The Federal Aviation Administration says two of four people aboard a private jet that crashed in a northern Indiana neighborhood have died.

Authorities say the Beechcraft Premier I twin-jet flying out of Oklahoma apparently was experiencing mechanical trouble when it crashed late Sunday afternoon in South Bend. It struck three homes, becoming lodged in one of them.

Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Roland Herwig in Oklahoma City says two people on the plane were killed. Two others aboard were injured, as was one person on the ground, officials said. Officials say none of the survivors had life-threatening injuries.

A South Bend fire official says they believe everyone connected with the damaged homes has been accounted for.

An investigator with the National Transportation Safety Board arrived on the scene late Sunday.

A jet that landed at Lincoln Airport about 3½ years ago has overstayed its welcome, so the airport has started charging daily rent.

1981 Canadair CL-600 Challenger had been flown from Santa Ana, Calif., to Lincoln on Sept. 3, 2009, for maintenance at Duncan Aviation.

Duncan spokeswoman Lori Johnson says that “due to many unforeseen circumstances, it did not leave at that time.” She says Duncan is helping the current owner in trying to move the jet away from Lincoln.

Johnson says she doesn’t know whether the jet is flyable.

On March 1 Lincoln Airport officials began charging the jet’s owner in California $50 a day, in keeping with a new policy for any aircraft that stays past 30 free days of parking.

A 65-year-old Nebraska woman has been charged with stealing more than $60,000 from her disabled neighbor.

Loris Austin is facing four felony forgery charges for stealing the money between 2004 and 2011 while paying her 72-year-old neighbor’s bills.

Prosecutors say Joeann Self had authorized Austin to write checks to pay her bills, but nothing else.

The missing money was discovered in 2011 after Austin started telling Self that she didn’t have enough money for things she needed.

Self is a retired school cafeteria worker who lives off Social Security.

Austin is free on $1,500 bond, and she is scheduled to return to court for her preliminary hearing on April 10.

Health officials in five states are assessing hundreds of people for rabies risk following the death of a Maryland man infected by a transplanted kidney.

Health officials say the virus can be spread through the infected person’s saliva, but human-to-human transmission is rare.

The transplant donor had moved from North Carolina to Florida before dying in Pensacola, Fla., in 2011. His organs went to patients in Florida, Georgia, Illinois and Maryland.

In Maryland, state veterinarian Katherine Feldman indicated about 200 medical workers, community members and family members were assessed, and fewer than two dozen were urged to get the vaccine.

In Florida, the health department identified about 90 people as potentially exposed. Three have been offered the vaccine.

Other states had not immediately offered details as of Saturday afternoon.

Douglas County Sheriff’s officials say a traffic stop in Omaha led to the discovery of candy, treats and other foods laced with marijuana.

Douglas County deputies arrested two men Friday morning after deputies say they found nearly three pounds of marijuana and various laced foods in their van.

Deputies say the two men were traveling from Colorado to Wisconsin when they were stopped along Interstate 80 in Omaha.

Lt. Eric Sellers said the marijuana was bought legally from medical dispensaries in Colorado. He said it’s higher quality and worth more on the streets.

Some Omaha bars and restaurants won’t be selling hard liquor on St. Patrick’s Day, despite a state law passed last year that allows Nebraska cities sell liquor before noon on Sundays.

Omaha’s city code hasn’t yet been changed to allow Sunday morning hard liquor sales.

Because of that, Omaha bars like O’Connor’s Irish Pub had to pay $65 to get a special permit to sell mixed drinks and hard liquor on St. Patrick’s Day morning. The pub is one of 23 Omaha bars that did so.

Bars outside of Omaha don’t face the same restrictions.

Omaha City councilman Ben Gray says he’d like to change Omaha’s liquor law to match the state’s.

 

An 800-acre wildfire is burning near homes in northern Colorado amid gusty winds and warm weather and has prompted more than 50 people to leave the area.

The fire began Friday west of Fort Collins and is burning near the scene of a large wildfire last summer that burned 259 homes and killed one person.

Officials say no homes are immediately threatened, but they have issued a second round of evacuation orders. They haven’t said how many people or homes are covered by the evacuations.

Some residents are being allowed back to their home to retrieve valuables and pets but are being warned not to stay.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

Firefighters have controlled a second, smaller fire nearby.

Federal authorities are investigating the shooting death of a bald eagle in southeast Nebraska.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service says the bird was found Feb. 13 near Beatrice, about five miles east of U.S. 77.

The immature eagle was shot with a rifle, and ballistics testing will determine what type of rifle was used.

Laws and regulations protect bald eagles. A violation is punishable by up to a $100,000 fine and prison time.

Rep. Lee Terry has introduced a bill to allow the Keystone XL oil pipeline to be built sooner than later.

The Nebraska Republican has long supported construction of the 1,700-mile pipeline that would carry crude oil from western Canada to refineries in Texas. The pipeline would travel through Montana, South Dakota, Kansas, Nebraska and Oklahoma.

Terry’s bill would remove the need for a presidential permit for the pipeline to be built.

Earlier this week, Republicans who met with President Barack Obama said the president did not rule out a decision to approve the $7 billion pipeline.

But Terry says he and others are tired of waiting and that the project would create thousands of jobs.

Opponents say the jobs numbers are exaggerated and that the pipeline poses an environmental threat.

 

Authorities say a 24-year-old man wanted on an Illinois murder warrant has been arrested in Nebraska.

Members of the Metro Fugitive Task Force arrested John Harris on Thursday afternoon in Lincoln. He’s being held in Lancaster County Jail, awaiting extradition to Illinois.

Officials say Harris is suspected in a gang-related shooting in St. Clair County, Ill., earlier this year. U.S. marshals in East St. Louis, Ill., had contacted Nebraska authorities about Harris’ likely presence in Lincoln.