A car thief is in custody after being captured by Deputies with the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office.

On Saturday, April 6, at around 11:00 p.m., North Platte Police took a report of a stolen vehicle, a blue 1998 Chevy S10, from the Denny’s parking lot.

Then on Sunday, April 7, at approximately 6:00 a.m., the North Platte Fire Department was paged to a grass fire 2.5 miles south of East State Farm Road on South Moran Canyon Road.  The Maxwell Volunteer Fire Department was also dispatched to assist.

At 7:40 a.m., the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office was asked to respond to the area of the grass fire, because the stolen pickup was found burning at the bottom of the canyon.

Deputies located a set of keys at the scene believed to belong to the suspect.  Upon further investigation, Deputies discovered that the keys belonged to Jacob Refior.  Refior was interviewed at the Sheriff’s Office.

As a result of the interview, Deputies learned that Refior and another subject had stolen the vehicle from Denny’s and had taken it for a joy ride that resulted in the vehicle becoming stuck and starting the grass fire.

Refior was arrested and charged with the theft of the vehicle and several other charges.  Alcohol is believed to be involved, and the investigation continues.

Approximately five acres of grass and cedar trees were burnt in the fire.  The pickup was a total loss.

Nebraska utility workers are restoring power to the last few customers who lost electricity during this week’s spring storm.

At the height of the outage, nearly 4,000 Nebraska Public Power District customers and a number of rural utilities lost power because of the thunderstorms, ice and wind that moved across the state Tuesday night.

NPPD spokesman Mark Becker says 23 customers in an industrial park east of Kearney were still without power Thursday morning.

Another 95 NPPD customers in the Kearney area lost power Thursday because a damaged pole was being replaced.

UPDATE:

At around 1:00 a.m. on April 11, an Investigator from the North Platte Police Department responded to Great Plains Regional Medical Center on the report of a gunshot victim.

The Investigator met with the 30-year-old male victim, who reported being shot in the left leg by a male suspect, whom he claimed he did not know.  The victim also reported that he was shot while fleeing on foot from a parked car near the 1700 Block of West 17th.

While the Investigator was interviewing the victim, Officers became involved in a brief pursuit with a vehicle thought to be involved in the shooting, that started in the area of Oak and West 2nd Street and ended near 3rd Street and Adams.  Three occupants fled on foot, but Officers were able to apprehend all three subjects.

One male suspect, Britton Renfrow, 21, was arrested and jailed for Attempted Robbery, 2nd Degree Assault, Use of a Weapon During the Commission of a Felony, Possession of a Defaced Firearm and Possession of Prescription Medication, all felonies.  Renfrow was initially charged with Attempted Homicide, but the charge was reduced.

Another suspect, Ethen Bentley, 21, was charged and jailed for being an Accessory to a Felony.

A third suspect, Matthew Bobo, 28, was initially cited for Obstruction of a Police Officer and released.

However, Bobo was later found walking north over the Jeffers viaduct.  He was placed under arrest after officers found him to be in possession of a handgun.  Bobo was charged with Attempted Robbery, Possession of a Defaced Firearm, Possession of Methamphetamine and Possession of Marijuana.

Police believe Renfrow pulled the trigger in the shooting.

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Two male subjects are in custody this morning after a shooting last night in North Platte.

According to North Platte Police Department Public Information Officer Rodney Brown, a male subject suffered a gunshot wound to a lower extremity.  The injuries are not life-threatening.

No more details have been released.  Stay tuned to the Post for more information.

*THIS IS A DEVELOPING STORY*

A North Platte woman is under arrest after she allegedly threatened two people with a shotgun and a chainsaw.

At around 1:00 P.M. on Tuesday, North Platte Police responded to a disturbance in the 1700 block of West 14th.  The reporting party stated that weapons were involved.

Officers made contact with a male and female victim, who alleged that 39-year-old Brenda Lee had threatened them both with a chainsaw and a shotgun.

Officers made contact with Lee, who appeared to be under the influence of something.  She would later test positive for Methamphetamine.

Following an investigation, Officers determined that there was probable cause to arrest Lee for Possession of a Firearm by a Felon, a Class 1D Felony, Terroristic Threats, a Class IV Felony and Use of A Weapon During the Commission of a Felony, a Class II Felony.

Lee was transported and jailed at the Lincoln County Detention Center.