On December 4th of last year Seymour patrol officers responded to the area of East A Ave. in the Freeman Field Industrial Complex due to call about a burglary of a warehouse belonging to Ranger Enterprises. When officers arrived at the scene, it was discovered that the door handle to the location had been manipulated and the suspects had taken several items that had a value of over $1,000.00.

The following day Investigators  developed two suspects in the investigation. Investigators also learned that one of the suspects had been arrested on a non-related incident. Investigators located the suspect vehicle in the burglary on CR 100 S in Jackson County and took possession of it.

Two days following the break in and theft, Investigators responded to a location in Kimberly Mobile Home Park after receiving information that some of the stolen property might be at the location. Investigators did locate some of the stolen property.

Investigators obtained a Jackson Superior Court 1 Search Warrant to search a 2008 Dodge Durango for evidence related to the burglary. Items taken in the burglary were in the vehicle. On December 7, 2023, Investigators attempted to speak with one of the suspects. The suspect declined to speak with investigators. The second suspect was not located at that time.

On March 13th, 2024, Investigators learned that the second suspect had been located south of Seymour. Investigators interviewed the second suspect and based on additional information obtained during the investigation, Investigators arrested Sloan M. Smith age 28 of Seymour for burglary, a level 5 felony and theft, a level 6 felony. Investigators also arrested Steven E. Fettinger Age 35 of Norman, Indiana for burglary, a level 5 felony. Smith was already incarcerated in the Jackson County Jail on other unrelated charges. Fettinger was taken to the Jackson County Jail and turned over to the jail division for processing.

Friends of Columbus Animal Care Services (FCACS) will be handing out pet food through their Furry Friends Food Bank distribution on Thursday, March 21st, from 4:00pm to 5:30 pm (or until supplies last) at Columbus Municipal Airport, located at 4770 Ray Boll Blvd. The pet food will be distributed in the parking lot in front of the plane, Charlie 119.

The purpose of the pantry is to assist local community members with keeping their pets in their home and out of area shelters. Pet food will be available from the van from 4:00-5:30 pm or until supplies last. Mixed brands of cat food will be distributed in 4.5 pound bags and dog food in 14.5 pound bags.

Please plan to stay in your vehicles and line up on the west side of the driveway for the food. The food will be brought to you in your vehicle.

This program is one of several Friends of Columbus Animal Care Services initiatives designed as “alternatives to intake” at the shelter. Friends of Columbus Animal Care Services is the 501(c)(3) non-profit partner of Columbus Animal Care Services.

Please note, in the event of bad weather, They will not distribute in active thunder and lightning but will if simply raining.

A missing Osgood Teen was found deceased Sunday evening.

Carson Hughes, 18, of Osgood, went missing Friday afternoon at Versailles Lake in Versailles State Park. His unlocked car with the keys inside was found Friday near the boat ramp and the search began but was postponed on Friday night.

After a two-day search, Indiana Conservation Officers recovered the body of Hughes, from Versailles Lake on Sunday evening.

According to the Indiana DNR media release, conservation officer divers utilized sonar to find Hughes in six feet of water at around 6:50 p.m.

He was pronounced dead at the scene by the Ripley County Coroner.

The Indiana Department of Natural Resources (DNR) says an autopsy on Hughes was completed Monday morning, and the preliminary cause of death was determined to be probable cold-water drowning.

No other evidence of injury was present. The final autopsy report and cause of death are pending toxicology results.

Carson Hughes was an avid wildlife photographer and had a following online. His mother is honoring his memory and asking others to do so by celebrating and sharing his Wildlife photography online.

Photo Courtesy of Indiana DNR

For More information you can visit https://www.bcscschools.org

Photos Courtesy of BCSC Facebook Page

Today, Cummins Inc. (NYSE: CMI) (“Cummins”) announced the final results of its previously announced offer to its shareholders to exchange their shares of Cummins common stock for shares of Atmus Filtration Technologies Inc. (NYSE: ATMU) (“Atmus”) common stock owned by Cummins. The exchange offer expired at 12:00 midnight, New York City time, at the end of the day on March 13th, 2024.

Pursuant to the exchange offer, Cummins has accepted 5,574,051 shares of Cummins common stock in exchange for 67,054,719 shares of Atmus common stock.

Because the exchange offer was oversubscribed, Cummins accepted only a portion of the shares of its common stock that were validly tendered and not properly withdrawn, on a pro rata basis in proportion to the number of shares tendered. Shareholders who owned fewer than 100 shares of Cummins common stock, or an “odd-lot,” who validly tendered all of their shares, were not subject to proration, in accordance with the terms of the exchange offer. All shares validly tendered by eligible “odd-lot” shareholders were accepted. The final proration factor of 6.99255200% was applied to all other validly tendered shares of Cummins common stock that were subject to proration to determine the number of such shares that were accepted.

Following completion of the exchange offer, Cummins did not retain any outstanding shares of Atmus common stock.

“Through this final separation, we are pleased to bring the greatest value to both Cummins and Atmus shareholders,” said Jennifer Rumsey, Chair and Chief Executive Officer of Cummins. “Cummins will continue its focus on advancing innovative power solutions, while Atmus is now well positioned to advance its filtration technologies, grow into new markets, and help both existing and new customers be successful. We are proud of our employees’ hard work and all who were involved to ensure a successful separation, and we are excited to see what the future holds for both Cummins and Atmus.”

Based on the final count by the exchange agent, Broadridge Corporate Issuer Solutions, LLC, the final results of the exchange offer are as follows:

• Total number of shares of Cummins common stock validly tendered and not validly withdrawn: 65,176,180
• Shares tendered that were subject to proration: 64,081,568
• “Odd-lot” shares tendered that were not subject to proration: 1,094,612
• Total number of shares of Cummins common stock accepted: 5,574,051

Shares of Cummins common stock tendered but not accepted for exchange will be returned to the tendering shareholders in book-entry form promptly. In addition, the exchange agent will promptly credit shares of Atmus common stock for distribution in the exchange offer in book-entry form to accounts maintained by the Atmus transfer agent for tendering shareholders whose shares of Cummins common stock were accepted in the exchange offer. Cash in lieu of fractional shares of Atmus common stock will be delivered after the exchange agent has aggregated all fractional shares and sold them in the open market.

Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC and J.P. Morgan Securities LLC served as dealer managers for the exchange offer.

Indiana State Police arrested a Columbus man for reckless driving and engaging in a speed contest Saturday night after stopping the motorcycle he was riding in excess of 130mph on I-65 in Bartholomew County. The suspect was allegedly racing two other motorcyclists who were not able to be stopped or identified.

The Indiana State Police would like to remind you to PLEASE DRIVE RESPONSIBLY.

Photo Courtesy of Sgt. Stephen Wheeles Facebook Page.

Registration is now open for a free weeklong camp at IU Columbus. The camp takes place June 24th through June 28th, for students currently in grades 4-8 to learn how to make a difference in their school, neighborhood and community.

Register for the iEngage civics camp at go.iu.edu/iengage. Early sign-up is encouraged; space is limited to the first 90 campers.

There is no cost to those who participate in iEngage. In addition to the camp itself, students are provided a camp t-shirt, lunch and snacks each day, and if needed, wrap-around care and transportation to and from the Foundation for Youth, 405 Hope Ave.

“We want youth to feel that this community also belongs to them, as we pass down democracy purposefully to the next generation,” explained Stephanie Serriere, Ph.D., iEngage Executive Director and IU Columbus Professor of Social Studies Education. “At a time when our nation is more polarized than ever, we are teaching young people how to work collaboratively, have their voices heard, and make a difference.”

Serriere noted that after participating in iEngage, last year’s campers:

• increased their knowledge of what’s happening in the community
• saw themselves as more involved citizens
• increased their belief that they could make a difference in their community
• were more likely to do research and get others involved in solving a community issue

The Columbus iEngage program closely involves local leaders in the non-profit sector, industry and public service.  iEngage features a different guest speaker each day, a community fair of local nonprofit groups, and mid-week presentations to a panel of local representatives. This year’s camp will also feature a session on college readiness and campus tours. On Friday, campers present their findings to the public during formal presentations and a celebration with root beer floats at the Columbus Learning Center.

New this year is the role of community-based codirectors, Angie Kirkham and Greicy Patiño, as well as a partnership with the Council for Youth Development (CYD). CYD’s new Youth Empowerment Program Coordinator, Freddie King, will serve as an iEngage Master Teacher, and CYD Youth Ambassadors will serve as camp interns. IU Columbus Education students and graduates will again serve as camp counselors. In addition, this year’s camp co-director is Elizabeth Osborn, Ph.D., representing IU’s Center on Representative Government.

The IU Columbus iEngage program is funded by the Heritage Fund Positive Change Grant, Duke Energy, the Cummins Foundation, Bill and Norma Perry Memorial Fund, Don and Doddy Harvey Philanthropic Fund, the IU Center on Representative Government, and IU’s Office of School and Community Partnerships through Lilly Endowment’s Indiana Youth Programs on Campus.

In addition, iEngage is partnered with the Foundation for Youth, the Council for Youth Development, Indiana University Columbus, Indiana University’s Political and Civic Engagement program, and Bartholomew Consolidated School Corporation.

To learn more about iEngage, including how to get involved, visit go.iu.edu/iengage. To donate to the Columbus iEngage program, visit go.iu.edu/iengagesupport.

Columbus City Cemetery, south of Donner Park, is scheduled for spring clean-up on Monday, April 1st, 2024. Those who have family plots in the Cemetery are asked to pick-up any items that they wish to save by Sunday, March 31st. Parks Department personnel will remove and discard worn and out-of-season decorations that remain on the ground on Monday, April 1st.

Fall clean-up is scheduled for Tuesday, October 1st, 2024

For more information: (812) 376-2599

The Columbus Department of Public Works has announced that Starting Monday the 18th through December 13th of this year, the Sanitation Department will begin running weekly brush and yard waste toter collection routes. Brush and yard waste toters will be collected on the same day as trash collection.

The City yard waste program is intended for the disposal of common green yard wastes such as grass clippings, weeds, leaves, and flowers.

The Department of Public works would like to remind residents that yard waste toters must be free of:

· Trash or recycling of any kind, such as garden pots and soil bags

· Sticks, branches, wood, or tree trimmings

· Rocks and mulch

· Household food

· Pet waste

To participate in the brush collection program, please have your brush stacked neatly at the curb on your trash day by 7 a.m. for chipper truck collection. Large piles of brush exceeding 6’ in length, or are larger than a pick-up truck load, must be submitted for collection through the CurbCycle App, or called in to the Department of Public Works Office at 812-376-2509 for collection.

For more information about the brush and yard waste collection programs, including a full list of acceptable yard waste materials, please visit our website at https://www.columbus.in.gov/public-works/. Follow the Department of Public Works on Facebook @ColumbusRecycles.