On 6/23/23, Mt. Carmel Police arrested two Mt. Carmel men, Giulio J. Riglioni, age 67, and Jason L. Cox, age 44, for Possession of Drug Paraphernalia following a traffic stop at 12th & Market Street. The traffic stop occurred when the arresting officer observed a white Dodge truck commit a traffic violation. While on the stop, Officer Hopper and his K-9 Eleven arrived on scene and conducted a free air narcotic sniff to the exterior of the truck. The sniff led to Eleven alerting to the odor of narcotics and a subsequent search of the vehicle. Officers located two glass smoking pipes, 1 cut straw, and 1 set of scales. All items had a white residue on them that officers suspected to be methamphetamine. Both individuals were placed under arrest and transported to the Wabash County Jail where they were charged and later released on a Notice to Appear in court.
Canadian Trucker Killed In I-70 Crash
ILLINOIS STATE POLICE INVESTIGATE
FATAL TRAFFIC CRASH
The Following Preliminary Information is Being Released by Illinois State Police Troop 9
WHAT: Four Vehicle Fatal Crash
WHERE: I-70 westbound milepost 139, near Martinsville, Clark County
WHEN: June 23, 2023 at approximately 5:45 PM
VEHICLES: Unit 1 – 2005 White Freightliner Truck-Tractor Semi-Trailer Combination
Unit 2 – 2005 Maroon Peterbilt Truck-Tractor Semi-Trailer Combination
Unit 3 – 2018 Blue Ford Explorer
Unit 4 – 2016 White International Truck-Tractor Semi-Trailer Combination
DRIVERS: Unit 1 – Nirvair S. Sandhu, 44-year-old male from Brampton, Ontario, Canada – Deceased
Unit 2 – Samuel F. Anthony, 48-year-old male from Midway, TX – Transported to a regional hospital with minor injuries.
Unit 3 – Jerry L.Waggoner, 63-year-old male from Wann, OK – Transported to a regional hospital with minor injuries.
Unit 4 – Ibrahim Hodzic, 48-year-old male from Windsor, Ontario, Canada – Reported no injuries on scene.
PASSENGER: Unit 3 – Nancy Waggoner, 59-year-old female from Wann, OK – Transported to a regional hospital with minor injuries.
PRELIMINARY: The preliminary investigation indicates the following: ISP Troop 9 units and emergency personnel responded to a four-vehicle fatal crash at the above location and time. Unit 1 was traveling westbound on Interstate 70 at milepost 139. Units 2, 3, and 4 were stopped in traffic. For unknown reasons, Unit 1 failed to stop and struck the rear of Unit 2. Unit 2 then struck the rear of Unit 3. Unit 3 then struck the rear of Unit 4. Unit 1 and the semi-trailer of Unit 2 became engulfed in fire. The driver of Unit 1 was fatally injured and pronounced deceased on scene by the Clark County Coroner. The driver of Unit 2 was transported to a regional hospital with minor injuries. The driver and passenger of Unit 3 were transported to a regional hospital with minor injuries. The driver of Unit 4 reported no injuries on scene. Traffic was rerouted to US Route 40 at exit 147. All lanes of I-70 westbound were reopened at approximately 9:30 a.m. There is nothing further to report at this time.
District #348 School Board Schedules Another Special Session
For the third in the last 10 days, the Wabash District #348 school board will meet behind closed doors. The latest special board meeting will be Monday afternoon at 4:30 at the district office and is “for the appointment, employment, compensation, discipline, performance, or dismissal of specific employees”.
Last Friday, the board met for more than 90 minutes in executive session and then this past Monday at their regular meeting, the board adjourned to closed session for over an hour. No action has been taken at the two previous special meetings once the board reconvened into open session.
Mt. Carmel Man Jailed On Federal Warrant
On 6/22/23, Mt. Carmel Police arrested Kevin N. Phillippe, age 40, of Mt. Carmel on a Federal Probation Violation Warrant from a prior conviction on the Distribution of Obscene Material. Phillippe was arrested at his apartment in the 200 block of N Walnut Street without incident and transported to the Wabash County Jail. Phillippe was held pending extradition to a federal holding facility.
Mt. Carmel Woman Arrested On Drug Charges
On 6/21/23, at approximately 1:00 a.m., Mt. Carmel Police arrested Tina M. Davis, age 59, of Mt. Carmel, for Possession of Methamphetamine and Possession of a Controlled Substance. Police found a black Ford registered to Davis parked in the Wabash Valley College parking lot with all four car doors open and her sitting on a nearby curb. Davis admitted she had been there since approximately 10:30 p.m. In checking to see if Davis needed assistance, the officer noticed Davis becoming anxious and paying special attention to her passenger side doors. The officer asked for and received consent to search her vehicle. An assisting officer then observed an orange pill bottle containing approximately 5 grams of suspected methamphetamine sitting on top of other items in her purse, located on the passenger side. A further examination of the purse, resulted in officers locating 165 Oxycodone pills in another bottle that was prescribed to another individual. Davis was placed under arrest at this time and transported to the Wabash County Jail where she was charged with the above offenses. Davis is being held pending a bond setting by a judge.
West Salem Man Arrested On Indiana Warrant
On 6/20/23, Mt. Carmel Police arrested Anthony W. McLemore, age 38, of West Salem, on a Vanderburgh County Indiana Warrant for Residential Entry. Police knew McLemore had a warrant and made contact with him when he stopped at a convenience store at 3rd & Market Street. McLemore was taken into custody and transported to the Wabash County Jail where he is being held pending extradition back to Vanderburgh County.
Prelim Work Underway On New Wabash County Highway Dept HQ
Preliminary work continues to progress on a new building to house the Wabash County Highway Department. County board chairman Tim Hocking reported at Tuesday’s county commissioner meeting that he met recently with highway engineer Dustin Bunting and Jason Wright of ADG. Hocking said the meeting consisted of putting the particulars of the building’s design and bid process. Part of that process involved pinpointing the property lines for location along Poor Farm Road. According to Hocking, a survey of the property revealed the line is actually three to four feet west to the fence there.
Allendale School Board Notes-June 2023
At the June 2023 Allendale School Board meeting held at Allendale School, the board:
Adopted the 2022-23 amended budget. It shows a budget with operating funds revenue of $2,264,002 and operating funds expenditures of $1,921,870.
Appointed Superintendent Bowser as the district Authorized IMRF Agent for the 2023-24 school year.
Adopted the Student Handbook, Student Conduct Code, and Internet/Computer Network Usage documents for 2023-2024.
Approved the installation of a batting cage at the baseball field at no cost to the district.
Employed Mr. Britt Shepherd as the district bookkeeper for the 2023-24 school year
Mt. Carmel Man Gets 7 Years On Meth Possession Charge
Kelli Storckman, Wabash County State’s Attorney, reports that
Matthew D. Swift, a 39-year-old Mt. Carmel, Illinois man, was sentenced
to the Illinois Department of Corrections by the Honorable Circuit Judge
William C. Hudson in Wabash County Circuit Court.
State’s Attorney Storckman advises that the Defendant was charged
April 20, 2022, with Possession of Methamphetamine, a Class 3 Felony. On
On June 20, 2023, Mr. Swift was sentenced to 7 years in the Department of
Corrections, to be followed by up to one year of mandatory supervised release.
Press Release From Wabash County Emergency Telephone System Board
Voice Calls to 911 Are Still the Best and Fastest Way to Contact 911
The Wabash County Emergency Telephone System Board announced that it will begin accepting text–to–911 service for its territory on Wednesday July 5th. Wireless customers can now send a text (up to 140 characters) to 911 in an emergency. Text to 911 should only be used in an emergency situation, when placing a call is not possible: For instance, if the caller is deaf, hard-of-hearing, speech impaired, or when speaking out loud would put the caller in danger.
If there is an emergency and you are unable to make a call, remember these steps:
• Don’t text and drive
• In the first text message send the location and type of emergency.
• Text in simple words. Send a short text message in English without abbreviations or slang.
• Be prepared to answer questions and follow instructions from the 911 call taker.
Don’t Abuse 911—Text-to-911 service is ONLY for emergencies.
• It is a crime to text or call 911 with a false report. Prank-texters can be located.
The Text-to-911 service may have many challenges.
• A text or data plan is required to place a Text-to-911
• As with all text messages, messages to 911 may take longer to receive, may get out of order, or may not be received at all.
• If you do not receive a text response from 911, try to contact 911 another way.
• Photos and videos cannot be sent to 911 at this time.
• Text-to-911 cannot include more than one person. Send your emergency text to 911 only. Group texts will fail.
• Voice Calls to 911 Are Still the Best and Fastest Way to Contact 911
Remember, Text-to-911 service is not available everywhere in Illinois.