Wacker Drive.

Beginning Monday, even more of State Street downtown will be disrupted. The southbound lanes will be closed from Wacker Drive to Washington Street. Northbound State will see all lanes reopened.

There could also be some changes to bus services with the street closures that accompany construction, but as of Sunday, the CTA has not shared those changes.

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.

89-year-old woman’s spirit refuses to quit a year losing everything in Palisades Fire

CNN on January 5, 2026


KCBS

By Luzdelia Caballero

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    MALIBU, California (KCAL, KCBS) — One year after the Palisades Fire ripped through the Pacific Palisades and destroyed hundreds of homes and businesses, CBS LA speaks with an 89-year-old survivor whose spirit refuses to burn out despite the hurdles that have been thrown her way.

The quiet Malibu hillside that was once home to Dominica Schiro, known to her loved ones as Mimma, is still blackened, carrying a reminder of the devastating inferno that leveled entire communities after it erupted on Jan. 7, 2025.

“It was very bad,” Schiro said. “I lost everything.”

She says that while she was able to get out in time, her close friend and neighbor did not.

“Was very nice man. I feel bad,” she said.

Schiro’s daughter, Dorina, says that when they left the home, they could see smoke in the distance, but never thought that it would spread as far as Malibu.

“I didn’t grab anything, thinking that I was going to come home,” she said. “It was a big mistake, my family albums, my dad’s beautiful paintings — all gone.”

Among those family albums was Mimma’s wedding album.

“This was really sad for me. This make me cry,” Mimma said.

Her other daughter, Gracie Darden, says that the horrors of last January still haunt her, even now.

“Every time I see an alert on my phone, the fire alerts, I literally get traumatized,” she said.

Though they’re still trying to come to terms with the fact that the place where Mimma baked and cooked for the neighborhood and made memories with the family over the course of 30 years is no longer standing, they’re still able to find gratitude for life.

After months of setbacks and paperwork, the Schiro family now finally has a rendering for a new home on the Malibu property. They said that they’re one step closer to getting their rebuilding permits accepted.

“They say we could probably start in January, and finish, God willing, they think hopefully a year,” Dorina Schiro said.

The empty lot isn’t a graveyard of memories, they said, but rather a blank page where they plan to rebuild everything after the destructive fire. It will also be a reunion with the one item the blaze didn’t damage, a stone angel that once sat in the home’s yard.

“It’s the one thing that survived,” Darden said. “Every time I see it, I go, ‘Thank you, God.’ Because things come and go, family doesn’t.”

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.

Family receive special Christmas in January surprise, including toys and gifts

CNN on January 5, 2026


WBBM

By CBS Chicago Team

Click here for updates on this story

    CALUMET CITY, Illinois (WBBM) — Three kids whose grandmother and mother struggled through the holidays were surprised with a Christmas in January blessing.

They were taken by police escort to the Calumet City Library, where they received toys and other gifts.

The children’s grandmother, Ada Britton, is raising them full-time. She faces various health issues and was recently a victim of domestic violence. Because of this, the kids did not get much for Christmas.

That’s when the community stepped in.

“At Christmas time, their mom was like we don’t have the money, mom, we trying to do what we can do. I tried to go to some of the banks that’s giving away toys, coats, and stuff. So my grandbabies like grandma, I didn’t get what I want for Christmas. I said Maybe Santa forgot … This is so amazing.”

The family also received $2,000 in cash and $1,000 in gift cards.

Calumet City Mayor Thaddeus Jones said he hopes the money can bring some joy and comfort to the struggling family to start the new 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.

Man stabbed ex-girlfriend to death in apartment then fled to India, police say

CNN on January 5, 2026


WJZ

By Mike Hellgren

Click here for updates on this story

    HOWARD COUNTY, Maryland (WJZ) — An international manhunt is underway for a man accused of killing his ex-girlfriend and leaving her body inside his apartment in Columbia, Howard County, before fleeing to India, according to police.

Howard County police on Sunday issued an arrest warrant for 26-year-old Arjun Sharma on first and second-degree murder charges in the apparent stabbing death of 27-year-old Nikitha Godishala, of Ellicott City.

According to police, Sharma said Friday that he last saw Godishala on New Year’s Eve at his apartment in the 10100 block of Twin Rivers Road.

Later that day, police said they found out Sharma had left the country on a flight to India. A search warrant was then executed at his apartment, where officers said they found his ex-girlfriend’s body with stab wounds.

Detectives believe Sharma killed Godishala shortly after 7 p.m. on New Year’s Eve.

Police and federal law enforcement are still working to find and arrest Sharma. A motive is not currently known and the investigation is ongoing.

Police said the suspect, Sharma, called 911 to report his ex-girlfriend missing on Friday. They then believe he headed to Dulles International Airport and boarded a plane bound for India.

Sharma will be charged with first- and second-degree murder.

“There was obviously some premeditation to be able to do this and then to flee the country, so that’s what we have right now as far as charges,” Howard County police spokesman Seth Hoffman told WJZ Investigator Mike Hellgren.

Hoffman said officers carried out a search warrant at the suspect’s apartment in the 10100 block of Twin Rivers Road.

The building is adjacent to the Mall in Columbia.

Inside the apartment, they found the body of Godishala, of Ellicott City, with multiple stab wounds and other trauma, Hoffman said.

He was unsure whether the police were able to recover the murder weapon.

Hoffman said there were no calls to service or other prior complaints at the apartment.

“We are unaware of any previous calls for service or incidents involving the two of them,” Hoffman said. “We do believe it wasn’t uncommon that they would still meet each other and have communication after their relationship ended, but we don’t have a motive right now as to why he would kill her.”

Godishala’s friends grew increasingly concerned when they stopped hearing from her on New Year’s Eve. Some took to social media to ask if anyone knew her whereabouts. Police said she stopped contacting loved ones shortly after 7 p.m. on December 31.

“Her friends have already filed a police report, but we need more eyes on the ground. If you live in or around the Columbia area, please keep a lookout. If you have any information, no matter how small,” one post read.

“We received information from friends and family that really raised some red flags. It really propelled the investigation towards the instance of foul play being involved,” Hoffman said.

Godishala appeared to have posted in August in a Facebook group looking for someone to take over her room in the apartment and described her ex as “respectful” and clean.

Neighbors are stunned, including Daniel Wheeler Jr., who told WJZ Investigates he saw police cars outside the building.

“I feel deeply sorry for the family,” Wheeler said. “Guilty doesn’t rest oftentimes, and whatever he’s going through he will ultimately have to face.”

Murders in area surrounding the Mall in Columbia are rare.

“The biggest thing you’ll see over here is people fighting over parking spots. I like it like that myself,” Wheeler said. “It’s a very close-knit community. People are very friendly.

Wheeler said he hopes the neighborhood can recover.

“I hope us as a community we can come together and keep looking out for each other and show some love toward the beginning of this new year,” he told Hellgren.

Howard County Police said they are working with federal and international authorities to capture Sharma.

“The U.S. Attorney’s office works with Interpol, which is an international organization, and they will eventually issue what is known as a ‘red notice’—basically an international arrest warrant,” Hoffman said. “From there, that goes out to all the countries that work with Interpol, which is close to 200 countries including India, so that will give Indian authorities information. They will begin to track him and hopefully arrest him. From there, it could take quite a bit of time to process and hopefully get him extradited.”

India’s embassy posted about the case on X, formerly Twitter.

“The Embassy is in contact with the family of Ms. Nikitha Godishala and is extending all possible consular assistance,” officials wrote. “The Embassy is also following up the matter with the local authorities.”

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.

Man recounts confrontation with a stranger, faced with a rifle in Chick-fil-A parking lot

CNN on December 28, 2025


KTVT

By J.D. Miles, Nathalie Marie Palacios

Click here for updates on this story

    Texas (KTVT) — A confrontation, racist statements and an assault rifle were captured on video in East Texas last week.

Kenneth McGaha said he pulled up to the drive-through window at a Chick-fil-A restaurant in Henderson, where he was told the order he and his girlfriend placed wasn’t ready.

“The guy told us, ‘It’s going to be a minute on your shakes; can you pull up and we will bring them right out?'”

McGaha said he started looking for a place to drive and wait when the car behind him in line was trying to leave.

“So, in order for them to leave, I had to pull up and get out of the way. So, I just pulled up and pulled into a parking spot, not knowing it was a handicap parking spot,” he said.

McGaha said he had just gotten his order when a stranger walked up to his vehicle and reached inside his vehicle. The stranger also made racist statements, which McGaha said were because he was parked in a handicapped space.

“Like he was calling me ‘boy’, I shouldn’t be here. Get your A-word over there,” McGaha described. “The next thing I know, I felt an arm like a brush coming across my head.”

McGaha was able to record some of the disturbing, racially charged comments before the unidentified man went back to his truck and grabbed an assault rifle out of the vehicle.

“I really thought me and my girlfriend were dead, because it was just up close range,” McGaha said. And that was the end of the confrontation.

He went to the Henderson Police Department to file a report.

The father of three insists that he didn’t do anything to deserve threatening words and actions by the man he wants to see criminally charged.

Henderson Police told CBS News Texas they are investigating the report made by McGaha.

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