Two traffic stops leave three people facing felony drug charges in Bureau County

More than 100 pounds of marijuana is what police officers say they found after stopping two people from New York in Bureau County.  24-year-old Ariel Zapata and 25-year-old Dominic Thompson were arrested Thursday after being stopped on Interstate 80 by a Bureau County Sheriff’s Deputy.

Police say they searched the car and found 109 pounds of marijuana.  Zapata and Thompson were arrested for unlawful possession of cannabis with the intent to deliver, a class X felony. They were being held in the Bureau County Jail with their bonds set at $100,000.

Their arrests follow a similar arrest made Wednesday. 75-year-old Ray Slife of Colorado was arrested for unlawful possession of cannabis with intent to deliver, a class three felony.

Slife is accused of having four pounds of marijuana when he was pulled over Wednesday on I-80 in Bureau County. Slife was being held on $30,000 bond.

Officers with the drug team TRIDENT are also involved in the investigations.

Streator churches to participate in organ music festival

The 16^th Annual “Pipe Dreams” organ festival returns to Streator this weekend. Organists from five churches will perform Saturday and Sunday.

Saturday’s schedule includes performances in Park Presbyterian Church at 1pm, at Holy Trinity Lutheran at 2pm, and at First United Methodist Church at 3pm. Sunday’s schedule includes performances at Christ Episcopal Church at 2pm and at St. Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran at 3pm.

Admission is free but donations are accepted on behalf of the Streator Grade School chorus and band programs. Pipe Dreams started as a fundraiser for the Streator Red Cross Board.

Peru woman faces two felony charges after September fatal crash

Five months after a crash on Route 251 that killed well-known teacher, a woman was arrested for aggravated DUI and possession of a controlled substance.

Margaret Insco of Peru was arrested at her home Thursday on a La Salle County warrant. Insco is accused of being under the influence when she hit a pickup truck and a car the morning of September 8.

The crash killed 57-year-old Kim Parsons of Spring Valley and left Insco hospitalized.

Peru Police Chief Doug Bernabei says it is not uncommon for charges to be filed this long after a fatal crash as investigators were waiting for test results.

Insco is being held in the La Salle County Jail with her bond set at $500,000.

Trial delayed for Oglesby woman accused of stealing from contracting company

A million dollar embezzlement case in La Salle is still weeks away from a potential jury trial.

Connie Steinbach of Oglesby was in court Thursday for a status hearing. The prosecution and defense are continuing to exchange documents including financial records that the prosecution believes will show Steinbach stole over a million dollars while working for JB Contracting. She’s accused of embezzling the money over a six-year period.

Steinbach is out of custody after posting $10,000 bond. She faces 6 to 30 years in prison if convicted for a Class X felony of theft.

Her next status hearing is Thursday, March 26th.

New mobile app for Illinois Valley Community College

With just the touch of your Android or iPhone you can take a virtual tour and stay connected with the new Illinois Valley Community College app.

For current students, the app allows you to check grades, register for classes and get campus notifications. For alums or parents you can keep up to date with a link to the campus newspaper and calendar of events. The app also features maps of both the Oglesby and Ottawa campuses along with parking information.

To get the IVCC app, go to your App store and search for and install Ellucian Go. Once you have that, just search for Illinois Valley Community College.

La Salle Involuntary manslaughter case moves forward in court

The La Salle man facing involuntary manslaughter and home invasion charges showed up in court Thursday.

21-year-old Darnell Williams was represented by a public defender for the first time since he was arrested Saturday at the La Salle home of his stepfather Mark Jonas. Williams is accused of hitting Jonas with a plastic shovel, gas can and rock after Jonas confronted Williams who kicked his door in. Williams was allegedly trying to get his mom to sign over a car title.

Jonas went unresponsive during the scuffle and was pronounced dead at Illinois Valley Community Hospital. The doctor who performed an autopsy on Jonas says he died from a heart attack.

Williams is being held on a million dollars bond. His case will go before a grand jury March 10th and he’s due to be arraigned March 19th.

An all-woman performance runs this weekend at Streator’s Engle Lane Theater

The story of how you found the career you have might just be more interesting than what it is you do.  A performance this weekend at Engle Lane Theater in Streator is a collection of monologues by a dozen women talking about their careers.

“Blue Yonder” is directed by Angie McKenzie.  She directed the show last year in Ottawa using the same cast.

Performances are Friday and Saturday nights at 7:30pm and Sunday at 2pm. You can reserve tickets by leaving a message with the Engle Lane box office.