News

TONIGHT: The ABC 17 StormTrack Weather Team has issued Weather Alert Day for Wednesday night ahead of a chance for strong storms. A few storms between 6-9PM could carry an isolated tornado threat, but the main line of storms arrives after 9PM and wuickly races east. The Storm Prediction Center has us in a slight

More flights will be added to the schedule at Columbia Regional Airport next month. American Airlines said it will offer four flights per day from Columbia to Chicago instead of the current two starting May 3. An airline spokesperson wrote in an email that the move was made because of “strong performance” of the flights

The Columbia Public Schools District has investigated three reportedly suspicious incidents within the last few weeks. In a few instances, a suspicious person or vehicle has been spotted at a school. Monday, investigators looked into a threatening message written in the bathroom at Rock Bridge High School. The message was deemed not credible by authorities.

An organic dairy plant in northeast Columbia held its grand opening Wednesday with Gov. Mike Parson and city leaders in attendance. Aurora Organic Dairy broke ground at its site off Waco Road in May 2017 and promised to bring at least 80 jobs in its first year. On Wednesday, company CEO Scott McGinty said the

One person was arrested early Tuesday morning after leading Moniteau County deputies on a chase through Moniteau and Cole counties. Eric J. Riggs, 39, of Versailles, was allegedly parked in the parking lot of Salem Baptist Church on Highway N near Kliever when deputies investigated the suspicious activity. Riggs then allegedly fled from police and

A man was arrested Tuesday evening after leading Missouri State Highway Patrol troopers on a chase that started in Cooper County and ended west of Columbia. Moises Bonilla-Mendez, 19, of Nashville, Tennessee, was arrested in connection with the chase. Missouri State Highway Patrol Sgt. Scott White said the chase on eastbound Interstate 70 started at

WEDNESDAY: Clouds hold during much of the day but highs still soar to near 80 degrees with breezy southwest winds. A Weather Alert Day has been issued for tonight as storms arrive late and could be strong to severe. TONIGHT: The ABC 17 StormTrack Weather Team has issued Weather Alert Day for Wednesday night ahead

A Holts Summit Board of Aldermen candidate requested a special election be held after votes for her seat were tied on the April 2 election. Lisa Buhr, who ran for Board of Aldermen Ward 2, tied with candidate Chris Redel for the seat. “The last thing I want to do is cost the city more

The Jefferson City Fire Department was still investigating the cause of a structure fire that started around 7:40 p.m. Tuesday on Cherry Street. JCFD Battalion Chief Jason Turner said no one was injured and the investigation is ongoing. When crews arrived at the scene, they found heavy smoke on the first floor of the structure.

A Pulaski County man faces multiple charges after drugs and drug paraphernalia were recovered at a Saint Robert residence. Claudell Haggard now faces a pair of felony charges for delivery of a controlled substance. Reportedly, two agencies responded to the scene Monday. Pulaski County deputies and the South Central Drug Task Force served a warrant

UPDATE: The Missouri State Highway Patrol investigated a fatal crash on I-70 in Callaway County Tuesday afternoon. The driver, Oscar Serrano-Guevara of Costa Mesa, California, drove into the median near mile marker 142 after one of tires became flat. The car overturned after hitting the median cable, according to the MSHP crash report. Serrano-Guevara was

The Pulaski County Sheriff’s Department is searching for a person accused in the robbery of a hotel. Deputies said the suspect was wanted in connection to a robbery of the Days Inn in St. Robert early Monday morning. Anyone with information about this suspect is asked to call the Pulaski County Sheriff’s Department at 573-774-7948.

Nearly a dozen public meetings are scheduled to talk about changes to Go COMO, the Columbia public bus system. City leaders said the bus system will start its new routes on June 3. The buses will run at 45-minute intervals while passing through the Wabash Bus Station. Thursday, April 18 from 5:30-7 p.m., Public Transit

A Miller County man is now awaiting sentencing after pleading guilty to raping more than one child over several months in 2017. Prosecutors say Dillon James Hail, 23, sexually assaulted three different children in Miller County, knowing they were all underage. Investigators say the guilty pleas are tied to three, separate criminal cases. In the

The Montgomery County Prosecutor’s Office has dismissed the charges it filed against Pablo Serrano-Vitorino. Serrano was found unresponsive inside his jail cell at the St. Louis Justice Center on the morning of April 9. According to the St. Louis Medical Examiner’s Office, Serrano was pronounced dead at St. Louis University Hospital at 3 a.m. Serrano

A principal of the new middle school in south Columbia has been recommended to the Columbia Board of Education. Jimmy Hale is expected to transition into the role this summer while preparing to open the new school in 2020. Hale has been the assistant principal at Jefferson Middle School since 2013. A spokeswoman said he

United and American Airlines resumed flights out of Columbia Regional Airport on Tuesday morning after the airport shut down last week. The airport closed to air traffic on April 9 due to necessary runway repairs because of concerns about the “crown” where runway 2-20 intersects runway 13-31. The crown helps drain water off the runway

TONIGHT:We’ll see more clouds build in this evening with winds remaining out of the south. That will keep us mild overnight in the low 60s. WEDNESDAY: Clouds hold during much of the day but highs still soar to near 80 degrees with breezy southwest winds. Storms arrive late and could be strong to severe. EXTENDED:

The man accused of setting fire to Columbia’s Planned Parenthood clinic in February apparently wrote to his wife that he was on a “mission” to protect unborn children, according to documents filed in the federal case against him. An affidavit for a search warrant filed April 11 by FBI Special Agent Curtis Bryant quotes a

Two people were hit by bullets Saturday in a Jefferson City shooting that killed one of them, according to court documents. Marquis D. Avant, 22, of Jefferson City, was arrested and charged over the weekend and admitted to firing a weapon during a disturbance Saturday morning in the 300 block of Hickory Street. According to