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Prosecutors: Omaha man fatally shot in fake meth deal

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Prosecutors say an Omaha man killed earlier this month was shot after he discovered that $11,000 in methamphetamine he intended to buy was fake.

A Douglas County prosecutor disclosed the detail Wednesday at a bond hearing for one of four people charged in the July 7 shooting death of 40-year-old Billy Walker at an apartment complex.

A prosecutor said Wednesday that 37-year-old Jason Rankin and another suspect sought to sell a substance they said was meth to Walker. Police say Rankin shot Walker during a disturbance that began when Walker discovered the “meth” was fake.

Rankin, who is charged with first-degree murder, was ordered held without bond.

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Inmate who overdosed may have gotten contraband from visitor

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A new report says a Nebraska prisoner who overdosed on drugs may have gotten contraband from a visitor more than two weeks before his death.

The report issued this week says 22-year-old Daelan Lamere had a visitor at the Tecumseh State Correctional Institution on May 21. The report says a staff member noticed a blue pouch in Lamere’s mouth after the visit, but Lamere appeared to swallow it.

The report says staff members never found contraband on Lamere, but he wasn’t allowed any more visits.

LaMere was found unresponsive in his cell on May 27, and he died at a Lincoln hospital on June 6. A death certificate says he died of an accidental overdose of methamphetamine and Ecstasy.

The Inspector General of Corrections conducted the report.

State Dept. warns of possibly tainted alcohol in Mexico

MILWAUKEE (AP) — The U.S. State Department is warning tourists going to Mexico about reports of tainted or substandard alcohol causing drinkers to become sick or pass out.

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel recently reported about travelers becoming sick after drinking alcohol at Mexican resorts. In January, a 20-year-old Wisconsin woman vacationing in Mexico with her family died after she was pulled from a resort pool.

The State Department added the warning to its travel site for Mexico on Wednesday. The warning advises tourists to drink in moderation and to stop and seek medical attention if they begin to feel ill.

A State Department spokeswoman tells The Associated Press that U.S. citizens also should contact the nearest U.S. embassy or consulate in Mexico if that happens.

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Justin Robert Noffsinger

Justin Robert Noffsinger, 35, of Holyoke, Colorado, died on July 18, 2017, in Holyoke.

He was born on April 8, 1982, in Wray, Colorado, to Robert and Lori Noffsinger. He attended school at New Life Academy in Eckley, Colorado, and the public schools in Wray. Following high school, he attended Northwest Technical College in Goodland, Kansas, where he received his degree in network technology. He also went on to complete Cat 5 and Cisco Certification which he used when he worked in Holyoke; Ogallala; Monte Vista, Colorado; and Denver.

He particularly enjoyed his job in Denver, at Radio Resources, where he maintained radio communication for the Denver Broncos and several of the Super Bowl games.

In 2006, he was hired by Union Pacific Railroad in North Platte, where he worked as a conductor for three years. In 2009, he formed a business with his brother, Mike, and they brokered freight for many produce companies in the Midwest.

Justin enjoyed golfing, riding ATV’s, camping, boating, jet skiing, target shooting and spending time with friends and family. He loved to volunteer and give back to his community. He helped build several Habitat for Humanity homes and was a member of the Knights of Columbus in North Platte. He was a wonderful father, brother, son and friend.

He was preceded in death by his great-grandmother, Erna Brueggeman; grandparents, Delbert and Evelyn Noffsinger and Clarice Ann Brueggeman.

He is survived by his daughters, Krista and Madison Noffsinger; their mother, Carmen Noffsinger of Holyoke; his parents, Robert and Lori Noffsinger of Wray; brother, Michael (Alison) Noffsinger, and their children, Anthony and Kateri of North Platte; sister, Erica Noffsinger, Jeff Rogers and family of Meriden, Kansas; grandfather, Dale Brueggeman of Holyoke; great-aunts, Wilma Brueggeman and Dorothy Brueggeman of Wray and Dola Davis of Overton, Nevada; and a multitude of uncles, aunts, cousins and friends.

Memorials are suggested to the Krista and Madison Noffsinger Educational Fund C/O Wray State Bank.

Services were on July 22, 2017, at New Life Christian Center in Eckley, with Jim Hoganson officiating. A private family inurnment will be at the Grandview Cemetery, Wray, at a later date. Schmidt-Jones Funeral Home, Wray, was in charge of arrangements.

2 men killed in separate Dodge County crashes, officials say

FREMONT, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say two people have been killed in separate Dodge County motor vehicle accidents.

The Dodge County Sheriff’s Office says 64-year-old Robert Belsky, of Dodge, died Saturday evening when his car ran off a county road and struck a power pole north of Dodge.

The office also says 34-year-old James Albert, of North Bend, died Sunday afternoon when the sport utility vehicle he was in collided with another vehicle on a county road northeast of North Bend.

Albert was a passenger in the SUV driven by 28-year-old David Mills, of Morse Bluff. Mills and the other driver, 26-year-old Christopher O’Connor, of North Bend, were flown to an Omaha hospital.

Both crashes are being investigated.

Tennessee man died in Nebraska I-80 crash, patrol says

LEXINGTON, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say a Tennessee man was killed in a crash along Interstate 80 in central Nebraska.

The accident was reported around 10:45 p.m. Sunday, about 5 miles (8 kilometers) east of Lexington. The Nebraska State Patrol says an eastbound pickup truck towing another pickup went out of control and crashed when the towed pickup blew a tire.

The patrol identified the dead driver as 52-year-old Derek Sweeney, who lived in Cedar Grove, Tennessee.

Authorities release name of motorcyclist killed in collision

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Authorities have released the name of a motorcyclist who was killed in a collision with a sport utility vehicle in west Lincoln.

Police say the crash occurred early Monday morning when the eastbound SUV turned north and was hit by the motorcycle.

Police identified the motorcyclist as 59-year-old William “Bill” McArtor, who lived in Lincoln. His former wife, Carla McArtor, was riding with him. Police say she was taken to a Lincoln hospital and is expected to recover.

The SUV driver has been identified as Reymundo Pereda. It’s unclear how many of the four people in his SUV required medical treatment.

Omaha zoo to open tiger breeding facility

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — An eastern Nebraska zoo plans to open a sperm bank and breeding facility for tigers at the zoo’s nearby conservation park.

The Henry Doorly Zoo & Aquarium in Omaha announced the initiatives during a Facebook Live video Monday. The video is part of a weeklong conservation awareness campaign ahead of Global Tiger Day on Saturday.

The zoo broke ground on the breeding facility last week at its Lee G. Simmons Conservation Park and Wildlife Safari in Ashland. Those tigers won’t be displayed to the public.

The main zoo campus is also now home to a genome resource bank for tigers. The zoo is collecting sperm samples from tigers in zoos nationwide and freezing them in liquid nitrogen tanks inside its Center for Conservation Research.

Man imprisoned for molesting little girl he baby-sat as teen

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A Lincoln man has been sent to prison for molesting a little girl he baby-sat as a teenager.

Online court records say 22-year-old Bailey Rangel was sentenced Monday to eight to 12 years and given credit for two days already served. He’d pleaded guilty to attempted sexual assault after prosecutors reduced the charge.

An arrest affidavit says the girl was 10 when told her mother in April 2016 that Rangel began fondling her when she was 6.

Rangel is required to register as a sex offender.

Fish killed in Nebraska after water diversion stops

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COLUMBUS, Neb. (AP) — Officials say thousands of fish have died since a utility company was forced to stop diverting water from an eastern Nebraska river into its power canal.

The fish kill occurred after water flow from the Loup River to the Loup Public Power District’s canal had shut off July 15. Without river water coming in, the canal warmed up and dissolved oxygen levels dropped, killing the fish.

Jeff Schuckman is a regional fisheries manager at the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission’s Norfolk office. Schuckman estimates the number of dead fish is in the “tens of thousands.”

He says all species were affected, including catfish, crappie and walleye.

The commission has been reviewing the fish kill in the 35-mile Loup Power Canal over the past week.

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