Two Indianapolis men are in custody after allegedly robbing a liquor store in Seymour Friday afternoon and then fleeing from police.

According to police reports, Seymour officers were called to the North Ewing Street store at about 2:46 p.m. Friday afternoon on a reported robbery, where the suspects fled north on State Road 11. Police found and intercepted the vehicle, which then headed onto Interstate 65 north. Neighboring agencies used tire deflation devices to try and stop the vehicle. The driver finally lost control and left the interstate a few miles south of Franklin, before running away into a field where he was taken into custody.

A passenger in the vehicle struggled with police before being arrested.

The Jackson County Jail reports that 33-year-old Lawrence D. Green was booked into jail Friday afternoon and is facing charges of robbery, resisting law enforcement, intimidation, driving a motor vehicle while suspended and reckless driving. 23-year-old Bryant A. Edwards was booked into the jail Friday evening on charges of robbery, intimidation and resisting arrest.

Seymour police say the suspects are also implicated in another similar area robbery and are expected to face more charges.

State Rep. Jim Lucas of Seymour is announcing that the deadline is approaching to make nominations for the Golden Hoosier Award.

Lucas says that many older Hoosiers stepped up and helped others during the pandemic and the Golden Hoosier Award is meant to honor them for their contributions to our communities.

To be eligible, the nominee must be an Indiana resident, 65 or older and a volunteer in the community for the past three years.

Those selected will be honored later this year during a virtual ceremony.

The deadline to make a nomination is Saturday June 19th. You can find a link to the nomination form here.

This weekend features free fishing days on Indiana public waterways. The Indiana Department of Natural Resources says you can fish Saturday or Sunday without a fishing license or a trout/salmon stamp.

Starve Hollow State Recreation Area in Jackson County is having its annual Family Fishing Derby on Saturday. Events will start at 9 with registration at the Forest Education Center. The derby starts at 10 and ends at noon, followed by awards and prizes at 12:30. There will be a kids fishing craft workshop at 1.

The Paynetown State Recreation Area at Monroe Lake will be holding a youth fishing derby from 8 to 10 on Saturday. Children 16 and under can take part and either borrow equipment or bring their own. Volunteer instructors will be on hand as needed. A prize drawing will be held at 10 a.m.

The next statewide free fishing day is Sept. 25th.

You can get more information on Free Fishing Day events here.

Johnson County authorities say that two children were taken to the hospital after a possible lightning strike yesterday in Trafalgar, but no one was injured.

The Johnson County Sheriff’s Department says that at about 12:20 p.m. Thursday afternoon, there was reports of a lightning strike at a wood cabin at the FFA Indiana Leadership Center. Deputies along with firefighters from Trafalgar, Nineveh, Bargersville, Needham, and Franklin came to the scene. However, they could find no visible signs of a lightning strike in the area. There was no sign of fire and the building was determined to be safe, according to police reports.

Two children were taken to Johnson Memorial Hospital to be checked out, and they were uninjured. Authorities say the kids were taken to the hospital “out of an abundance of caution and concern for their well-being.”

Authorities suspect that the noise and concussion from a nearby lightning strike was mistaken by the children for an actual hit.

Four civilians killed by hostile fire in Afghanistan and Iraq were honored Thursday at Camp Atterbury.

The U.S. Army Expeditionary Civilian Workforce held a memorial service yesterday morning honoring:

• Dr. Maged Hussein, died May 25, 2009
• Anthony Acerra, died Oct. 29, 2011
• Krissie Davis, died June 8, 2015
• Michael Sauro, died Oct. 19, 2016

Brig. Gen. Dale Lyles, adjutant general for the Indiana National Guard said that expeditionary civilians work together with soldiers to support their mission.

The ceremony also honored a Medal of Honor recipient killed in Iraq. The conference room at the U.S. Army Expeditionary Civilian Workforce facility was dedicated in honor of Spc. Ross McGinnis, who Lyles called a young hero who made the ultimate sacrifice for his brothers in arms.

The second Cruise-In to Hope of the season will be held from 5 to 8 p.m. on Friday on the Hope Town Square with cars and trucks on display. Prizes will be awarded for the oldest vehicle, people’s choice and musician’s choice.

The Good Time Review Band will perform on the bandstand from 6 to 8 p.m. Food to go will be available from restaurants on the square.

Organizers will also be accepting donations of food or money to help the Student Fund of Hope. The event is being organized by the town of Hope and by Main Street of Hope.

Updated June 5th: Columbus Police have released another photo of the suspect and video.

Columbus police are looking for a suspect who used a knife to rob a gas station of a number of vape pens Wednesday night.

According to police reports, the incident happened at about 10:15 p.m. Wednesday night at the Marathon gas station on West Jonathan Moore Pike. A man entered the store and began arguing with the clerk and demanding a vape pen. He then threatened the clerk with the knife and left the store with an undisclosed number of pens.

The suspect is described as a tall, thin white man with a red/brown beard. He was wearing a black Freddy’s restaurant sweatshirt, blue jeans, and dark colored shoes and hat.

If you have any information on the robbery, you can contact the Columbus Police Department at 812-376-2600. Tips and information can be left anonymously.

Video still courtesy of Columbus Police Department

Video available here

Editor’s Note: This story has been updated

An Indianapolis man is dead after taking a car from a crash scene, wrecking it and then running into oncoming traffic Wednesday night on Interstate 65 near Edinburgh.

Bartholomew County deputies were called to the scene of a crash at about 9:21 Wednesday night in the southbound lanes of Interstate 65. But witnesses said that one of the people involved in the initial crash had taken a bystander’s vehicle and then drove off.

A deputy found the missing vehicle which had crashed about half a mile down the interstate. The driver ran from the scene, crossing the cable barrier in the median and then into oncoming traffic. That’s where he was hit and killed by a semi which was unable to stop in time.

The man has been identified as 39-year-old Cordell Jackson Jr. of Indianapolis. Bartholomew County Coroner Clayton Nolting says Jackson died from massive head injuries.

Deputies say that they don’t know why Jackson ran into the oncoming traffic.

The city of Columbus is planning to spend $2.6 million dollars in preliminary work on the former Fair Oaks Mall site, to turn it into NexusPark.

Columbus City Council was asked to approve the additional appropriation this week. It includes include Perkins + Will as architect for about $1.5 million and Taylor Brothers as construction manager for about $685,000. There is also a pool of over $442,000 that would be used for various expenses including demolishing the former Goodies store space, permits and other expenses, says Mary Ferdon, director of administration for the city.

The first phase for the city will include a fieldhouse where the former Goodies store now stands, and administration offices for the city parks department, fitness areas and locker rooms and activity spaces.

The $2.6 million would initially come from the city’s General Fund, but that would be reimbursed once bonds are sold for the construction, Ferdon said.

Money for the construction of the fieldhouse will come from bonds repaid through local income tax revenues, while the other parks-related functions will be paid for by bonds backed by property taxes for parks.

Councilwoman Elaine Hilber expressed concerns, including that the first phases do not include any funds for changes at Donner Center, where the parks offices are currently located.

City Council gave its first approval to the spending at its meeting Tuesday. Hilber voted against the proposal.

State Road 45 near Bean Blossom is scheduled to close next week to replace a drainage structure near Morrison Road. INDOT says that contractors for Duncan Robertson Inc. are planning to start work on Monday on the replacement, which should take about three weeks.

The official detour will take State Road 135 and State Road 46 through Nashville and Bloomington.

The project is part of a $1.2 million rehabilitation contract that also includes a bridge deck overlay on S.R. 135 over Bean Blossom Creek. That project is expected to be complete by the end of August.

INDOT asks you to slow down, to use extra caution and to drive without distractions in all work zones. The work schedule is dependent on the weather.