Authorities with the Indiana Alcohol and Tobacco Commission served search warrants at various restaurants in southeastern Indiana Thursday, including one in Decatur County.

“The Greensburg Daily News” is reporting that El Reparo in Greensburg, along with MezCal and El Reparo in Rushville and El Reparo in Liberty were the subject of the warrants. The paper says that the search warrants were issued following a more than two-year investigation undertaken by the Indiana Department of Revenue and the Indiana Attorney General’s Office.

No arrests have been made and all four restaurants were closed.

For more on this story, visit greensburgdailynews.com.

Some drivers in Jackson County got a smelly surprise on Wednesday.

Sgt. Stephen Wheeles, spokesman for the Indiana State Post in Versailles, says that troopers responded to US 50 near Brownstown after a dump truck with an unsecured gate dumped processed human waste on a three-quarter mile stretch of the road. He says that traffic through the area was briefly slowed as the company cleaned up the mess.

Wheeles went on to say that the waste product was deemed environmentally safe.

A 16-year-old local boy accused of making school threats against Columbus East High School will continue to wear an electronic monitoring ankle bracelet until his next court hearing.

Our news-gathering partners at “The Republic” are reporting that the teen appeared before Bartholomew Juvenile Court Magistrate Heather Mollo on Wednesday for a status hearing on whether electronic monitoring would continue. This after the family requested the boy be moved to home monitoring. The paper says that Mollo ruled to continue the electronic monitoring after consulting with the Bartholomew County prosecutor’s office and juvenile probation.

The former student is accused of posting threatening messages during an incident when students vacated the building after a fire alarm was triggered.

For more on this story, visit therepublic.com.

Local governments in Jackson County are among many in Indiana to receive a share of about $21.6 million in local income tax money the state collected but never distributed.

“The Seymour Tribune” is reporting that the Jackson County Auditor’s Office received just over 192-thousand dollars from the state last week in special local income tax money and distributed it to the county’s 33 taxing units.

State officials with the Indiana Department of Revenue and State Board of Accounts reported two problems that date back to the late 1990s were at the root of the need for the one-time payment. State officials recently discovered the problem while updating computer systems.

For more on this story, go to tribtown.com.

Columbus Police arrested a local man after he allegedly attempted to steal auto parts from inside a fenced area early Thursday morning.

Lt. Matt Harris, spokesman for the department, says that at approximately 12:20 a.m. officers responded to business in the 3000 block of North National Road after an employee observed a suspect hiding inside a fenced-in area on the property. When officers arrived, they reported seeing 39-year-old Jesse R. Bridges, of Columbus, climbing over a large chain link fence. Bridges was quickly apprehended.

Harris says that officers checked the secure fenced area and found several items that were removed from the vehicles and appeared to be staged on the ground outside of the cars. While searching Bridges, police allegedly found several tools and a two-way radio.

Bridges was arrested on preliminary charges of Attempted Theft and Trespassing.

Shared bike paths in Seymour will be painted next week. Mayor Craig Luedeman’s office says that the city’s department of public works and recreation department will be working together, starting Monday, to paint the paths.

City officials say that flyers will be placed at the homes of residents who will need to remove their vehicles during the project. This includes homes on:

Third Street, from Blish to Kessler;
Fifth Street, from Kessler to Blish;
Kasting, from Laurel Street to Wendemere;
Wendemere to Poplar Street;
Poplar Street from Wendemere to Laurel

Mayor Luedeman’s office notes that this work is dependent on the weather and could be rescheduled.

Rose Acre Farms was victorious in a recent lawsuit. The agriculture website, agdaily.com is reporting that the egg producer faced an action brought by a class of direct purchasers alleging that it conspired with others to reduce the supply of eggs in the country. Last week a jury returned a complete defense verdict in Rose Acre’s favor.

According to the report, Rose Acre is one of three egg producers who received the favorable verdict in a case that began in 2008. Plaintiffs alleged that some egg producers committed antitrust violations by engaging in a conspiracy to raise shell egg prices by reducing the supply of eggs through the development and implementation of an animal welfare program designed to give caged egg-laying hens more space. The class was seeking more than $1 billion in damages, which could have resulted in a $3 billion verdict after trebling.

Additional affordable housing units are closer to becoming a reality after the Columbus City Council took action Tuesday night to help that project along. Robin Hilber is with the city’s department of redevelopment. She says the proposed Gladstone Apartments will be off of State Street…

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The complex would allow residents who earn 60 percent of the average median income.

Council approved a resolution including naming that property an economic revitalization area, and another offering a 10-year tax abatement.

Being in a designated ERA will greatly help the developer in getting state tax credits, making the project financially feasible. In paperwork filed with the city, the developer estimates this $11 million project will be completed in April of 2020, if the state tax credits are approved.

A former local volleyball coach who pleaded guilty to three Class C felony child molesting counts in April, was sentenced to 20 years in prison. Our news-gathering partners at “The Republic” are reporting that Bruce Giggy was sentenced Tuesday in Bartholomew Superior Court 1.

The paper is reporting that Judge Jim Worton sentenced Giggy to six years and eight months on each count, ordering them to be served consecutively. That means each sentence is served separately. The earliest Giggy will be eligible for parole is 2028.

The report also states that Giggy was ordered to register as a sex offender and to have no contact with any of the victims in the original five counts.

For more on this story, go to TheRepublic.com.

The subject of illegal immigrants being separated from their children has received increasing attention over the last several days. With that, Bartholomew County Indivisible has announced a rally to take place Wednesday evening. Kari Tyree is a member of the organization’s immigration subcommittee.

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Tyree says the ultimate goal is to end the practice of family separation.

Officials say that Wednesday’s rally will occur, rain or shine, beginning at 5:30 p.m. on the steps of Columbus City Hall. Bartholomew County Indivisible’s Facebook page is calling for people to show up with signs aimed at President Trump, Vice President Mike Pence and Attorney General Jeff Sessions.

The Trump Administration says it is merely enforcing the law and is urging Congress to address it. As for children being separated from their parents, the administration notes that thousands of children are being sent, unaccompanied, in an effort to earn “refugee” status. They say that, often times, the parents will show up at the border at a later date and are counting on being reunited with their children and allowed to stay in the country. Officials also note that human-trafficking is a major concern, especially with these unaccompanied minors. President Trump again reinforced his position on Tuesday that unfettered illegal immigration into the U.S. must be stopped.