Police

Three Rivers police are seeking community assistance to identify a suspect wanted for several cases of retail fraud. Police say the man is a black male in his late 40s. He is wanted in connection with several retail frauds in April and June. Thefts exceeded $ 1,000 in merchandise. Meanwhile, Michigan State Police are asking the public for help to …

A jury has found two defendants guilty of murder in the shooting death of an 18-year-old Elkhart man.  Nineteen-year-old Freddie Rhodes and 17-year-old Deante Dalton were convicted Monday after their attorneys declined to call witnesses to testify. They each face up to 65 years in prison.  Rhodes and Dalton were found responsible for the death of Dre Tarrious Rodgers under …

A Sturgis man was not injured in a two-vehicle accident that sent three people to the hospital last week in Cass County. Sheriff’s department deputies said Scott Yoder, 38, was attempting to turn left onto U.S. 12 from M-217 when he failed to yield the right of way to an eastbound car driven by Joanne Mead, 57, of Edwardsburg. Mead …

State Rep. Aaron Miller last week praised Gov. Rick Snyder for signing a fiscally responsible budget that increases funding for classrooms and continues to build a solid public-safety foundation. Miller, chair of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on State Police, said the 2015-2016 budget pays down debt while prioritizing spending for transportation, education and law enforcement. Miller said the budget, after …

A 30-year-old Jones woman entered a plea of no contest in a case related to an early-morning arson at a Three Rivers business last year. Fawn Mott appeared in St. Joseph County Circuit Court last week on a charge of arson, third degree, from a June 23 incident at the Three Rivers Walmart. Judge Paul Stutesman revoked Mott’s $50,000 bond …

Narcotics Investigators from the St. Joseph County Area Narcotics unit executed a search warrant last week on East Main Street in Sturgis. SCAN officers received information about a residence in the 700 block that was reported to have illegal drug activity. After further investigation officers were able to obtain a search warrant. Officers subsequently found methamphetamine and numerous items associated …

The St. Joseph County Sheriff’s Department is advising the public to be aware of a phone scam reported this week by a Fabius Township resident. Deputies were dispatched Tuesday to the 56000 Block of Shady Lane for a complaint regarding fraud. The victim told authorities she was contacted over the phone and told she and her spouse were being pursued …

A former Three Rivers High School teacher who had pleaded no contest to a charge of misdemeanor embezzlement was sentenced Tuesday in St. Joseph County District Court. Judge Robert Pattison sentenced Sara Freeman, 33, to 180 days in the St. Joseph County jail. Freeman, a Burr Oak resident, will serve 120 days of the sentence, with 60 days deferred. She …

A Three Rivers man was charged with drug-related offenses after a search warrant was executed last week by the St. Joseph County Area Narcotics unit. Investigators on June 9 served a search warrant in the 200 block of East Michigan Avenue in the city of Three Rivers. SCAN investigators were alerted after Three Rivers officers were called to the location …

A 1-year-old Mendon boy was treated for minor injuries following a two-vehicle accident last week in Mendon Township. Sheriff’s deputies said Brayden Wolf was in a vehicle driven by 21-year-old Amy Jo Cooley, also of Mendon. Cooley was driving south on Silver Street at 2:30 p.m. June 10 when her vehicle was struck by a car driven by Carroll Haas, …