Starke County Sheriff’s Deputies arrested a man and a woman after reportedly busting a meth lab at a home near Round Lake where a toddler was present. Johnny Mullens and Amber Lain were arrested last Friday after officers served a search warrant for narcotics at a trailer on 200 E. south of Toto Road in Knox and found methamphetamine, precursors used in its manufacture, marijuana, syringes and an active meth lab within reach of a three-year-old male child, according to the arrest report. Officers also found $2,100 in a safe, which was confiscated. Mullens and Lain both face charges of dealing methamphetamine and neglect of a dependent. Mullens is also looking at charges of possession of marijuana and possession of paraphernalia.
A Monterey woman was injured in a single vehicle accident Wednesday night.
Starke County Sheriff’s Department emergency personnel found that the driver, whose name was not released, was driving westbound on County Road 625 South, southeast of Bass Lake. When she approached 700 East, she applied her brakes but was not able to stop. She slid through the intersection and hit a utility pole.
A Knox man was arrested Sunday after a brief pursuit with an officer from the Knox City Police Department.
The officer saw a vehicle travel at a high rate of speed on Main Street near the John Street intersection. As the driver approached the Culver Road intersection, the officer saw that he had picked up speed. The officer turned on his red and blue lights to conduct a traffic stop, but the driver failed to stop.
Police continue to encourage Starke County residents to report any suspicious activity to the dispatch center as soon as it occurs in light of the continued complaints of pushy door-to-door salespeople. As recent as yesterday morning, the Starke County Sheriff’s Department has been receiving reports of a white van with Michigan plates that have been trying to sell vacuums or other items to residents.
The 15 Marshall-Starke Head Start students whose bus got hit by a truck this morning on the way to school have been released to their
parents. They were all taken to IU Health Starke Hospital to be checked out after bus 37 was hit by a truck as it was crossing Heaton Street at Lake Street by One Stop just before 8 a.m. Continue reading
Starke County deputies have arrested two on warrants for drug charges.
On Friday, information was received that Timothy Barnette was in possession of a dangerous drug and was on probation through Starke Circuit Court. Police from the Starke County Sheriff’s Department, the probation department and the Knox City Police Department arrived at a home on Denny Street in Knox, conducted a search of the residence and found drugs and other paraphernalia at the scene.
Cowen said that he has heard several reports of a Caucasian woman and an African-American man attempting to sell cleaning products door-to-door in the county during non-business hours. They are reportedly driving a white and green van and are attempting to force their way into homes.
The crippled Starke County Sheriff’s Department radio tower is still causing trouble for the county, as a number of fire departments noted issues at the county council meeting last night. The department in Oregon Township has been experiencing issues with communications, causing a number of pages to not be received or suffer from static problems.
Mark Allen, trustee for Oregon Township, told the council that he received a quote for a system that had been suggested by an expert. The system, he explained, is a “record-and-repeat” system that would allow them to receive the pages sent out by county dispatch. The problem stems from last year’s storms in June and July that nearly toppled the tower, resulting in a shorter tower and, consequently, a shorter range for signals.
The woman who allegedly shot her boyfriend at their home in Knox appeared in Starke Circuit Court for an initial hearing this morning. Kathleen Holt pleaded not guilty to one count of murder, which carries a sentence of 45 to 65 years if she is convicted of that charge. Continue reading
Starke County police continue to piece together information to find a motive in a shooting incident that occurred at a Knox home Wednesday afternoon. Kathleen Holt, 51, is suspected of shooting Ron Worker in their home on 550 East.
An initial hearing has been set for Holt this morning at 9 a.m. in Starke Circuit Court. Worker sustained a gunshot wound to the chest. He was transported to IU Health Starke Hospital where he later died.
No injuries were reported in an accident that involved two semis in front of the Grovertown Truck Stop in Starke County early this morning.
Officers from the Starke County Sheriff’s Department and fire crews were called to the scene as one semi was fully engulfed in flames. Traffic was backed up on U.S. 30 for more than an hour as crews investigated the accident.
Photo provided.
The fire at the Sandbar at Bass Lake has been ruled an arson.
Detectives with the Starke County Sheriff’s Department have determined that some unknown individual(s) started the fire in the early morning hours of Dec. 2. Five fire departments battled the blaze at the popular Starke County establishment and it took three hours to extinguish the fire.
The Kankakee Valley started the new year off on a good note, as no one was arrested over the New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day holidays for driving under the influence in Starke or Pulaski counties.
Police throughout the area stepped up efforts to catch drunk drivers over the holiday, and were on high alert for any suspicious behavior. Fortunately, those celebrating the holiday appear to have taken the responsible road in designating a driver or calling for a ride.
The first significant snowfall hit the Kankakee Valley last week, and dozens of slide-offs, collisions, and property damage accidents were reported through the area.
While no life-threatening injuries have been reported from any of the accidents around Starke County, two people were injured and transported to the hospital following a two-vehicle accident on Dec. 26 around 11:23 a.m. According to the crash report, John Stimach, Jr. of Dyer was traveling westbound on Toto Road when his vehicle struck that of Michael A. Nichols of La Porte.
A Knox man was arrested following the execution of a search warrant in the wake of a burglary at the Ruthie Drive apartments.
Alysia and Kevin Bowman left their apartment around 11 a.m. on Christmas Eve to spend time with family, and later that night, Alysia received a message from a friend who informed her that her apartment door had been kicked open. Her neighbor confirmed the door had been kicked in, and the pair rushed home to see what had taken place.
The Starke County Sheriff’s Department will be out in force the next few days seeking impaired drivers.
The New Year’s holiday is a time of heightened awareness of impaired driving and officers will be out patrolling to keep the roadways safe.
If you plan on going out for the New Year’s Eve weekend, be sure to designate a sober driver or arrange for a sober driver to take you where you need to go. If someone you know is intoxicated, do not let them operate a vehicle. If you see a possible intoxicated driver on a roadway, call 911.
Starke County Sheriff’s Department personnel are busy tending to many accidents around the county due to the hazardous and slick conditions. A few inches of snow have fallen in Starke, Pulaski and Marshall Counties and emergency personnel are working to respond as quickly as possible.
A Knox man died Sunday while cutting down trees.
Starke County Coroner Kris Rannells confirmed that John A. Nolen, Sr. was cutting down trees with his nephew Sunday afternoon when a tree fell on him and trapped him underneath it. Nolen was attempting to guide the tree with a rope as his nephew cut the trunk when it fell.
Starke County Emergency Medical Services and responders from the Bass Lake Fire Department arrived at the scene at an area east of Starke County on 400 South, but Nolen had already died of his injuries. The Starke County Sheriff’s Department and the Starke County Coroner conducted an investigation and Coroner Rannells found that 69-year-old John Nolen, Sr. died instantly at the scene of blunt force trauma.
Two Walkerton residents were arrested on Friday, Nov. 30 after police allegedly found them in possession of methamphetamine and precursors in which to manufacture the drug.
Starke County officers learned that the occupants at 11220 E. 875 N. were manufacturing meth. When officers arrived on scene, they reportedly saw a zip-lock bag containing a light blue substance which they recognized as being an ingredient used in the manufacture of methamphetamine.
