Riley County emergency services personnel came together Wednesday for a joint training exercise at Manhattan Catholic Schools. The event was part of a three-day event during which staff from the Manhattan Fire Department, Riley County Police Department, Riley County EMS and other law enforcement partners, such as the Pottawatomie County Sheriff’s Office. ran through active violence simulations, such as school shootings. Manhattan Fire Department battalion chief Mark Whitehair says the simulations are based on past real-life crises. The training itself is made to be as realistic as possible. RCPD lieutenant Tim Schuck says the scenarios use alarms, simulated gun fire…
Author: KMAN Staff
After new information from the Centers for Disease Control labeled Riley County an emerging hotspot for COVID-19 cases, officials with the Health Department addressed their concerns while making the pitch for those unvaccinated to change that. In the past week, more than 60 new cases have been identified, bringing the total number of active cases to 108. Nine patients are being treated for the virus at Ascension Via Christi, one of whom is in the ICU. Riley County Health Department Director Julie Gibbs says the top issue being identified in surveys of those who are unvaccinated is that there is…
Lee Elementary Neighborhood Historic District The Manhattan City Commission approved the first reading for the establishment of the Lee Elementary Neighborhood Historic District during its meeting Tuesday. The move, recommended by the Historic Resources Board, serves to preserve the architecture of multiple house which local residents and experts refer to as having a mid-century modern design. However, the designation will also make it more difficult for the Acacia Fraternity, which owns multiple lots in the district, to add parking stalls on its property. Commissioner Mark Hatesohl, the lone opposing vote, says he does not like the government getting involved in…
WICHITA, Kan. — A Wichita man has been accused of kidnapping his girlfriend and her two young children, then shooting the woman’s 2-year-old daughter as the woman fled when he threatened her with a knife. The Reno County Sheriff’s Office says it happened Monday, accusing 21-year-old Kamden Campos, of Wichita, of driving the woman and her children to Cheney Lake, where police say he forced the woman at knifepoint to the edge of the lake. Investigators say the woman bolted when Campos became briefly distracted, jumped into the car and sped off. Deputies say as she fled, Campos fired shots…
TOPEKA, Kan. — Families and advocates for the elderly in Kansas argue that with most nursing home residents vaccinated against COVID-19, some facilities’ visiting rules need to be relaxed. A state official who investigates complaints against nursing homes and the elder-care focused Kansas Advocates for Better Care called on the state Tuesday to intervene when homes aren’t nursing open enough. Some industry officials still see a need for caution because of the growing presence in Kansas of the faster-spreading delta variant. Operators feel they’re still facing tough choices after nursing homes were COVID-19 hot spots earlier in the pandemic, but…
GREAT BEND, Kan. — Great Bend police say a 36-year-old suspect is in custody after a man was killed over the weekend. Police went to the Best Western Angus Inn just before midnight Sunday and found 39-year-old Micah Merryman-Scifres dead on the ground. Elias Trejo was arrested after a traffic stop Monday and is being held on a possible charge of second-degree murder. His bond was set at $500,000. No further information has been released.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A 20-year-old man has been sentenced to 18 years in prison for the death of a woman struck by a stray bullet at a Kansas City arts event. The Kansas City Star reports a judge on Tuesday sentenced Deon’te Copkney to 18 years for second-degree murder for his role in Erin Langhofer’s 2019 death. The Overland Park, Kansas woman was shot in the head during a First Friday event. Thousands of people were mingling in the city’s Crossroads District when gunfire erupted. Police say she wasn’t connected to the fight that prompted the shooting.
WICHITA, Kan. — Police say a 19-year-old man is dead following a shooting at an apartment complex in central Wichita’s Riverside neighborhood. Police say the shooting happened around 8 p.m. Tuesday in an apartment complex parking lot, where officers found the man with a gunshot wound. He was pronounced dead at the scene. Police say they’re investigating to try to learn what led up to the shooting. Police say they have made no arrests and don’t yet have any suspects.
On Wednesday’s edition of In Focus we spoke with USD 383 Assistant Superintendent Eric Reid and board member Curt Herrman. We also spoke with Manhattan Christian College President Kevin Ingram.
Officers responded to the report of an injury accident near the intersection of Fort Riley Blvd. and Richards Dr. in Manhattan on July 20, 2021, around 12:02 p.m. When officers arrived on scene, they found a car driven by Carol Munjak, 64, had crossed the center line and struck a Nissan Pathfinder driven by Jesse Gregory, 25. Munjak was transported to Via Christi for treatment of minor injuries. Officers filed a report for burglary and criminal damage to property in the 1600 block of McCain Ln. in Manhattan on July 20, 2021, around 4:26 p.m. Officers listed Sunflower Bank as…