GILTNER, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say a load of potatoes that spilled across the roadway forced closure of eastbound Interstate 80 in south-central Nebraska.

The Nebraska State Patrol says a semitrailer driver veered onto the interstate shoulder to avoid another vehicle a little before noon Wednesday. But the semi soon struck the underside of an overpass around 2 miles (3 kilometers) east of the Giltner exit. The trailer separated from the tractor and spilled the spuds.

A piece of heavy equipment was brought in to remove the potatoes, and the patrol says the lanes reopened about 4 p.m.

The truck driver wasn’t injured.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say the Nebraska capital city of Lincoln recorded no homicides last year, matching the 1991 mark of zero.

Records say the city homicide toll in 2016 was 11, breaking a record that had stood for 30 years. Two years ago the city had one homicide.

Police Chief Jeff Bliemeister said he believes the lack of homicides last year “is a testament to the expectations of those that live here.”

Officer Angela Sands says Lincoln police investigated 259 deaths in 2017, including 47 cases in which the cause and manner of death were not immediately apparent.

Bliemeister and city Public Safety Director Tom Casady attribute the lack of homicides last year, in part, to fewer shootings.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — An Omaha man has been sentenced for helping move the body of a slain man in Lincoln.

Court records say 26-year-old Sidney Jackson was given two years in prison at his sentencing Tuesday in Lincoln. He’d pleaded no contest to tampering with physical evidence. The judge credited him with 351 days already served in custody.

Jackson is one of 10 people charged in connection with the December 2016 death of 41-year-old Jamie Watson. The man believed to have pulled the trigger, Jamez Henderson, was earlier sentenced to 54 to 65 years in prison for manslaughter and drug charges.

FALLS CITY, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say a fire has engulfed a restaurant in downtown Falls City in southeast Nebraska.

Other departments had been called in to help battle the blaze, which broke out Wednesday morning in a complex of buildings that includes the site for Potrillos Mexican Grill. Nearby business owners smelled smoke when they opened their doors at 9 a.m. and called 911.

No injuries have been reported. The fire cause is being investigated.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A complaint filed with Nebraska campaign regulators accuses the Lancaster County treasurer of using county employees to manage his political Facebook page.

Chairman Todd Wiltgen of the Lancaster County Board Commissioners filed the complaint Tuesday with the Nebraska Accountability and Disclosure Commission against Andy Stebbing. Wiltgen says Stebbing had a county technician work on Stebbing’s campaign and personal business websites.

Stebbing called the allegations untrue. The staffer resigned after reporting what he characterized as violations of county policy.

Stebbing also is criminally charged with falsifying bills of sale, filing fraudulent state income taxes and selling cars without a license. The charges stemmed from a state investigation into Stebbing’s sales of vehicles and the income he generated. He’s denied those accusations as well.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — A Lincoln man has pleaded not guilty to a charge stemming from a collision that killed a bicyclist in southeast Nebraska’s Lancaster County.

Court records say 66-year-old Zygmunt Spicha entered the written plea last week to vehicular homicide while under the influence. The records don’t list a trial date.

Prosecutors say 52-year-old Randall Gibson was riding his bike east on Sept. 23 when he was struck by Spicha’s eastbound SUV about 3 miles (5 kilometers) west of Sprague.