Six Arrested in Cock Fighting Ring are Illegal Immigrants

Six prisoners in the Starke County jail who were arrested for their involvement in a cock fighting ring in Starke County are illegal immigrants are being held for immigration officials.  The six, along with five others, have been charged with Animal Fighting Contest, a Class D Felony. Four of those prisoners have bonded out of jail. Bonds were set at $10-15,000 surety in Starke Circuit Court Monday afternoon. For those facing similar charges, get legal representation by The Echavarria Law Firm – South Texas Legal Group.

Starke County Prosecutor, Nicholas Bourff, said the Animal Fighting Contest charge was bumped up to a Felony charge because those eleven individuals brought in the birds to fight. More charges could be filed against those involved if the Prosecutor and the Sheriff’s Department can find that the same individuals were involved in a similar cock fighting incident in 2006 where 50 people were arrested. Prosecutor Bourff said that could be a challenge as many of these individuals change the spelling of their names and use many aliases.

Bourff said he hopes that he can get money through a citation or fine from those arrested to help pay the Starke County Humane Society for euthanization costs and the Starke County Sheriff’s Department for overtime pay. Bourff said that the Humane Society is requesting that a $75.00 fine be attached to every citation which numbers 65. Starke County Sheriff Oscar Cowen is to give Bourff a list of all of the Department’s expenditures for reimbursement.

Initial hearings for the eleven defendants charged with felonies will be held Wednesday at 1:30 p.m. CT in Starke Circuit Court.

Plymouth Residents Evacuated due to Gas Leak; Plymouth Schools on Two Hour Delay

The Plymouth Police Department evacuated residents this morning in a three block radius of Pennsylvania and Liberty Streets in Plymouth due to a gas leak.

The Plymouth Fire Department, along with NIPSCO and the Plymouth and Argos Police Departments investigated and secured the scene.  The gas leak has been contained.  Plymouth Fire Chief, Andy Metsker, told WKVI that the gas leak occurred after a roof collapsed on an old storage building at the corner of Pennsylvania and Liberty Streets.  About 70 residents in a three block radius were evacuated as a precaution and taken to a nearby church.

The leak was discovered around 2:00 a.m. ET this morning.

Due to the gas leak, Plymouth and St. Michaels Schools will operate on  a two hour delay.

Plymouth Police Department Investigates Drowning

On Sunday, February 20th, just before 8:00 p.m. ET, Plymouth Police officers were called to the 2500 block of North Michigan Street after a call came in concerning a drowning at the residence.

According to police, a family member was giving 15-month-old Landen Sarabia a bath. The family member went to get a towel and was gone for approximately 15 seconds. When the person returned, the child was face down in the tub. CPR was administered at the scene. The child was taken to the hospital. The child died in Memorial Hospital in South Bend on Friday, February 25th.

The case will be presented to the Marshall County Prosecutor’s Office for review.

The Johnson-Danielson Funeral Home in Plymouth is handling arrangements.

City of Knox Garbage Rates to Increase

Last week, Knox Mayor Rick Chambers reminded the City Council members that the cost of garbage pickup in the City would increase on August 1st. The total cost will go up just over $5,000.

“In 2010, it was $206,967.60,” the Mayor told the Council. “On July 31st, it will go up to 212,076.”

The increase per customers is only pennies.

Continue reading

Starke County Annex Re-Dedicated on This Date in 1999 after a June 1998 Fire

Starke County Annex

March 1st, 1999 was a happy day for workers in the Starke County Government Building. In June of 1998, a fire gutted the Annex building. On March 1st of 1999, a re-dedication ceremony was held. That re-dedication acknowledged the formal opening of the building.

Then-County Commissioner, Dan Bau, presided over the ceremony in which firefighters, County employees and the design team that oversaw the renovation of the Annex was honored.

Other Commissioners at the re-dedication ceremony were Kevin Kroft and Michaelene Houston.

Everybody involved lived through a trying time before the building was brought back to life on this date in 1999.

Bonds Set for 11 In Rooster Animal Fighting Case

The Starke County Prosecutors Office appeared Monday afternoon in Starke Circuit Court and presented evidence to Starke Circuit Court Judge Kim Hall attempting to show that probable cause exists for charging the eleven individuals with crimes pertaining to a raid Saturday morning in rural Starke County.

The Starke County, City of Knox, North Judson , Conservation Officers and Indiana State Police raided an illegal fighting rooster contest in which resulted in  over seventy people being arrested, cars, fire arms, drug paraphernalia and over forty thousand dollars were confiscated and one hundred and forty five birds having to be destroyed by the Starke County Humane Society.  Continue reading

Culver’s Season Comes To An End

The Culver Lady Cavaliers (25-2) gave a great effort in their Semi-State game against Fort Wayne Bishop Luers (23-4). Ali Zehner hit three big 3-pointers, as she has all post-season long, to keep the Cavs in the game early on. Patrice McBee and Gwen Zehner provided a great post presence, despite foul trouble to help Culver to a halftime lead. Nicole Carnegie and Whitney Sanders were solid in their ball handling, while Kayla Shaffer gave quality minutes off the bench.

In the end, free throw shooting and foul issues were the final factor as the Cavs were defeated by Luers 47-43. Patrice had a game-high 17 rebounds, and Ali knocked down multiple 3-pointers to keep the Cavaliers in the game. No tears were shed until head coach Tony Scheub let them fly in his post-game locker room speech, where he let the girls know exactly where his emotions were. One thing is for sure, the Culver Lady Cavaliers will be remembered forever, not only in school history, but in the eyes of the Kankakee Valley for years to come.

Holiday Tourney Champs, Bi-County Champs, Conference Champs, Sectional Champs, and Regional Champs, no other basketball team at Culver can boast of such a record. The 2011 Culver Lady Cavaliers will forever be set in our minds as a great championship team, and have set a new standard for ALL future Cavaliers in every sport. Congratulations to the Culver Lady Cavalier basketball team on their historic season!

83 Year Old Shoots Masked Pulaski County Female Burglar In Head

On 2-28-11 at approximately 2:00A.M. Carl Williams age 83 called
911. He reported that he had just shot someone in his home who had
just broken in. The Pulaski County Sherffi’s Office and Winamac
Police responded. It was determined later that a suspect had been
shot but was able to flee the scene in a car.

Pulaski County Detectives were called out to the scene also. It was
determined that force was used to enter the locked rear door.
Williams heard the suspects breaking in. He grabbed his handgun and
went to investigate. When he turned on the light he was confronted
by an intruder dressed in dark clothing wearing a ski mask. Continue reading

Police Nab 21 In Drug Raid

Early Monday morning dozens of officer’s from area police agencies in Marshall County worked in collaboration to roundup 21 individuals that were wanted on drug related arrest warrants. The Indiana State Police, in cooperation with the Plymouth Police Department, the Marshall County Sheriff’s Department and the Bremen Police Department, spent the better part of the early morning hours going door to door in search of the wanted individuals.

The arrest warrants stemmed from numerous drug investigations that were recently conducted by the Indiana State Police Drug Enforcement Section and the Meth Suppression Unit. This proactive drug enforcement effort sends a clear message to the community that the scourge of drugs that has polluted many larger cities and has been migrating to smaller towns, will not be tolerated, commented Drug Enforcement Section First Sergeant Thomas Ferguson.

All of the individuals arrested were taken to the Marshall County Jail unless it was otherwise noted. Continue reading

Boil Water Order Continues for Town of Hamlet

The boil water order continues for the Town of Hamlet.  The order is in effect until Wednesday, March 2nd.

The advisory was initially put into effect on Friday, February 25th after Hamlet Water Superintendent, John Goble, notified WKVI that some unknown suspect(s) opened two fire hydrants on 500 East and left them open.  The act, that occurred between 9:00-9:30 p.m. CT, drained the water tower for the Town of Hamlet.  A third hydrant was partially opened.  In two-and-a-half hours, 300,000 gallons of water was drained from the water tower.  The fire hydrants are located out by the Sysco property on 500 East.

Hamlet Police Chief, Jeremiah Patrick, told WKVI that there are no suspects at this time, but his Department is continuing to investigate the incident.

Police Arrest 76 Involved in Cock Fighting

Two of the 145 fighting cocks are rounded up to be euthanized

It was a scene reminiscent of an old time western movie. Police from throughout the County and State rounded up 76 individuals involved in “cock fighting”. The arrests were made on Saturday morning at 0480 North 100 West in Starke County.

Law enforcement officers were responding to an anonymous tip.

“The Sheriff’s Department received an anonymous tip of animal fighting contests out at a residence on 100 West,” stated Starke County Chief Deputy, Bill Dulin. “Along with the Sheriff’s Department, we responded with the Indiana Conservation Units, State Police, Knox City Police, and North Judson units. When we got there, we noticed 10 or 15 vehicles and when we approached, 50 to 60 people took off running toward a river in an open field.”

Continue reading

Knox City Council Agrees to Move Forward in Acquiring Building Across from City Hall

Knox City Council #2
Back Row: Mayor Rick Chambers, Ed Blue, Clerk-Treasurer Jeff Houston, Greg Matt and Attorney David Matsey. Front Row: Linda Berndt, Jeff Berg and Ron Parker

The deal that the City of Knox has with Beverly and Carl Wells for a building that they own across from Knox City Hall might be on again. Wells had offered the building to the City at the February 8th City Council meeting, and on a 3-2 vote the Council members agreed to purchase it for $120,000 with $20,000 down and 5 year annual payments of $20,000 a year.

Because they needed two appraisals to purchase the property, the deal could not be consummated in the time line given by Wells. He told Mayor Rick Chambers that he was going to start remodeling the building for offices if the City didn’t take agreement that week. That seemed to end the negotiations.

Continue reading

Starke County Officials Hold Successful Tax Sale

Totals are in from last week’s tax sale held in the Starke County Annex. Two separate sales were conducted. One was a certificate sale and the other was a deed sale. The certificate sale is one in which the original owners might redeem the property by paying the back taxes. A deed sale is one in which the deed is held by the County where the County is attempting to get the property back on the tax rolls.

38 parcels were sold in the certificate sale for $11,400 and 24 parcels were sold on the deed sale for $2,400.

Continue reading

Julie Dessauer Named Director of Starke United

Julie Dessauer

Starke United welcomes one of its own into the position of executive director. Julie Dessauer, who has been a part of the Starke United Executive Board since 2007, will begin as director for the organization on March 7th.

Mike Charbonneau, Vice Chair of Leadership for Starke United, said he thinks Dessauer will be a great asset to the organization.

“I and Todd Zeltwanger (Starke United Chairperson) both feel that Julie is a very qualified candidate,” he said. “She has tremendous support and respect in the community and can help us bring this organization to where we want it to be.”

Continue reading

Dan Heminger is the Winner of WKVI’s Time Capsule Contest!

Dan Heminger

Congratulations to Dan Heminger who is the winner of February’s Time Capsule contest on WKVI.  Tom Berg and Lenny Dessauer drew Dan’s name live on the air Monday morning.  Dan wasn’t quite awake when they called, but he was excited once the news set in.  Dan won $200 and it was as easy as dialing 772-7600 and guessing the correct answer in the Time Capsule contest.

Be listening for what the featured contest will be in March!

Animal Fighting Contest Raided, 76 People Arrested 145 Birds Euthanized

The Starke County Sheriff’s Department with assistance from the Indiana State, Knox, No. Judson police departments and the Indiana Conservation Officers arrested 76 people Saturday morning after officers raided an animal fighting contest in Knox, police say. Just before 11 a.m., police responded to an anonymous tip that 50 people were participating in an animal fighting contest in the North Judson area, at 100 W, south of State Road 8. A search warrant was issued and the site was raided.

When police arrived, multiple people fled on foot and abandoned fighting cock paraphernalia and several vehicles parked in the area.

Police apprehended over 70 suspects after running through muddy fields, ice-covered ditches and wooded areas. Officers found other suspects hiding in ditches and hollowed-out trees. One juvenile that was harbored by an adult was found without shoes. The juvenile was taken to Starke Memorial Hospital and treated for frostbite. Due to the large number of people arrested a bus had to be secured for transportation.

Police say they arrested a person who was described as a Hispanic male for organizing the event, and many others were arrested for promoting animal fighting and attending. Police observed dead birds in buckets, a cock fighting ring and obvious scoring boards of some type. It is a class A misdemeanor to attend an animal fighting contest and it is a Class D felony to promote the use of animals or attendance at an animal fighting contest.

145 fighting cocks were seized and transported to the Starke County Humane Society for euthanizing. Employees and volunteers of the Starke County Humane Society worked all night Saturday into the early morning hours Sunday completing their work. The birds had been transported to the Humane Society in crates tightly packed together and required two trips with a dump truck filled to the top due to the large quantity of birds involved.

Officers also obtained and served a search warrant seizing 13 firearms, 29 vehicles, drug paraphernalia, and cock fighting paraphernalia.

Those arrested traveled from various states including Wisconsin, Illinois and Michigan. Large numbers of people were seen Sunday morning crowding the Starke County Police Department lobby and were lined up outside the building apparently attempting to arrange for bonds for the offenders.

The incident is under investigation.

Dr. Tony Bennett to Speak at Lincoln Day Dinner in Star City Today

Dr. Tony Bennett

Indiana Superintendent of Public Instruction, Dr. Tony Bennett, will be the featured speaker at this year’s Lincoln Day Dinner, sponsored by the Pulaski County Republican Party. The dinner is scheduled for today at the Star City Community Building. Registration begins at 5:30 p.m. ET and the program begins at 6:00 p.m. ET. Tickets are $25 at the door.

Dr. Bennett will be discussing the four bills associated with the education reform agenda during tonight’s event. One bill allows charter schools sponsorship opportunity and accountability. Another seeks approval for teacher evaluations and licensing and collective bargaining for teachers. A fourth bill being discussed in this year’s legislature provides scholarships to low income students to pay the costs of tuition and fees at a public or private elementary school or high school that charges tuition.

Dr. Bennett has been involved in Indiana education for over 20 years and has served as the State’s Education Superintendent since January 12th, 2009.

Week in Review for February 21st-25th, 2011

Here is just some of the news that made the news in the Kankakee Valley this week:

93-year-old William “Bill” Lemke died Friday after a two car accident claimed his life. He will be remembered as a member of one of the greatest basketball teams ever at North Judson-San Pierre High School.

Starke County Food Inspector, David Kesvormas, has found that about one-third of food handling businesses in Starke County are operating on expired permits.

Continue reading