May 22, 2012

Nebraska family expresses relief after arrest in Schlender shooting death

A Nebraska family expresses relief and a desire for justice as Mississippi authorities report they have arrested a suspect in the shooting death of a Raymond, Nebraska man.

The Mississippi Department of Public Safety reports 28-year-old James Willie has been arrested in connection with the death of 74-year-old Thomas Schlender, a retired Lincoln Electric System employee. Willie is also a suspect in the shooting death of 48-year-old Lori Carswell of Hernando, MS, also shot to death at the side of an interstate in northern Mississippi.

The department reports the break in the case came after a woman reported she had been raped in Tunica, located in northern Mississippi. Police arrested Willie and discovered a gun that matched the weapon used to kill both Schlender and Carswell.

Matt Anderson, Schlender’s son-in-law, said the family has been in contact with Mississippi authorities. Anderson said the family has gone through a range of emotions since learning of the arrest and has conveyed to authorities in Mississippi that they simply want justice applied in the case.

Authorities found Schlender shot to death in his pick-up on a deserted stretch of I-55 in northern Mississippi in the early morning hours of May 8th. He had been traveling from Raymond to Pensacola, FL to pick up one of his grandsons from college. Three nights later, Carswell was found dead of similar means.

Authorities first suspected someone who had been impersonating a police officer in the killings. They dropped the theory upon the arrest of Willie. They believe robbery is the likely motive in the shootings.

Investigators seek whether bodies found at Lake Manawa are NE mother and son

Two bodies have been found at Lake Manawa in Council Bluffs, Iowa as authorities work to discover whether they are those of a mother and son missing from Plattsmouth, Nebraska for a week.

A spokesman for the FBI reports that the bodies of a woman and a boy were discovered Sunday evening.

Authorities have searched, but so far have not been able to find 41-year-old Charlotte Schilling and her 10-year-old son, Owen. Authorities say the bodies discovered in a remote area at the lake near the Missouri River have decomposed so badly that autopsies have been ordered to identify them. Officials will not disclose how the two died.

Schilling’s care was found abandoned at the lake on the 11th of May. The police chief in Plattsmouth has indicated investigators have uncovered no evidence of foul play.

Traffic stop on I-80 leads to seizure of 115 pounds of marijuana

A weekend traffic stop on I-80 near the Lincoln Airport results in the seizure of 115 pounds of marijuana.

The Nebraska State Patrol reports a trooper stopped an eastbound pick-up for failure to maintain lane and following too close. A drug dog sniffed out the marijuana, located in three large totes located under the bed cover of the pickup.

The driver of the pick-up, 34-year-old Peter Rivera of Las Vegas, Nevada, has been charged with possession of marijuana with the intent to deliver. He was taken to the Lancaster County Jail.

Ex-football coach, former Cornhusker, convicted on drug charges in Sidney

A former Sidney High School assistant football coach will be sentenced on two drug felonies in July.

Forty-two-year-old Robert Lance Lewis pleaded guilty to possession of more than a pound of marijuana and possession of hashish in court Wednesday according to the Cheyenne County Attorney’s Office.

Both charges are felonies and carry a maximum of five years in prison and a $10,000 fine each. Lewis will be sentenced on July 12.

Lewis was arrested after being stopped for a traffic violation in Sidney by the Nebraska State Patrol, which was monitoring his movements from Sidney to Kansas last November on a tip that he was transporting drugs, according to an arrest affidavit.

The document says troopers found packaged marijuana and a ball of hashish during a search of the vehicle.

Lewis was an assistant football coach at Sidney High School and a Nebraska Cornhusker football letterman in the late 80s and early 90s.

He was relieved of his Sidney coaching duties not long after his arrest.

By Dave Collins, KSID, Sidney

Beatrice man gets prisontime, had sex with girl he lured on Facebook

A 21-year-old Beatrice man will serve time in prison for having sex with a 13-year-old girl he lured using the social networking website Facebook.

Jarod Stream was sentenced Wednesday to three-to-five years in prison for sexual assault of a child and for enticing a child by electronic means.

Gage County Attorney Roger Harris says the evidence in the case is clear.

“According to the Facebook logs, she indicated her age to the defendant as being 13,” Harris says. “There’s no question, he knew she was 13 years old and he chose to have sex with her after the communication on the computer, through Facebook.”

Defense attorney Darrin Knepper sought a sentence of just probation for Stream, partly based on his young age and lack of criminal background.

Knepper says, “The probation office has found him to be a low-risk candidate. He has strong family support in the area. Mr. Stream believes he will be gainfully employed. He has given his full cooperation to authorities since the beginning of this case and he understands the gravity of his offenses.”

Police gathered and reviewed 75 pages of Facebook communications between the defendant and his victim.

Stream said in court he regretted what he did and felt bad for the victim and her family, saying he had just been selfish. Stream could become eligible for parole in about 24 months.

He’ll be required to register as a sex offender for a 25-year period.

By Doug Kennedy, KWBE, Beatrice