LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) – The Nebraska State Patrol says three separate traffic stops on Interstate 80 led to arrests and the seizure of nearly 70 pounds of marijuana. A trooper stopped a car Sunday morning near Odessa for speeding, and a search turned up 50 pounds of boxed marijuana in the car’s trunk. A 20-year-old man from Ellicott City, Md., was arrested. On Saturday night, a trooper making another stop near Odessa spotted marijuana in the sport utility vehicle’s passenger seat. A search turned up another two pounds, and the 24-year-old Littleton, Colo., driver was arrested. Another stop Saturday morning near Gretna led to the seizure of 16 pounds of marijuana in boxes wrapped as wedding gifts. The 54-year-old Antelope, Calif., driver was arrested.

AUBURN, Neb. (AP) – Family and friends of a missing Peru State College student have resumed the search for her body. Nineteen-year-old Tyler “Ty” Thomas, of Bellevue, was last seen in early December. Investigators had focused their efforts on a stretch of the Missouri River near a Peru boat dock, but flooding this summer suspended the search. Volunteers resumed the search on Sunday. Authorities suspect Joshua Keadle, a former Peru State student originally from Swansea, S.C., in Thomas’ disappearance. Police have accused him of providing false information and tampering with evidence in the case but no charges have been filed against him in the case. Keadle has been charged in two separate sexual assaults in Nebraska.

HARRISON, Neb. (AP) – A western Nebraska man accused of killing his 8-year-old stepdaughter is expected to appear in court this week. An arraignment for 32-year-old Salvador Lopez, of Mitchell, is scheduled for Tuesday morning in Sioux County District Court. Lopez is charged with first-degree murder in the death of Kerra Wilson, whose body was found Sept. 22 on remote ranchland several miles north of their home. A Nebraska State Patrol investigator says in court documents that Lopez acknowledged killing his stepdaughter. Lopez is being held in the Dawes County jail. Court records don’t list his attorney. Police spent two days searching for the girl. Salvador Lopez had said he dropped her off at school but she did not appear in any of the surveillance footage shot in the school or on the playground.

YORK, Neb. (AP) – A 38-year-old York woman has been arrested, accused of fraud in obtaining a prescription painkiller. Jeannie Linder has been charged with intentional violation of a narcotic drug law. That’s a felony that carries a maximum prison sentence of five years. York police investigators say that among other ruses, Linder altered a prescription form so that she could use it at different pharmacies. Linder is due back in court on Monday. Her attorney didn’t immediately return a call Friday from The Associated Press.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) – U.S. and state flags in Omaha have been flying at half-staff for a Navy SEAL who grew up in the city and was killed during a combat patrol in Afghanistan. Twenty-six-year-old Petty Officer 1st Class Caleb Nelson died on Oct.1. The Department of Defense says his vehicle as hit by an explosive device in Zabul province. His funeral was held Thursday morning at Christ Community Church in Omaha. Nelson had been assigned to the Naval Special Warfare Group based in Norfolk, Va., since his graduation from SEAL training in 2006. Nelson is survived by his wife and two sons in Virginia, and his parents, who live in Omaha.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) – Nebraska Department of Insurance Director Bruce Ramge says officials aren’t ready to decide whether to adopt a state-based health insurance exchange, a federal model or another option offered under the new national health care law. Ramge says officials still don’t know key details or the exact cost of a federal health care exchange, compared to one created by the state. State officials can choose to adopt a state, regional or federal exchange, or a federal-state partnership in which the federal government runs certain aspects, such as electronic record-keeping, while the state handles customer service or other tasks. Enacting a state exchange would require legislation. Ramge says officials are also heeding Gov. Dave Heineman’s preference to wait until the U.S. Supreme Court rules on the health care law.