The F-B-I says a fugitive on its Ten Most Wanted list may be in Central Missouri.
Donald Fields II is wanted for child sex trafficking and has been on the run from the law since 2022.
F-B-I agents say he may be working at cash jobs like tree trimming to support himself.
Fields has a large tribal print tattoo near his right shoulder.
The F-B-I has a reward of up to 250-thousand dollars for information leading to fields’ arrest.
A mutli-county drug bust has landed seven individuals in custody for conspiracy to distribute meth.
Investigators say the seven were allegedly conspiring to distribute the drug in several counties in the Ozarks, including Jasper, Greene, Vernon, and Newton counties between January and May of 2024.
It was a large task force that helped make the bust, which included authorities from Springfield, Joplin, Jasper County, Greene County, Vernon County, Missouri State Highway Patrol, the ATF, the DEA, and several others.
Below is a list of the seven individuals in custody, and their respective charges:
A man has plead guilty to threatening children and their parents outside a Springfield church.
Shane Silvey entered a guilty plea for second-degree terroristic threats.
He is sentenced to a four-year suspended execution of sentence.
He could get four years in prison if he violates his probation.
Springfield Police arrested Silvey after he was making threats about wanting to shoot people in the parking lot of Schweitzer Church in May.
Seven people have been indicted by a federal grand jury for their roles in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.
The defendants are either southwest Missouri residents or Mexican nationals.
The all of the seven defendants were charged in a 16-count indictment returned under seal by a federal grand jury in Springfield.
In addition, some of the defendants were charged with possession of drugs and firearms as well as money laundering.
Here is the Department of Justice news release on this case.
SPRINGFIELD, Mo. – Seven defendants who are either southwest Missouri residents or Mexican nationals have been indicted by a federal grand jury for their roles in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine.
Wilbert Pacheco-Salazar, 36, a citizen of Mexico residing in Springfield, Mo., Frank Lee Chapman, 35, and Omar Rosales-Olmos, 51, a citizen of Mexico, both of Joplin, Mo., Jaime Francisco Figueroa, 42, and Issac Alan Schilling, 32, both of Carthage, Mo., Evan Lance Masters, 47, of Sarcoxie, Mo., and Indelfonso Vazquez-Martinez, 52, a citizen of Mexico, were charged in a 16-count indictment returned under seal by a federal grand jury in Springfield on June 26, 2024.
That indictment has been unsealed and made public following the arrests of all the defendants except Vazquez-Martinez.
The federal indictment alleges that all seven defendants participated in a conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine in Greene, Jasper, Newton, and Vernon Counties from Jan. 1, 2020, to May 1, 2024. The indictment also alleges that Vazquez-Martinez and Rosales-Olmos participated in a conspiracy to commit money laundering related to conducting financial transactions of drug-trafficking proceeds.
In addition to the methamphetamine conspiracy, Pacheco-Salazar is charged with one count of possessing cocaine with the intent to distribute and one count of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime. Pacheco-Sanchez allegedly possessed a Remington 7mm rifle on April 4, 2021.
Rosales-Olmos is also charged with two counts of possessing methamphetamine with the intent to distribute and one count of possessing firearms in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime. Rosales-Olmos allegedly possessed a Smith & Wesson 9mm semi-automatic pistol, a Sig Sauer .40-caliber semi-automatic pistol, and a Westernfield 12-gauge pump-action shotgun on April 4, 2021.
Chapman, Schilling, and Masters each are also charged with one count of possessing methamphetamine with the intent to distribute.
Chapman is also charged with one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm. Chapman, who has prior felony convictions, allegedly possessed a Taurus semi-automatic pistol on Sept. 10, 2023.
Figueroa is also charged with three counts of possessing methamphetamine with the intent to distribute, one count of possessing a firearm in furtherance of a drug-trafficking crime, and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm. Figuero, who has prior felony convictions, allegedly possessed an FMK 9mm semi-automatic pistol on Jan. 30, 2024.
The charges contained in this indictment are simply accusations, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charges must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney J. D. Hatcher. It was investigated by the Springfield, Mo., Police Department, the Narcotics Enforcement Team, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Ozark Drug Enforcement Team, the Joplin, Mo., Police Department, the Newton County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department, the Jasper County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department, the Vernon County, Mo., Sheriff’s Department, and the Missouri State Highway Patrol.
The Missouri Highways and Transportation has approved a plan to spend almost 15 Billion Dollars on road and bridge projects over the next 5 years.
This means hundreds of millions of dollars for roads and bridges in the Ozarks.
MODoT district planning manager Frank Miller says projects will include widening I-44 in Springfield and Joplin, improving the I-44 Kansas Expressway interchange, and relocating Highway MM and a railroad overpass in Republic near the Amazon facility.
Investigators are trying to determine the cause of a fire that damaged a convenience store in south Springfield.
Firefighters were called to The 6 Eleven Convenience Store Wednesday night near Campbell and Sunshine, and were able to put out the fire rather quickly.
Authorities say the fire was doused in about 10 minutes, but not before the flames and smoke did extensive damage to the convenience store, and several neighboring businesses.
The 6 Eleven was closed at the time the fire started, so no injuries were reported with the blaze.
Fire officials say the business had only been open for a few weeks at the time of the fire.
A man from Springfield is in custody on charges that he physically and sexually abused a 17-year-old girl.
Prosecutors say 28-year-old Connor Zacha faces 22 felony charges, including:
Zacha was arrested after authorities conducted a traffic stop on June 20. Two juvenile girls were inside the car, where one of the two reported that he had sexually abused her while she was homeless.
She claimed he had abused her over 20 times.
The victim told police that she agreed to have sex with Zacha in exchange for drugs, and would often wake up from being unconscious to him assaulting her.
She also claimed that he was physically abusive, and once through her through a wall, covered the hole with boards and held her captive for eight days without food.
The victim also said that Zacha admitted to creating and selling sexually explicit images of underage children. He claimed he would give the girls tattoo in exchange for nude photos.
When authorities conducted a search of his residence, they found firearms, drug paraphernalia, sexually explicit material considered child pornography, and an explosive device.
Zacha is being held in the Greene County Jail without bond. A potential first court appearance date has not been revealed.
A man has been charged after allegedly shooting another man outside a business in west Springfield.
Court documents say 38-year-old Jacob Elder of Nixa (pictured) is charged with shooting at another person, armed criminal action, unlawful possession of a firearm, and resisting arrest.
A probable cause statement says a security camera showed Elder was in a loud argument with another man at a business on Scenic Avenue.
Elder shot the victim as he walked away.
The victim’s injuries were not serious.
Elder is in the Greene County Jail without bond.
The National Weather Service says a tornado touched down last Wednesday night in Stone County.
The Weather Service in Springfield confirms an EF-0 tornado touched down around 8 PM Wednesday, July 3rd, near Cape Fair and Branson West.
The tornado measured 150 yards with winds up to 80 MPH.
The tornado traveled on the ground for one mile.
A second woman is now being sentenced for her role in the death of a child in a neglect or endangerment case.
Prosecutors say Danielle Gerdes entered an Alford Plea on Tuesday, July 9, to two counts of abuse or neglect of a child, and one count of endangering the welfare of a child.
Her mother, Cheri Beason, pleaded guilty to similar charges earlier this year and was sentenced to 120 days in jail and five years of supervised probation.
On August 10, 2017, the two were operating Books and Blocks Child Care when Beason left, leaving Gerdes alone with 25 children.
It was on that day that four-month-old Brynlee Jones died while at the daycare in Rogersville.
Gerdes was sentenced five your probation as part of the plea agreement.
Neither of the women will be permitted to operate a daycare in the future. If that agreement is broken, they could spend up to six years in prison.