Month: November 2024

A grand jury in Springfield is indicting a man from the area with sexually exploiting two minors for the purpose of child pornography.

Court documents show that 28-year-old Conor Zacha is accused of producing child pornography with two separate child victims from November of 2022 through April of this year.

He is also accused of traveling with one of the victims across state lines in order to engage in sexual activity consistent with the criminal acts.

The investigation began in June of this year, when Zacha was pulled over by law enforcement with the two victims inside.

Greene County deputies spoke with both victims, who came forward with statements and allegations of his actions towards them.

Authorities seized Zacha’s phone during the investigation, at which time they found numerous photos and videos that corroborated the victim’s allegations of sexual abuse.

Zacha was booked in the Greene County Jail. It is unclear if he is still being held, or if he has posted bond.

Interstate 44 was closed east of Waynesville in Pulaski County due to flooding from the Big Piney River.

MODOT officials say both lanes of I-44 are now opened between mile markers 163 and 169 near Devil’s Elbow.

Adding to the problems on Interstate 44 Wednesday was multiple trucks overturned near Doolittle.

The Highway Patrol says the crash happened at the 178-mile marker in the westbound lane of I-44, just after 8 AM, when two of the trucks slowed for traffic and another truck slammed into the rear of one truck forcing it into the back of the other truck.

The third truck then ran off the road and overturned onto the cable barrier.

The driver of that truck was hospitalized with serious injuries.

A man from Springfield will spend over a decade in prison for his role in a shooting between him and another man outside of the Wicked Superstore in Springfield nearly a year ago.

Investigators say in December of 2023, 24-year-old Airreonte Turner confronted another man outside of the smoke shop located on Kearney near the Benton Avenue intersection.

Turner admitted to pulling out a gun and pointing it at the man during the argument, at which point shots began to be exchanged. Turner himself was shot twice and drove himself to Cox North Hospital.

Greene County Deputies identifying the car en route to the hospital, and observed him with a gunshot wound to his shoulder and thigh.

After receiving treatment, authorities were able to get a statement from Turner, in which he admitted to pointing the gun at someone inside the store, and also admitted to firing shots at the other man during the confrontation.

The investigation, statements from witnesses, and video footage from inside the store that show Turner putting the gun to the other man’s head, lead authorities to believe he was the aggressor in the case.

He pleaded guilty on Tuesday to armed criminal action and unlawful use of a weapon, and was sentenced to ten year and two years, respectively. Those charges will be served consecutively, putting him in prison for 12 years.

Turner was also sentenced to ten years in prison for unlawful possession of a firearm, but that will run concurrently with the armed criminal action charge and will not include any additional prison time.