SYRACUSE, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say nearly 90 pounds of marijuana was found inside a car at a Syracuse motel.

The Otoe County Sheriff’s Office had been on the lookout for three cars suspected of being used by drug traffickers. Over the weekend deputies found one of the cars at a Syracuse gas station and talked to two people who were using the car. They were allowed to leave, but deputies later discovered that one of them had rented a room at the motel where one of the other cars was found. A patrol dog taken to the motel alerted deputies to the odor of drugs coming from the car.

Chief Deputy Sheriff Mike Holland said Monday that information about the two people has been sent to prosecutors. No arrests have been reported.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska authorities say a Colorado man was arrested after deputies found 515 pounds of pot in his pickup at a Lincoln truck stop.

Court records say 68-year-old Steven McElmury, of Cedaredge, Colorado, was charged with drug possession for sale after his arrest Thursday. He’s already bonded out of jail. There’s no public phone listing for McElmury, and court records don’t list the name of an attorney who could be contacted to comment on his behalf.

A court document says a Lancaster County sheriff’s deputy spotted the truck headed east on Interstate 80 and followed it as it left the highway and halted at the truck stop. A drug dog later alerted deputies to the odor of drugs. The drugs and more than $4,400 in cash were found during a search.

COLUMBUS, Neb. (AP) — A federal program at Central Community College in Columbus is helping low-income, first-generation or disabled students remain in school.

TRIO is an organization through the U.S. Department of Education with programs designed to identify and help those from disadvantaged backgrounds achieve their educational and career goals. TRIO students take a free course designed to help them adapt to college life and teach them academic and life skills.

Rosie Heinisch, the TRIO director at the college, says that the program ultimately leads to self-confidence.

The Columbus campus was the first in the Central Community College to start the TRIO program in 2001. The program is now at all of the college’s campuses. The school has received a five-year grant that will partially fund the program.

ST. MARY, Nebraska (AP) — A malfunctioning gaming device at a Nebraska bar has generated several big winning tickets.

A keno machine randomly generates numbers, and players place bets on combinations of numbers that they choose. Bettors win if their numbers match what is generated by the machine.

About seven people matched numbers for prizes under $500 on Oct. 31 at Smartville Station bar in St. Mary. The next day, someone won $6,000 and another person won $3,000.

Cass County Keno LLC determined that a software glitch caused the machine to repeat certain numbers in a pattern. Bar owner Susan Goracke says someone figured out the pattern and spread the word. The machine has been removed.

Johnson County Attorney Rick Smith says he’s still deciding whether anyone will be prosecuted.

WAHOO, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say a 29-year-old car driver has been killed in a collision less than a mile from her hometown in eastern Nebraska.

The accident occurred around 10 a.m. Sunday at the intersection of U.S. Highway 77 and Nebraska Highway 92, west of Wahoo.

The Saunders County Sheriff’s Department says a westbound car collided with a northbound pickup, killing the car driver and severely injuring her passenger. The pickup driver received only minor injuries.

The Sheriff’s Department identified the car driver as Jessica Thomas, of Wahoo. Her passenger was identified as 32-year-old Tanner Hauck, of Wahoo. He was flown to a Lincoln hospital. The pickup driver was identified as 43-year-old Douglas Cerny, of Osceola.

The collision is being investigated.

GRETNA, Neb. (AP) — A former Gretna school bus driver has pleaded guilty to stalking a woman he met while she rode the bus as a girl.

32-year-old Kevin Klingensmith was charged with violating a protection order and felony stalking, which carries a possible sentence of five years in prison.

Court records show that judges have approved nine protection orders against Klingensmith sought by the victim’s family since she was 11 years old. Deputy Sarpy County Attorney Phil Kleine says investigators determined Klingensmith was on the family’s property last April.

Under the plea agreement, Klingensmith pleaded guilty to misdemeanor stalking, which can carry a penalty of up to a year in prison. He has already spent more than 180 days in jail.

Sentencing is scheduled for March 28.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Lancaster County Court Judge James Foster has announced his retirement.

The judge, based in Lincoln, recently submitted his notice to Gov. Pete Ricketts indicating his plan to retire Jan. 31, after nearly 33 years on the bench.

Foster was appointed to the bench in August 1983 and was retained by voters through several elections — most recently in 2010.

Fellow Lancaster County Court Judge Laurie Yardley says Foster will be “greatly missed for his wisdom, knowledge, compassion and humor.”

The Judicial Resources Commission will meet to determine whether, based on judicial workload statistics, Foster’s retirement creates a vacancy in the Third Judicial District.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A 59-year-old man is being evaluated after holding police at bay for more than a day with several guns and fatally wounding an Omaha police dog.

The 25-hour standoff that began late Friday in northwest Omaha ended peacefully. But during the incident, police said the man fired at Douglas County Sheriff’s deputies and killed a 9-year-old K-9 named Kobus.

Chief Deputy Tom Wheeler says the man resisted negotiation and withstood tear gas and having the utilities to his home cut off. He gave in after firefighters pumped water into his cold basement.

Deputies were trying to serve a warrant ordering the man to undergo a psychiatric evaluation. Wheeler says the man will likely face several felony charges.

Omaha Police say Kobus was scheduled to retire in the next few months.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Legal challenges could hinder plans to bring elephants from southern Africa to the Henry Doorly Zoo & Aquarium in Omaha.

The zoo and two others in Dallas and Wichita, Kansas, received federal permission this week to import 18 elephants from Big Game Parks, an independent nonprofit in Swaziland.

As part of the partnership, the three zoos will send about $450,000 over several years to Big Game Parks for black rhino conservation.

But animal-rights groups say they believe the exchange is an illegal commercial transaction. The Animal Legal Defense Fund, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals and others have tried to delay or cancel the import since plans were first announced in 2014. The Animal Legal Defense Fund says it’s contemplating legal action.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — No one was injured when 10 train cars went off the tracks in the BNSF railyard near Cornhusker Highway in Lincoln.

The derailment happened just after midnight Thursday.

BNSF spokesman Andy Williams says the cars were full of grain and were being moved when they went off the tracks. They did not tip over.

Crew worked hours to put the cars back on the tracks, and a portion of 70th Street from Cornhusker Highway to Custer Street was closed until about 10 a.m. Friday.

The derailment is under investigation.