Category: kmiz-local-news

Alison Patton

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The United States Drug Enforcement Administration is hosting the 31st Prescription Drug Take Back Day on Saturday, in partnership with many local law enforcement agencies, including the Boone County Sheriff’s Department.

According to a press release from the DEA St. Louis Field Division, over 4,400 collection sites will accept tablets, capsules, patches, and other prescription medicines to help prevent misuse and accidental poisoning. However, syringes, sharps and illegal drugs won’t be accepted.

Boone County residents can visit the Centralia Police Department, Hallsville Police Department, Kilgore’s Pharmacy in Ashland or Hickman High School in Columbia to drop off unwanted prescription medication Saturday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m, according to a Boone County Sheriff’s Department post.

Medications will be sent to the DEA for proper disposal.

Some businesses accept unwanted drugs year-round, including all three Hy-Vee pharmacies in Columbia. People can visit the DEA website to find the nearest drug drop-off location.

The Missouri Department of Mental Health estimates that 235,000 people misused prescription drugs within the past year.

The CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics estimates there were about 70,000 drug overdose deaths in the U.S. in 2025. The data include fentanyl and other illegal drug-related deaths.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

The roundabout at Clark Lane and Hanover Boulevard opened on Friday.

The intersection had closed in August as crews built the roundabout. Additional improvements include pavement and retaining walls.

Go COMO – the City of Columbia’s public transit system –will go back to its normal route on Saturday, the service announced on Friday.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A man was found guilty of multiple child sex crimes this week in Boone County.

Francisco Rutiaga-Santoyo, 51, was found guilty by a Boone County Jury on Thursday of two counts of statutory sodomy of a victim younger than 12 years old and one count of first-degree child molestation.

He is being held at the Boone County Jail and will be sentenced at 1:30 p.m. Friday, Dec. 18. Jail records show he is also being held on an immigration detainer.

His address was listed as Kaiser on the Boone County Jail roster, but it was listed as Columbia on Casenet. The probable cause statement claims Rutiaga-Santoyo was “removed from” the country at the time the document was written in 2023.

The probable cause statement says a child victim told law enforcement that Rutiaga-Santoyo sexually assaulted them over the course of multiple years.

Previous reporting shows a mistrial occurred in the case in 2025.

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Marie Moyer

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A motorcycle crash Friday morning on Scott Boulevard has once again called attention to issues with speeding in the southwest Columbia area.

According to the Columbia Fire Department, the crash occurred a little before 6:30 a.m. near the intersection with Gillespie Bridge Road. The motorcycle rider was taken to local hospital with “critical injuries.”

“There’s a lot of people that go way to fast out there,” said Joseph Rich, who is the owner of Retuva Medical Spa and Family Focus Eyecare. Rich added he has also seen vehicles speed through his business’ parking lot to avoid traffic.

Several employees of Family Focus Eyecare agreed speeding is a common issue, with one comparing Scott Boulevard to Germany’s ‘Autobahn’.

Phuong Tran with Studio Style Salon told ABC 17 News that she often warns clients who are leaving to be careful when turning onto Scott Boulevard. She added it’s common to hear motorcycles loudly driving through the area in the mornings and afternoons.

According to Lt. Scott Alpers with the Columbia Police Department, CPD is aware that Scott Boulevard can be a high-speed area.

“The traffic unit has been out there, and then when our patrol officers are out there, they’re also enforcing those speed laws as well, due to the complaints that we’ve received,” Alpers said.

According to prior reporting in 2025, the CPD has observed vehicles going nearly 100 miles per hour with 193 entries for Scott Boulevard in the CPD’s 2024 traffic stop data.

MSHP’s STARS crash map, there was an average of 6.75 vehicle crashes resulting in injuries on Scott Boulevard from 2022 to 2025. There have been at least seven crashes on Scott Boulevard since the start of 2026, including a rollover crash that resulted in one woman being injured in July 2026.

Alpers added CPD conducts speed enforcement campaigns in the area.

“They’re going to be looking for drivers who are exceeding the speed limit, making enforcement stops, issuing tickets and educational campaigns as well,” Alpers said.

CPD also reported more than 300 entries for Scott Boulevard in its traffic stop data for 2025.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A man who was arrested after a manhunt in Montgomery County earlier this month pleaded guilty to three misdemeanors on Tuesday.

John Atterberry, 52, pleaded guilty to resisting arrest and two counts of first-degree trespassing. He was sentenced to serve a year in the Montgomery County Jail.

Previous reporting says deputies were called at 6:30 a.m. Oct. 8 to the 100 block of Strube Road in New Florence for a report of a man in camouflage walking on private property, but he was not found then. 

Multiple helicopters were used, as well as drones and a K-9 and Atterberry was eventually found in a tree at 10 p.m.

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ABC 17 News Team

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Week 9 of the Missouri high school football season kicked off on Friday night.

You can find scores from all of your Mid-Missouri teams below, as well as highlights in the video player above.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A 37-year-old man from Festus, Missouri, was seriously injured Friday after he crashed a golf cart at the fourth hole of The Oaks Golf Course in Camden County, a Missouri State Highway Patrol crash report says.

The report says the man drove a 2024 Yamaha golf cart westbound down a steep cart path. The man hit the brake and the vehicle rotated and overturned, the report says. The report says the man was “partially ejected.”

The man was taken to Lake Regional hospital by ambulance.

MSHP reports do not name those involved in crashes.

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

A 31-year-old Brookfield woman was seriously injured in a Friday morning crash on Route C in Chariton County, about 12 miles north of Keytesville, according to a crash report from the Missouri State Highway Patrol.

The report says the woman drove a 2016 Ford F-150 eastbound when it went off the right side of the road. The woman drove the vehicle back onto the roadway before it went off the left side of the road and overturned, the report says.

The woman was taken to University Hospital in Columbia by ambulance. The report says she was wearing a seatbelt at the time of the crash. The truck was totaled.

MSHP reports do not name those involved in crashes.  

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

Central Methodist University has expelled five students who were allegedly involved in an assault against a football player earlier this month, according to a CMU spokeswoman.

CMU has not named the players who were expelled, but two were charged with third-degree assault in Howard County earlier this month.

Kamarrion Ferguson, 20, and Michael Hourel, 22, were charged on Oct. 13 and booked into the Howard County Jail.

Hourel posted his full $10,000 bond, per court filings. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for 9 a.m. Nov. 10. Ferguson posted 10% of his $5,000 bond on Oct. 15. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for 9 a.m. Oct. 27.

Six players were suspended after charges were filed. CMU Vice President of Enrollment Management Melissa Mace clarified on Friday that one player remains suspended from the football program.

Court documents in previous reporting say the victim told police a team rule requires anyone late for practice to fight another player. The victim’s injuries were serious enough to require a consult with a concussion specialist “due to the possibility of a brain bleed.”

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Ryan Shiner

COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)

No citations will be issued by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration in the death of an electrician who was working the University of Missouri’s Memorial Stadium renovation project.

Corey Sooter, 44, died on June 10 after working at Memorial Stadium on June 5. He was a foreman for BK2 Electrical and Design and was an electrical contractor working on the project, previous reporting says.

OSHA spokesperson Chauntra Rideaux told ABC 17 News on Friday that the case is closed and no citations were issued.

An inspection report says the case was opened June 11 and closed Oct. 8.

Previous reporting shows first responders were dispatched at 9:05 a.m. and arrived at Faurot Field five minutes later, where they met with University of Missouri medics who were treating Sooter.

Firefighters used a hot stick to check the electrical wiring and determined it was energized. CFD listed the incident type as electrocution, according to documents in previous reporting.

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