OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say a 24-year-old man is suspected of starting a fire at an Omaha apartment complex last week.

An Omaha Fire Department news release says Steven Kephart, of Omaha, was arrested on Monday after he was interviewed. Douglas County Jail records say Kephart remained in custody on Tuesday. His attorney in a recent case didn’t immediately return a call from The Associated Press.

The fire left water damage at several apartments in the west Omaha complex on Thursday. One man was injured.

JANSEN, Neb. (AP) — Southeast Nebraska authorities say a man about to be arrested on a warrant fatally shot himself.

The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office says in a news release that the shooting took place a little after 12:15 p.m. Monday at a home in Jansen.

The release says the man had been evading arrest for some time. Deputies were tipped the man was in the home, and they found him Monday in a bedroom closet on the second floor. They say he fired a shotgun blast into his head as they approached. Deputies say they fired no shots.

The man’s name is being withheld until relatives are told about his death.

State law says a grand jury must be convened to investigate whenever someone dies being arrested or when in custody.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Authorities say a man sought in the slaying of a woman at a west Omaha apartment has been arrested in Missouri.

Police say 42-year-old Anthony Burries was taken into custody by officers in Odessa, Missouri, on Monday evening. He awaits extradition to Omaha. Online court records don’t list the name of his attorney in the case.

A warrant for Burries’ arrest was issued earlier Monday. It said the charge was first-degree murder. He’s accused of killing 38-year-old Tina Hoult, with whom he’d had a relationship. Her body was found Sunday morning in her apartment after officers were sent to check on her well-being.

Court records say Burries has a prison record for theft and firearms violations and for domestic abuse in assaulting Hoult in December 2012.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A stone-cutting business in west Omaha has been ordered to pay nearly $41,000 in fines because regulators found 15 safety violations.

The Labor Department’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration says it found the problems at Baltazar’s Stone Inc. during a November inspection.

Regulators say three workers were exposed to unsafe levels of silica dust.

Business owner Baltazar Sauceda says he plans to appeal because several of the violations and fines appear redundant. Sauceda says his company works to ensure that employees are safe on the job.

The 10-year-old company makes decorative stone used in fireplaces, patios and siding. It also has locations in Lincoln, Norfolk and Columbus, Nebraska, and in Des Moines and Sioux City, Iowa.

(Grand Island, Neb.)- A special enforcement conducted over the weekend in Hall County led to the arrest of five motorists for Driving While Intoxicated (DWI).

The special enforcement included a DUI checkpoint and high visibility patrols in and around Hall County beginning in the early evening hours on Saturday, May 17 and continued into the early morning hours on Sunday, May 18.

In addition to the 5 DWI arrests, troopers issued citations/warnings for speeding (15), Driving Under Suspension (3), No Operator’s License (4) and seat belt violation/warning (3).

The special enforcement designed to reduce the potential for alcohol related crashes was paid for thanks in part to a $2,375 grant from the Nebraska Office of Highway Safety (NOHS).

MESA, Ariz. (AP) — Officials are investigating the source of an odor aboard an Allegiant Air flight that caused passengers to evacuate the plane using emergency slides.

Federal Aviation Administration officials say Flight 142 was taxiing for a 1:30 p.m. departure Monday at Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport when the pilot reported smelling smoke.

Airport spokesman Brian Sexton says there was a smell of smoke in the cabin and authorities believe it came from the plane’s electrical system.

The McDonnell Douglas MD-80 was quickly evacuated on a runway, with 162 passengers using the inflatable slides. Sexton says six people were treated at the scene for minor injuries.

The flight was headed for Wichita, Kansas. A new plane was called in to fly the passengers to their destination.

The FAA says it’s investigating.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Homicide investigators are checking into the death of a woman whose body was found in a west Omaha apartment.

Officers were sent Sunday morning to check on the well-being of a resident at the apartment. They found the body inside, and they soon suspected there was a crime involved in the death.

The woman has been identified as 38-year-old Tina L. Hoult. Other details have not been released.

 

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OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Homicide investigators are checking into the death of a woman whose body was found in a west Omaha apartment.

On Sunday morning officers were sent to check on the well-being of a resident at the apartment. They found the body inside, and they soon suspected there was a crime involved in the woman’s death.

The woman’s name and other details have not been released.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — A trial date has been set for the sister of an Omaha man convicted of killing four people.

Douglas County District Judge Peter Bataillon on Monday set a Sept. 22 start date for Erica Jenkins’ trial. She has pleaded not guilty to charges including first-degree murder and two counts of criminal conspiracy and use of a weapon.

Jenkins is the sister of Nikko Jenkins. Nikko Jenkins was found guilty in April of killing Curtis Bradford, Jorge Cajiga-Ruiz, Juan Uribe-Pena and Andrea Kruger over 10 days last August.

On Monday, Erica Jenkins waived her right to a speedy trial on three counts of assaulting correctional officers or inmates.  Erica Jenkins’ attorney also said his client was uncomfortable wearing both shackles and a stun belt.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Lincoln police say a man has been accused of sexually assaulting an unconscious woman in an alley.

Police say 29-year-old James McWilliams faces a charge of first-degree sexual assault. Court records do not list an attorney.

Omaha television station KETV says (http://bit.ly/1j3uhnD ) witnesses reported seeing a man sexually assaulting an unconscious woman Sunday night in the Haymarket area.

The 21-year-old woman told investigators she was drinking at a bar with friends, and doesn’t remember leaving the bar. She says she didn’t consent to sex.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP)€” State officials have reduced the amount that Nebraska owes the federal government for child welfare services that weren’t properly documented, but could still end up paying $15 million.

A Department of Health and Human Services spokesman said Monday that the agency has successfully documented $7 million of the $22 million in federal aid that was distributed for foster care and other child welfare services.

Federal officials called for reimbursement in January after noting that Nebraska didn’t require its child-welfare contractors to give a breakdown of how much money was going to foster parents versus other services for children.

DHHS spokesman Russ Reno says the agency has proposed a payment schedule to the federal government, but likely won’t begin the reimbursement until later this summer.