OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — State officials say an invasive insect that kills ash trees has been confirmed for the first time in Nebraska.

The Nebraska Department of Agriculture says Wednesday the beetle was found in a Pulaski Park tree in Omaha. With Nebraska added to the list, there are now 27 states where the pest has been confirmed since 2002.

Department Director Greg Ibach says the beetle’s presence in the state is not a surprise considering nearby states that already have infestations, including Iowa, Missouri, and Kansas.

The insects are native to Asia and were first spotted in the U.S. in 2002, when they showed up in the Detroit area. Once infected, trees typically die within five years, though healthy trees can be treated to resist the bug.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A Lincoln man has been accused of financially exploiting his 85-year-old father-in-law.

53-year-old Melando James was arrested Tuesday and has since been released on bond. He’s charged with abuse of vulnerable adult and theft.

A public phone listing for James couldn’t be found. Online court records don’t list the name of an attorney who could comment on James’ behalf.

An arrest affidavit says police began investigating James in September after receiving information that he may have been transferring to his account money from his father-in-law’s account. The total is more than $8,500. The older man has been in a long-term nursing facility since September.

The court documents say James denied knowing his father-in-law has mental issues.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — The second trial has begun in the lawsuit filed against Gage County by people wrongfully convicted in a 1985 rape and slaying.

In his opening statement Tuesday in a federal courtroom in Lincoln, defense attorney Jeff Patterson told jurors that “we’re here to right the wrong of the worst miscarriage of justice in Nebraska history.”

The six people — James Dean, Kathleen Gonzalez, Debra Shelden, Ada JoAnn Taylor, Thomas Winslow and Joseph White — were wrongly convicted in the killing of Helen Wilson in Beatrice and served a combined 77 years in prison before DNA testing cleared them in 2008.

The first trial last year ended in a mistrial.

Known as the Beatrice Six, they’ve argued that Gage County investigators labored to close the case despite contradictory evidence.

NELIGH, Neb. (AP) — Another wind farm has been approved for Antelope County, over objections from some residents.

The county Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to let a Chicago-based company erect 160 turbines near Neligh (NEE’-lee). The company, Invenergy, already operates a wind farm in the Elgin area.

The supervisors imposed several conditions on the project, such as increased setback distances and completion of a noise analysis within 24 months after the structures are erected. Eight turbines in the original proposal were dropped because of potential conflict with flight space around the Neligh airport.

Opponents have cited concerns about noise and sought tighter restrictions on setback distances. People who favored the wind farm have said it could increase jobs and tax revenue and provide clean energy.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A Lincoln man has been sentenced to five years’ probation after pleading guilty to felony theft of more than $37,000 from an Omaha church.

Douglas County District Judge Thomas Otepka ordered 42-year-old Jeffrey D. Bomberger, a former employee at Dundee Presbyterian Church, to pay $6,000 in restitution and receive treatment for a gambling addiction.

Douglas County Attorney’s Office investigator Lance Ivener says Bomberger, the former director of operations at the church, admitted to using the church’s funds to gamble at keno parlors.

In November 2015, church leaders discovered Bomberger was using a church account to purchase credit cards that he said were being used for charitable donations.

Bomberger’s attorney, Jim Hoppe, says most of the church’s losses were covered by insurance.