A Jackson County man is facing drug-dealing charges after a tip from the public.

Indiana State Police in the Bloomington District received a tip about the drug-dealing in Jackson County and on Sunday, troopers and a Mitchell police officer arrived at a home on Oesting Street. Police say that they were invited into the home and noticed three individually packaged bags containing a white crystal substance, along with cash, digital scales and other evidence.

They were all near the living quarters of 19-year-old Bryce Lee Alexander Riley of Seymour.

Riley was arrested on preliminary charges of

• Dealing methamphetamine
• Possession of methamphetamine
• Possession of paraphernalia

You can watch the IU and Purdue men’s basketball game Thursday evening on the big screen at YES Cinema.

The theater on Jackson Street is announcing that the Indiana University Alumni Association South Central Indiana Region and the Purdue University Polytechnic Institute in Columbus are sponsoring the airing of the game.

Doors will open at 6:30 p.m. and the tipoff is at 7 p.m. Admission is free and there will be concessions, beer and wine available for purchase. The screening is open to the public and you are invited.

YES Cinema is operated by the Lincoln-Central Neighborhood Family Center.

Seymour’s Chamber of Commerce is announcing its annual award winners ahead of next week’s 89th annual dinner.

Community award winners for this year are Rising Star honorees, Curt Schleibaum and Jeremy Wischmeier and Small Business of the Year award winner, Schneider Nursery. Teacher of the Year Award winners are Sandra Mellencamp, Matthew McCarthy and Jessica Floyd. The Corporate Citizen Award winner is JCB and Citizenship Award winner is Craig Luedeman.

The awards will be given at the annual dinner on Thursday, March 5th at Pewter Hall in Brownstown. There will be a reception at 5:30 pm, with dinner at 6:15 pm and the program and award presentations immediately following.

You can still make reservations by going to the chamber website at seymourchamber.com com or by calling 812-522-3681

Columbus police say a wanted woman tried to flee from officers on a bicycle, after being disruptive at a convenience store over the weekend.

Officers were called to a convenience store in the 200 block of North Gladstone Avenue at about 5:25 p.m. Saturday on reports of a woman harassing customers. The suspect became argumentative and refused to identify herself as police tried to issue her a warning for trespassing.

Instead, she took off on her bicycle and refused to stop. She was eventually detained. 27-year-old Katrina M. Wade is facing two outstanding Bartholomew County warrants, along with new charges of resisting law enforcement and disorderly conduct.

A driver is being accused of drunk driving after crashing into the fence at Garland Brook Cemetery Sunday evening.

Columbus police were called to a single vehicle accident with injuries at about 5:45 p.m. Sunday at Sixth Street and Gladstone Avenue. Witnesses said that the driver crossed into oncoming lanes before leaving the road and crashing into the fence.

Columbus firefighters had to rescue the driver, 58-year-old Michael D. Bewley of Columbus from the vehicle and he was taken to Columbus Regional Hospital. After obtaining a blood sample, Columbus police arrested Bewley on a preliminary charge of operating a vehicle while intoxicated.

Columbus Mayor Jim Lienhoop will hold his annual State of the City address next week, scheduled for 6:30 on Tuesday, March 3 in Fair Oaks Mall, across from the former J. Nicole store.

The speech will follow the regular Tuesday night City Council meeting, that will also be held at Fair Oaks Mall, but at 5:30 p.m. instead of the normal start time. At 6 p.m., there will be a reception for the State of the City attendees.

Updated: Lester Burbrink has been found, authorities announced Sunday morning.

A statewide Silver Alert has been issued as Columbus Police continue to search for 81-year-old Lester Burbrink.

Burbrink was last seen at 3:30 p.m. Friday at Four Seasons Retirement Center on Taylor Road in Columbus. Authorities say that Burbrink has a mild cognitive disorder and pre-dementia and he has not taken his daily medication. He is believed to be in extreme danger and may require medical assistance.

Burbrink is a white man, 6 feet 2 inches tall and 230 pounds. He was last seen wearing a light gray and brown jacket and a dark hat. He is possibly in a 2011 Gold Toyota Sienna van with plate number RMY 591.

If you have any information on Lester Burbrink, contact the Columbus Police Department at 812-379-1689 or 911.

A Jennings County man, already in jail on child molesting charges, is facing more accusations, according to Indiana State Police.

21-year-old Jon W. Anthony of North Vernon was arrested Wednesday on charges of child molesting and solicitation involving two children under the age of 14 in Jackson County. He allegedly met one of the victims and had sexual contact with them, according to troopers. He contacted a second victim through social media and attempted to solicit the child for sex.

He was arrested on those charges and taken to Jackson County Jail.

Today, he was served on an additional warrant from Jennings County with two more accounts of child molesting and a count of sexual misconduct with a minor. These charges also stem from social media contacts, where Anthony would frequently present himself as a hair stylist who wanted to cut the victims’ hair, and then engage in inappropriate contact once they met in person, state police report.

Two Columbus police officers were arrested today by Indiana State Police after an investigation into ghost employment at Columbus Regional Health.

Dan Meister and Ron May were taken into custody this afternoon on charges of official misconduct, ghost employment and theft.

The case began in November 2018, when Columbus Police made an internal investigation and then asked Indiana State Police to conduct an investigation into criminal activity of the two officers. Over a three and a half year period, dating back to February 2015, the officers allegedly worked off-duty jobs providing security at CRH while actually on-duty with Columbus Police. Their shifts with the two agencies overlapped, meaning they were being paid by both the hospital and the police department for the same hours.

According to State Police, Meister had overlapped hours on 52 occasions, while May is accused of having an overlap on 62 occasions.

After the investigation came to light in January 2019, Columbus police announced that May, a 31-year Columbus police officer, had agreed to retire and Meister, at the time a lieutenant with 22 years at the department, was demoted to the rank of patrolman.

Hauser Jr. Sr. High School will be hosting a charity dinner before Saturday’s basketball game to raise money for a high school freshman fighting cancer.

The “Sarah Strong” event is a benefit for Sarah Taylor, who is fighting osteosarcoma, a cancer that started in her arm and has spread to her lungs.

She is the daughter of Kim and Chad Taylor of Hope. Kim Taylor said the illness started with what they thought was a shoulder strain in November. But the shoulder was extremely swollen and hot. A trip to Riley Hospital revealed the bone cancer in her arm.

The family has been through many highs and lows, including the cancer metastasizing and initial chemo treatments failing to stop the spread of the disease. They are in a second round of chemo treatments now.

Her mom says Sarah is staying upbeat and positive by reliance on reading scriptures, worship songs and hoping to inspire others with her story, while being inspired by others.

Kim has stopped work to take care of Sarah, and the family is also feeling the added expenses of driving back and forth from appointments in Indy.

On Saturday, a ribeye dinner will be served from 5 to 7, with meals $8 for adults and $5 for children. There will also be Sarah Strong bracelets for sale at the game for $3 each. All proceeds go to benefit the Taylor family.

The varsity game against Indian Creek starts at 7:30 p.m.