Author: Brandon Peoples

After a bill to expand Medicaid in Kansas fell one vote shy of being debated on the Senate floor during the 2019 legislative session, State Sen. Tom Hawk (D-Manhattan) is optimistic for it to get through both chambers in 2020. Speaking on KMAN’s In Focus Monday, Sen. Hawk said Gov. Laura Kelly and Sen. Jim Denning have been in negotiations on a bipartisan proposal that may get done as soon as the end of this week. Last year it was estimated some 150,000 Kansans stood to benefit from Medicaid expansion if passed. Sen. Hawk says he believes the issue extends…

Riley County Police over the weekend arrested a Manhattan man on a warrant for charges from three separate incidents last year. John Galloway was arrested in the 3900 block of Rocky Ford Ave. on one count of aggravated battery, two counts of forgery, one count of property theft and one count of theft by deception. Police say the battery case stemmed from an alleged incident July 22 where a 25-year-old and 50-year-old woman were listed as victims. The forgery charge is alleged from an April 26 when a 70 year-old victim reported a known male suspect used her checkbook and…

Authorities in Pottawatomie County are investigating after multiple shots were fired at a residence in the small community of Emmett. According to Sheriff Shane Jager, just before 5 a.m. Sunday officers received a call in reference to shots fired in the 200 block of Bidwell Street in Emmett. After making contact with residents, it was determined an unknown suspect fired several shots at the home which had several occupants inside at the time. A nearby vehicle was also struck by gunfire. No one was injured. The investigation is still ongoing and anyone with information should call the Pottawatomie County Sheriff’s…

OAKLAND, Calif. — A Kansas State University graduate from China was killed New Year’s Eve while chasing a thief  who had stolen his laptop at a California Starbucks. Shuo Zeng, a 2015 K-State graduate, was working in the California tech industry. The Kansas City Star reports he had been planning to celebrate his 34th birthday and the coming of the new year with a group of friends. He was working on his laptop on the morning of Dec. 31 when a suspect stole it. Zeng ran after the thief, was dragged by the getaway vehicle and later died. Oakland, California…

Kansas State University Police are investigating a theft of a utility terrain vehicle and money from an ATM at Bill Snyder Family Stadium. The incidents reportedly occurred in the early morning hours between Dec. 26 and Dec. 29. The stolen UTV (or Gator) was last seen on the east side of the stadium around 6:30 a.m. Dec. 27. Police say a suspect was last seen with a different UTV with an attached trailer on the west side of the stadium in a residential area around 5 a.m. Dec. 29. The second UTV was later returned by the suspect that morning. The…

Perhaps nothing defined 2019 in Manhattan more than the unusually high precipitation levels. In fact, according to the National Weather Service in Topeka, it was the third wettest year on record with 52.75 inches of precipitation. The wettest months were August (11.49 inches) and May (11.47 inches). Meteorologist Matt Flanagan says the year rivaled the wettest years of 1951 and 1993. Flanagan says many cities in the state were in the top 5 to top 10 wettest years on record. The record rains caused Tuttle Creek Lake to rapidly rise between March and late May all the way to the…

A Colorado woman is facing numerous charges of fraud in Riley County. Riley County Police on Thursday arrested 25-year-old Maggie Ann Lyon on suspicion of forgery, attempted theft of property or services, making false information and identity theft. According to police, the charges against Lyon are from an October 2017 incident in the 100 block of Bluemont Ave. Officers listed AT&T and Metro Denver Sprinkler LLC as victims when it was reported Lyon attempted to open a business account with AT&T and obtain electronics. It’s not the first time she’s faced these types of charges. Lyon was arrested in 2017…

Riley County Attorney Barry Wilkerson is seeking another term as the county’s lead prosecutor. Wilkerson, who was first elected in 2004, is seeking a fifth term. He tells KMAN he still has a desire to do the job. Wilkerson received his Juris Doctor (JD) degree from the University of Nebraska in 1990 and has been practicing law for 30 years. He was named Prosecutor of the Year in 2015 by the Kansas County and District Attorneys Association. The following year Attorney General Derek Schmidt awarded Wilkerson the Outstanding Prosecutor Victim Service Award. Wilkerson says his end goal in each criminal…

A preliminary hearing is now set for a Missouri man charged with past sex crimes in Riley County. Devonta Bagley appeared for a status hearing Tuesday. Already serving prison time in Missouri for sexually abusing two college students in the St. Louis area, Bagley also faces a 2017 charge of sexual abuse against a K-State student inside a fraternity house. He was arrested in September 2017 on charges of aggravated criminal sodomy and aggravated burglary. He’s currently being held on a $750,000 bond. His next court date is Jan. 31.

Updated 3:50 p.m. Tuesday A Manhattan man charged with first-degree murder and attempted aggravated robbery will seek a new attorney. At a hearing Tuesday, it was determined that the Public Defender’s office will not be representing 29-year-old Richard Goens due to a conflict of interest. He’ll return for a status hearing Jan. 7. Goens is charged in the Nov. 1 shooting death of 24-year-old Tanner Zamecnik at a west-Manhattan apartment complex. He faces additional charges of aggravated battery and aggravated assault against a female victim. Goens remains jailed on a $1 million bond. Monday 9 p.m. – Manhattan murder suspect…