Category: CNN Regional

By Karin Johnson

Click here for updates on this story

    FAIRFIELD, Ohio (WLWT) — A Tuesday morning bus ride to Fairfield Freshman School turned unsettling when students saw a driver exposing himself in the lane next to them, leading to the arrest of a 43-year-old man.

Police said at least two teenagers on the bus spotted the driver engaging in inappropriate behavior as their bus traveled down Bypass 4. The students reported the incident to a school resource officer, which led to swift action by the authorities.

The students’ prompt reporting resulted in the arrest of Brandon Kuhlenberg of Middletown, who is charged with public indecency.

“They did the right thing. They saw something, they said something and the school acted very promptly in notifying us,” said Fairfield Township Police Sgt. Brandon McCroskey.

By Wednesday afternoon, police had used Flock cameras and bus cameras to identify the car and driver. They tracked down Kuhlenberg at his job and took him into custody.

McCroskey noted the role of technology in the investigation, saying, “Technology, who can argue, it’s a huge help. You’re not going to get away with something like this nowadays.”

McCroskey said Kuhlenberg admitted to the act.

“I can tell you that he knew the school bus was there, that the window on the passenger side was down. Whether that was his intention, I guess, is a question for court,” McCroskey said.

Police emphasized the importance of speaking up when something seems wrong and noted that this is the first time Kuhlenberg has been arrested.

Please note: 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 Marcus McIntosh

Click here for updates on this story

    ANKENY, Iowa (KCCI) — Two Altoona residents are accused of stealing nearly $60,000 in Amazon packages while working as Amazon Flex drivers, Ankeny police said.

Brandon and Madison Kelderman turned themselves in Wednesday morning and are each charged with first-degree theft, a class C felony.

Police said the Keldermans, as Flex drivers, used their personal vehicles to pick up packages from an Ankeny distribution center and then failed to deliver them.

The alleged thefts occurred between Aug. 22 and Sept. 7 after Amazon reported a spike in undelivered parcels.

“We were alerted to this through loss prevention at Amazon. They contacted us and filed a theft report. Essentially, they noticed that several packages had gone missing,” said Sgt. Trevor McGraw, Ankeny Police. “They provided the suspect information.”

Investigators executed a search warrant at the couple’s Altoona home and said they found at least two pallets of undelivered packages from various states.

According to the Polk County Jail website, the Keldermans were released from jail Tuesday afternoon.

Please note: 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 Ayron Lewallen

Click here for updates on this story

    HUEYTOWN, Ala. (WVTM) — It was a scary moment for Helena mother when she said she got a call from her son, who said he was locked inside a restaurant. Now, the manager of a Hueytown fast food restaurant is facing charges.

The manager is accused of locking 12 teenagers inside the restaurant and not letting them out until police got there. The teenager at the center of the incident said it all happened because the manager on duty last Thursday assumed the $50 bill he used to pay for his food was fake.

Derrick Leonard told WVTM 13 he and 11 of his friends were eating inside the restaurant like they usually do. He said he paid for his food, but the cashier told him he had to check the cash to make sure it was real. Leonard said the cashier gave him his change, but five minutes later, the cashier came back and asked who paid with a $50 bill. He said that’s when the manager on duty came out with what he said was a different $50 bill than the one he paid with.

Leonard said the manager locked the door with him, his friends, and other customers inside for nearly an hour.

Leonard described the situation as scary. So much so, his mother said he didn’t even call her until after everything happened. He feels he was already seen as guilty even before anyone even investigated.

“She was like, ‘y’all are not leaving till I get my money,’” Leonard said, “and then one of my friends tried to leave. She had pushed him, and then she had called police on him. Then, after the police got done talking to me, she called her boyfriend. Her boyfriend had a gun, and she was like, ‘Say it, slap me now,’ and all that stuff.”

As a parent, Davis says it was also scary for her to get the call, too, and she thought she was being pranked. Davis said her son and his friends are good kids—student athletes who even have offers to play college ball like her son. She’s just glad the situation wasn’t worse.

“I ended up in the E.R. that night due to chest pains and high blood pressure,” Davis said. “I even walked over to the Shell to get a Bayer aspirin because I thought that’s what you do if you think you’re having a heart attack.”

The manager is charged with locking the teenagers inside the restaurant. At this time, it’s unclear if they’ve been arrested. Hueytown police posted on Facebook that the bill Leonard paid with was, in fact, real.

Please note: 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 Megan West

Click here for updates on this story

    JACKSON, Miss. (WAPT) — A longtime Millsaps College professor is suing the school, claiming he was fired for sending an email to his students following the 2024 presidential election. He says the message was meant to show care for them.

Professor James Bowley taught religious studies at Millsaps for 23 years. The day after the election, he canceled his class and emailed his students, writing that they needed time to “mourn a racist and fascist country.”

“I sent an email and said class canceled, and I said the reason is that we need time to mourn a racist and fascist country, and that’s exactly what I think,” Bowley said.

Bowley said hours later, the interim dean called him. He was banned from campus and locked out of his email.

“She said it was for that email,” Bowley said. “I had no idea what it was for, and that was it, I was out.”

The college placed Bowley on leave. He appealed the decision and won, but he says Millsaps ignored that outcome and terminated his employment anyway. A petition circulated on campus calling for his reinstatement.

“As an expert on the rise of fascism and Nazism, which includes racism, I felt I was completely in line to use those two words for what is happening in our country,” Bowley said. “Academic freedom is the basis of all true education. If professors are not allowed to share their ideas, then we don’t have real education.”

Matt Steffey, a law professor, said the university could have responded differently.

“It seems to me that if the university was really concerned about that text, there’s a lot more measured responses they could’ve come up with,” Steffey said. “You’d expect a place that’s proud of its academic reputation to have room for conversations that are a lot tougher than what’s at issue here.”

Millsaps College released a statement acknowledging the lawsuit: “We are aware of the lawsuit. We welcome the opportunity to tell the whole story and believe the facts of this matter will speak clearly during the court process ahead.”

Bowley’s federal lawsuit alleges violations of his First Amendment rights and breach of contract.

“I hope it ends with justice for me,” Bowley said, “whether that’s reinstatement and academic freedom becoming an important principle at Millsaps again.”

Please note: 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 Norah Hogan

Click here for updates on this story

    WINDHAM, Maine (WMTW) — Local businesses are stepping up to help as nearly 170,000 Mainers prepare to lose their SNAP benefits because of the ongoing government shutdown.

When Hailey’s Kitchen owner Rebecca Coffin heard the news, she decided to act fast.

“If somebody comes in and can afford something, give it to them,” Coffin said.

Since making the announcement, community members have sprung into action. Some have donated money toward group meals, while others are “paying it forward” by purchasing an extra coffee or sandwich on their way out.

“A lot of people just want to help. We just need to know who to give the money to,” said Joyce Foley, who drove to Windham with her husband Peter Foley to donate to Hailey’s Kitchen. “I mean, I can’t invite everyone to my little house to feed them, you know, but a place like this can.”

Coffin said community support has been key to her efforts.

“If I had to do 100 meals a day, that would be a deficit for my business,” she said. “But with the support of the community, I can do that.”

Gorham resident Lindsay Santiago has relied on SNAP for years.

“I’m starting to get into panic mode already,” Santiago said.

She’s out of work due to a disability and has an 11-year-old daughter to feed.

“I feel like some people aren’t going to have choices,” she said. “You worry about what’s going to be available at the pantry in a week. So there are a lot of question marks right now.”

Community members like the Foleys hope others will step in to help their neighbors.

“If you know the upstairs neighbor or your family member who is in need of something like this, don’t hesitate,” Peter said.

“Just do it and vote for the people that it won’t take SNAP away,” added Joyce.

Coffin said she hopes other local businesses will join in to help, to provide meals while easing the burden on local food pantries.

Please note: 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 Maria Wilson

Click here for updates on this story

    GOFFSTOWN, N.H. (WMUR) — Exclusive video obtained by News 9 Investigates shows the moment two dispatchers in Hillsborough County stopped a man wearing only a Speedo and a hat from entering the building.

Cory Nickerson, 50, of Goffstown, has pleaded not guilty to several charges, including assault, criminal threatening and false imprisonment.

Police said two dispatchers were assaulted in the incident on Aug. 9, and one was seriously hurt.

The surveillance video shows Nickerson interacting with one of the dispatchers as he appears to be trying to get from the vestibule of the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office into the dispatch center.

Police said Nickerson was able to force his way into the building by following an employee through a secured door. He then allegedly physically assaulted two dispatchers before running from the building and leading police on a brief chase.

“Typically they’re here, rendering assistance, over the phone and over the radio for people that are calling 911 or have an emergency that they need assistance for, and they found themselves in, needing assistance here,” Hillsborough County Sheriff Brian Newcomb said.

The video shows one of the employees pushing Nickerson out the door as he appears to fight back.

Newcomb commended the dispatchers for their bravery in what he called a “random attack.”

“Luckily, they’re safe, and we’re happy they’re safe. But again, there are lasting effects to this, as they did sustain some seriously bodily injury, and certainly, the emotional damage, you know, coming to work every day and knowing that this is where the act happened,” Newcomb said.

After decades at the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, Newcomb said he has never seen anything like this.

“It hasn’t happened in my 24 years here, and hopefully it never happens again,” he said.

Nickerson is being held in jail.

Please note: 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 Ed DiOrio

Click here for updates on this story

    GREENSBURG, Pa. (WTAE) — A man is accused of scamming his autistic coworker out of over $5,000. Scott Soles is charged with theft by deception, extortion, and unlawful taking.

“They’re just trying to get a friendship,” Pennsylvania State Police Trooper Steve Limani said. “They want to have friends. Somebody preyed upon that who worked with them.”

The victim, who remains unidentified, worked at Hillview Motors off Route 30 in Greensburg. He had worked there for years through his special needs school’s transition to work program.

“They’re doing what they can to provide and make the people feel worthy,” Limani said. “I think [Hillview Motors] should be applauded for taking on those individuals and helping them assimilate into life as best as they can.”

It was at the dealership where the autistic man met Soles. Police say in March, Soles started telling the victim that he’d introduce him to some new friends in exchange for cash.

“That’s the disgusting part of this case,” Limani said. “[Soles] was able to take advantage of somebody’s want for friendship. He was instructing the autistic gentleman to drop off the money into his vehicle so that other people wouldn’t see the hand-to-hand transaction of the money.”

Police say this went on for five months. Soles allegedly threatened the victim’s employment over text if the suspect wasn’t paid. By the time the victim’s family found out, the man had given away $5,370.

“[Soles] had him deleting text messages for months,” Limani said. “Our victim was doing it. He was doing that because he just wanted to make friends.

“They do it because they want to be accepted,” Dr. John Carosso, from the Autism Centers of Pittsburgh, said. “God bless them. This is so sad. Taking advantage of that want for social interaction is deplorable.”

Dr. Carosso has worked with people on the spectrum for three decades. He said this promise is one of the most vulnerable desires someone with autism can have.

“The vast majority, they really want to socialize,” Dr. Carosso said. “They want to have friends. They want to be engaged. They end up struggling socially, but not because they don’t want to. They oftentimes don’t pick up on social cues. They don’t pick up on nuisances.”

In July, the victim’s parents noticed texts from Soles on their son’s phone. That’s when they contacted the police, and an investigation was launched.

That led to Soles being taken into custody and charged earlier this week.

“The District Attorney’s Office is going to move forward with every possibility of getting this money back,” Limani said. “It’s a shame. It’s disgusting. I’m very disappointed that people would do something like that.”

“This [case] speaks to the importance of continuing that vigilance,” Dr. Carosso added. “You let your guard down, and these things can happen so easily.”

Please note: 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 Meghan Moriarty

Click here for updates on this story

    BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. (WESH) — From eBay to Facebook Marketplace, sellers are trying to make thousands of dollars off debris from failed SpaceX Starship test flights.

While the mega rocket has been successful in its last two launches, previous test flights ended in explosions, with many people across the country claiming to have discovered fragments of the rocket on land.

Research chemist Ken Kremer warns the pieces could be dangerous.

“Right after the launch — and the explosion — when it first falls into the water, it can be very toxic,” Kremer said. “There are a lot of toxic propellants and adhesives that they use and other materials. So you don’t want to touch that.”

Some listings on eBay are selling tiles for nearly $3,500. One sale ended with a $5,000 payout.

“I don’t think it’s worth anything,” Kremer said. He added that it’s difficult to prove their authenticity, but most tiles will have serial numbers on them.

Here locally, a man from Cocoa Beach is selling 75 pieces of what he said is heat shield material from fin hinges for $995.

“The best thing is to call law enforcement and give it to them, and then you’ll find out if it’s real or not,” Kremer said. “That’s going to be helpful scientifically to figure out why it fell there and what happened to it on burnup.”

He said learning why certain pieces landed in specific spots could help prevent future issues.

Please note: 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.