Local News – Friday, March 17th, 2023
On Thursday, March 16th, members of the Missouri State Highway Patrol arrested four individuals in the area after a special investigation by criminal investigators within its Division of Drug and Crime Control. Arrested and turned over to the Washington County Sheriff’s office were 39-year-old Matthew A. Cozad of Bixby, 62-year-old Donald R. Gaston of Caledonia, 31-year-old Chase R. Bresnahan of Centerville, and 46-year-old Jeffrey L. Burkett of Des Arc. All four individuals were charged with a Class B felony of knowingly participating in criminal street gang activities among many other felony and misdemeanor charges. Cozad and Gaston were each charged with a total of four felonies and two misdemeanors and their bonds are set at $400,000 cash only. Bresnahan was charged with a total of four felonies and three misdemeanors and his bond is also set at $400,000 cash only; while Burkett was charged with a total of four felonies and four misdemeanors and his bond has been set at $500,000 cash only. The case is being prosecuted by Washington County Prosecuting Attorney John Jones and Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Caleb Aponte. Anyone with information concerning this investigation should contact the Missouri Highway Patrol Criminal Investigative Unit at 573-840-9500. The charges are only accusations and are not evidence of guilt. Evidence in support of these charges must be presented before court of competent jurisdiction whose duty it will be to determine guilt of innocence.
Join us on KSMO AM 1340 and 95.7 FM this morning around 8:30 for our radio interview with State Representative Ron Copeland. This interview will also be video streamed live on KSMO Media including ksmoradio.com, KSMO Stream facebok Page and KSMO YouTube page.
The Salem Police department has released their report for the month of February. The department responded to eight accidents during the month. Officers also responded to six commercial and one residential alarms sounding along with forty calls to the animal control officer. The department investigated four assaults or fights, two burglaries in progress and performed 12 well being checks during the month. The department also investigated 15 domestic disputes, conducted 30 follow-up investigations. provided 10 escorts, investigated three incidents of fraud, took two missing person reports, and offered assistance to six motorists. The Salem Police officers wrote five property damage reports, eight stealing reports and three shoplifting reports as well as many other individual reports. Officers also conducted 63 traffic stops during the month. The average response time to calls during February was two minutes and two seconds and the average time spent on the scene sixteen minutes and nine seconds.
The Missouri Conservation Commission held their regular meeting on March 14th at the Conservation Department Headquarters in Jefferson City. At that meeting, the commission accepted a donation of approximately 518 acres in Reynolds County as an addition to Logan Creek Conservation Area. They also approved the advertisement and sale of an estimated 1,280,161 board feet of timber located on 606 acres of Compartment 4 of the Sunklands Conservation Area in Shannon County, and approved the advertisement and sale of an estimated 3,503,811 board feet of timber located on 780 acres of Compartment 9 of the Logan Creek Conservation Area in Reynolds County.
The Salem Area Arts Council will offer a class on Wheat Straw Weaving this Saturday afternoon from 1:00 to 3:00 at the Creative Arts Center. Suzanne Douglass will guide students as they create a Market Place Cross which represents the cross woven by St. Brigid imprisoned by her faith. Come celebrate St. Patrick’s Day and learn about Irish legend and tradition. All materials are provided and the cost is $25 for adults. At least one person must sign up to hold the class which is limited to five people. To sign up, call or text 573-247-0651, or you can go online at salemcommunitybetterment.com and look under programs for the Salem Creative Arts Center. The class is designed for older teens and adults.