News

A Columbia man charged with child sex crimes pleaded guilty Tuesday. Shaun Dierker, 28, was charged with attempted statutory sodomy and attempted sexual misconduct with a child after a December 2012 investigation. Boone County Cyber Crime investigators said in a news release Dierker made contact with who he believed was a 14-year-old boy via email.

A Holts Summit man was arrested Wednesday, accused of offering to share child pornography in mid-Missouri. Dale Dietsch, 45, was awaiting formal charges in the Callaway County jail Wednesday. According to a news release, Dietsch is accused of offering to share child pornography photos and videos with an undercover Boone County Sheriffs deputy in January.

The head of the Missouri Corrections Department is remaining silent on whether the state has enough of its execution drug to carry out next week’s scheduled lethal injection. Director George Lombardi told the Senate Appropriations Committee Wednesday that he couldn’t comment on the state’s drug supply. But he did say the state cannot stockpile pentobarbital

A slaughterhouse that supplies the National School Lunch Program has reopened after shutting down for filthy conditions. The U.S. Department of Agriculture closed Central Valley in northern California on Monday. Officials said inspectors had to leave because things were so unsanitary. The facility just resumed activity on Wednesday. Last September the same plant pulled nearly

Police say the body of 10-year-old Hailey Owens has been found in southwest Missouri, a few miles east of where the missing girl was reportedly kidnapped by a man in a pickup truck Tuesday evening. Search crews found a body they believe is Hailey inside the suspect’s Springfield home. Police arrested a suspect in the

Officials with the Missouri Highway Patrol confirm they are helping deputies from the Monroe County Sheriff’s Department for a death investigation early Wednesday in Madison, Mo. The man was pronounced dead around 3:30 a.m., after he was discovered at 101 S. Farrell. It is still not clear if foul play or any possible suspects are

The AMBER Alert issued for Hailey Owens in Springfield, Mo took 11 minutes once Missouri Highway Patrol was notified. The first three hours of an abduction are the most critical. 74% of children that are kidnapped and later found murdered are killed within the first three hours after being taken. Several points of criteria has

The National Weather Service issued a flood watch Wednesday evening for several counties in mid-Missouri, including Boone, Audrain, Cooper and Howard. The ABC 17 Stormtrack weather team was predicting 1-1.25 inches of rain Wednesday night into Thursday, with the highest rainfall amounts in areas north of Interstate 70. Between predicted rainfall and continued snow melting,

A couple in Olean, Mo., was taken to a hospital for observation after their house caught fire Tuesday night. The fire was reported at around 10 p.m. on Horse Ranch Lane. Information about the condition of the couple is not available at this time. Volunteers with the American Red Cross have met with them to

Deputies are now investigating a fire in Boone County. Firefighters were called out just before 2:30 a.m. Wednesday morning to a four-plex at 1071 North Kathryn East, which is north of Columbia. Investigators say someone lit a couch that was sitting outside the building on fire. The fire scorched the siding and melted a window

Columbia police have arrested a man on suspicion of statutory sodomy. Oscar Contreras, 26, was arrested Monday on an outstanding federal warrant for failing to appear for deportation. While he was at the jail, officers named him as a suspect in a case of statutory sodomy that happened Sunday night. Police say Contreras had deviate

Boys Basketball scores Helias 67 Tolton 68Rock Bridge 53 Rockhurst 49Battle 44 Camdenton 73Wright City 40 North Callaway 49 Girls Basketball scores Wright City 39 North Callaway 51

The first time Robin Pingeton drove through the town of Montrose, she mistakenly passed the gymnasium. “There is a shop or a gas station on the corner, and on the other side is the gym,” Pingeton recalls. After that, you are back out in country.” But she was happy to turn around and drive back

The Jefferson City Council voted Tuesday to spend money on more salt for roads this winter. Council approved $100,000 for additional road chemicals, with that money coming from the general fund. The money will go toward extra road salt and calcium chloride for the rest of the winter season. Council also approved a resolution Tuesday,

City leaders in Rocheport expect a packed house Wednesday for a discussion about a proposed 180-foot cell phone tower. The tower, to be built by Wireless Asset Group of St. Charles, would expand AT&T service for far western part of Boone County. But a flier sent to ABC 17 News this week showed growing opposition

The Miller County Prosecutor has sent a cease and desist to the rap-metal group Insane Clown Posse. Last week, the group announced on their website they were looking for a new venue after Crybaby Campgrounds in Kaiser got out of their contract with the promoters of the group. The rap-metal group is known for troubled

Gov. Nixon and the University of Missouri system President Tim Wolfe both spoke at a rally in the state capital Tuesday morning. Hundreds attended from each of the four campuses, including Columbia, St. Louis, Kansas City and Rolla. The 40th annual legislative day is sponsored by the University of Missouri Alliance of Alumni Associations and

Aspen Heights management met Tuesday with Columbia officials to come up with ideas on how to keep their residents safe. Columbia and University police attended, as well as MU officials, city council members, and other student housing complexes. Aspen Heights is a gated community with security cameras at entrances, alarm systems in the homes, and

The Cole County Commission met today to vote whether or not to tear down the old county jail and build a new courtroom in its place. After hearing from the Historic City of Jefferson group, it decided to postpone the vote for now and look into other options. For over an hour, the commissioners discussed

An 8-year-old eastern Missouri boy has died from injuries suffered in a stabbing during a domestic dispute. Warren County authorities say Mason Vandiver died about 1 a.m. Tuesday at Cardinal Glennon Children’s Medical Center in St. Louis. He had been on life-support since the attack Friday night at a home near Jonesburg. Mason’s mother, 29-year-old