Oak Ridge Today

Two arrested after alleged dirt bike theft, police car hit, authorities say

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Charles Ray Eller

Charles Ray Eller

Two men who admitted stealing a trailer and dirt bikes early Monday morning have been charged with theft and evading arrest, and the driver of the fleeing pickup truck has been charged with aggravated assault after trying to strike one Oak Ridge Police Department vehicle and backing up and hitting another, authorities said.

Police officers received the report of the trailer and dirt bike theft at about 2:45 a.m. Monday, August 31, at 208 South Illinois Avenue, an area near two hotels. The trailer and dirt bike were estimated to have a value of at least $10,000.

In arrest warrants, ORPD Officer Kyle Scott said he saw Charles R. Eller, 27, who is listed as a transient, and Joshua R. Hannifin, 29, of Oak Ridge, at that location, near a trailer that matched the given description. The trailer was attached to a black Ford F150 pickup truck, Scott said.

When Eller and Hannifin saw him, the officer said, they quickly got into the truck and fled. Scott said he chased them with his lights and sirens on. [Read more…]

Albert Turner, a former Clinton Council member, police officer, dies at 68

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Albert Oscar Turner

Albert Oscar Turner

Albert Turner, a former Clinton City Councilman and longtime member of the Clinton Police Department, died at his home on Sunday. He was 68.

Turner served two terms on the Clinton City Council, and he served as a Clinton police officer for 26 years.

His family will receive friends next Wednesday, September 9, from noon to 2 p.m. at Jones Mortuary in Clinton. His funeral service will follow in the chapel of Jones Mortuary with Rev. Bill Caldwell officiating. His interment will follow his services at Mt. Sinai Baptist Church Cemetery in Clinton.

Jones Mortuary in Clinton is in charge of all arrangements. Condolences can be made to the family at www.jonesmortuaryllc.com.

Read the full obituary here.

Powell man arrested after SunTrust bank robbery, FBI says

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A Powell man was arrested after an armed bank robbery was reported at the SunTrust Bank at 6632 Clinton Highway in Knoxville on Monday afternoon, authorities said.

The robbery was reported at about 1:30 p.m. Monday, the Federal Bureau of Investigation said.

Michael James Ward, 43, of Powell, was arrested in Knox County without incident through the joint efforts of the Federal Bureau of Investigation Safe Streets Task Force, composed of the FBI, Knoxville Police Department, Knox County Sheriff’s Office, and the KPD Violent Crimes Unit.  KCSO patrol officers also assisted with the arrest, a press release said. [Read more…]

ORPD Records to close early Sept. 11 for Massengill retirement ceremony

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Oak Ridge Police Department Logo

The Oak Ridge Police Department Records Bureau will close early on Friday, September 11, so the staff can attend a retirement ceremony for Deputy Chief Alan Massengill.

The Records Bureau will close at 2:45 p.m. September 11. The office will reopen on Monday, September 14, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Roane Sheriff part of investigation that leads to long sentence for pill mill operator

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A Chattanooga pill mill operator was sentenced to 280 years in federal prison on Thursday, and the Roane County Sheriff’s Office was among the law enforcement agencies that participated in the investigation that led to her indictment and subsequent conviction, authorities said.

Barbara Lang, a.k.a. “Aunt Bea,” 61, of Rossville, Georgia, was sentenced by the Honorable Curtis L. Collier, U.S. District Judge, said United States Attorney William C. Killian of the Eastern District of Tennessee.

After a 25-day trial that spanned almost three months, Lang was convicted of two counts of conspiring to distribute and dispense Schedule II and IV controlled substances, outside the scope of professional practice and not for a legitimate medical purpose; five counts of maintaining a premises for the purpose of distributing controlled substances; and 14 counts of structuring financial transactions to evade reporting requirements, a press release said.

Lang was charged along with three other people. [Read more…]

Silver Alert canceled for missing woman

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Betty Ann Ayers

Betty Ann Ayers

The Silver Alert issued for a missing woman on Sunday afternoon was canceled after she was found safe and sound, authorities said.

Betty Ayers, 84, had last been seen at 2 p.m. Saturday in Westwood Estates in Oak Ridge, the Oak Ridge Police Department said.

The ORPD said Ayers is from Auburn Hills, Michigan, and suffers from dementia.

More information will be added as it becomes available.

Copyright 2015 Oak Ridge Today. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

FBI: Even small tips could help catch extortion, kidnapping suspects

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FBI Press Conference Composite Sketches Extortion, Kidnapping

The Federal Bureau of Investigation in Knoxville on Wednesday released composite sketches of two subjects and one person of interest in alleged kidnappings and extortions involving Y-12 Federal Credit Union in Oak Ridge in April and SmartBank in Knoxville in July. Pictured above are FBI Knoxville Special Agent in Charge Edward Reinhold, center; Knox County Sheriff’s Office Major Michael MacLean, right; and Knoxville Police Department Deputy Chief Nate Allen. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

KNOXVILLE—Two men entered two different homes in kidnappings and extortions involving Y-12 Federal Credit Union in Oak Ridge in April and SmartBank in Knoxville in July, and a woman, possibly with an infant or a toddler, might have entered the first, officials said Wednesday.

A blue four-door car was spotted in the area of the second home about a week before the second incident, said Edward Reinhold, special agent in charge for the Federal Bureau of Investigation in Knoxville.

It’s possible there could be a fourth person involved, and it’s not clear if the suspects are still in the area.

Reinhold said both men were wearing disguises. The woman was not, but she might have been wearing a wig and sunglasses. [Read more…]

U.S. attorneys, law enforcement target heroin, opioid trafficking, overdoses

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Bill Killian

William C. “Bill” Killian

DETROIT—U.S. attorneys and leaders of federal law enforcement agencies from across six states met in Detroit on August 26, 2015, to share strategies to combat the heroin and prescription pill epidemic across the region.

U.S. Attorney William C. Killian of the Eastern District of Tennessee was among those who attended.

The summit was called in response to the national epidemic of heroin and prescription pill abuse that has hit Michigan, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia, particularly hard. Heroin overdose deaths in the United States have tripled from 2010 to 2013. Nationally, the number of deaths from all drug overdoses exceeded 43,000 last year, more deaths than from traffic accidents. Heroin use in the United States has doubled from 2007 to 2012.

In the Midwest, opioid deaths have increased 62 percent. The summit seeks to target this national and regional problem by dismantling drug trafficking organizations that distribute heroin and prescription pills and by increasing prevention and educational efforts. [Read more…]

Model residential drug recovery court showing success, attorney says

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Brad MacLean and Bob Cantrell

Brad McLean, left, program director of the Morgan County Residential Recovery Court, welcomes the commitment of Rev. Bob Cantrell and Presbyterians to help residents “reconnect with the community.” (Submitted photo)

 

By Carolyn Krause

The United States has a broken criminal justice system and a huge drug addiction epidemic, and the country leads the world in the number of people who are in prisons and jails. More than half of released prisoners re-offend and return to prison within three years.

Brad MacLean, an award-winning Nashville attorney and opponent of the death penalty who lives in Clinton, decided more than two years ago to help combat these major issues. He created and is supervising the nation’s first statewide residential drug recovery court, a pilot program and potential model for other states. On August 1, 2013, the Morgan County Residential Recovery Court opened at the Morgan County Correctional Complex, a state prison for men.

MacLean, who had volunteered in Judge Seth Norman’s residential drug court for Davidson County inmates, is program director at the Morgan County residential recovery court for nonviolent, drug-addicted felons across the state. [Read more…]

FBI releases composite sketches in kidnappings, extortions at Y-12 FCU, SmartBank

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FBI Press Conference Composite Sketches Extortion, Kidnapping

The Federal Bureau of Investigation in Knoxville on Wednesday released composite sketches of two subjects and one person of interest in alleged kidnappings and extortions involving Y-12 Federal Credit Union in Oak Ridge in April and SmartBank in Knoxville in July. Pictured above are FBI Knoxville Special Agent in Charge Edward Reinhold, center; Knox County Sheriff’s Office Major Michael MacLean, right; and Knoxville Police Department Deputy Chief Nate Allen. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 2 p.m.

KNOXVILLE—The Federal Bureau of Investigation on Wednesday released composite sketches on two subjects and one person of interest in alleged kidnappings and extortions involving Y-12 Federal Credit Union in Oak Ridge in April and SmartBank in Knoxville in July.

See descriptions of the three below.

Here is the FBI press release:

[Read more…]

No injuries in Monday night fire at Techmer PM

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Information from WYSH Radio

A fire broke out in the dust collection and removal system at plastics manufacturer Techmer PM in Clinton on Monday.

The fire was reported at around 7:30 p.m. Monday. Several units from the Clinton Fire Department responded to the scene as did two units from Oak Ridge Fire Department, including a ladder truck that was used to access the roof. Sixteen off-duty firefighters also responded.

The damage was contained to a section of the piping, according to Clinton Fire Chief Archie Brummitt, who added that no injuries were reported. [Read more…]

SUV hit by two vehicles, overturned in fatal crash on South Illinois

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South Illinois Avenue Crash on Aug. 24, 2015

The woman who died in a three-vehicle crash on South Illinois Avenue on Monday afternoon was a passenger in a Mazda sports utility vehicle that was hit by a southbound van that crossed into the northbound lanes, and the SUV was also struck by a northbound car, causing the SUV to roll, authorities said. 

 

The woman who died in a three-vehicle crash on South Illinois Avenue on Monday afternoon was a passenger in a Mazda sports utility vehicle that was hit by a southbound van that crossed into the northbound lanes, and the SUV was also struck by a northbound car, causing it to roll, authorities said.

The crash occurred at about 3:22 p.m. Monday, August 24.

The Oak Ridge Police Department determined that a Toyota van, driven by Marguerite Windham of Knoxville, was traveling south on South Illinois Avenue and crossed into the northbound lanes of travel for unknown reasons, a City of Oak Ridge press release said. [Read more…]