Thursday April 25,
2013
50 cents
Daily Corinthian Vol. 117, No. 99
land. Before Curtis left jail, authorities had already descended on the home of 41-yearold Everett Dutschke in Tupelo. On Wednesday, they searched the site of a Tupelo martial arts studio once Curtis operated by Dutschke, who hasn’t been arrested or charged. His attorney, Lori Nail Basham, said Dutschke is “cooperating fully” with investigators and that no arrest warrant had been issued.
Associated Press
OXFORD — The investigation into poisoned letters mailed to President Barack Obama and others has shifted from an Elvis impersonator to his longtime foe, and authorities must now figure out if an online feud between the two men might have escalated into something more sinister. Paul Kevin Curtis, 45, was released from a north Mississippi jail on Tuesday and charges against him were dropped, nearly a week after authorities charged him with sending ricin-laced letters to the president, Republican U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi and an 80-year-old Lee County Justice Court judge, Sadie Hol-
Curtis, who performs as Elvis and other celebrities, describes a bizarre, yearslong feud between the two, but Dutschke insists he had nothing to do with the letters. They contained language identical to that found on Curtis’ Facebook page and other websites, making him an early suspect. Federal authorities have not said what led them to drop the charges against Curtis, and his lawyers say they’re not sure what new evidence the FBI has found. After being released from jail Tuesday, Curtis described a long feud between himself and Dutschke, but said he’s not sure exactly what started it. It involves the men’s time working together, a broken promise to help with a book by Curtis
and an acrimonious exchange of emails, according to Curtis. The two worked together at Curtis’ brother’s insurance office years ago, Curtis said. He said Dutschke told him he owned a newspaper and showed interest in publishing his book called “Missing Pieces,” about what Curtis considers an underground market to sell body parts. But Dutschke decided not to publish the material, Curtis said, and later began stalking him on the Internet. For his part, Dutschke said he didn’t even know Curtis that well. “He almost had my sympathy until I found out that he was trying to blame somebody Please see FEUD | 2
Officials arrest five in Booneville theft ring Caldwell Road, Booneville; and John Vincent Shanks, 50, of 407 Walker Ave., Booneville. Field faces one charge of grand larceny while the other four suspects face six charges of grand larceny, said Ramey. “It appears these individuals had been going to a warehouse in Booneville where North American Pipe was storing some equipment from another facility out of state,” he said. “Over several occasions equipment was stolen and taken to a scrap yard in the county and sold. “Some of the equipment has been recovered while some had already been done away with.” SMC Recycling cooperated with the investigation, he said. “The case had a break when some of this stolen property was
BY ANGELA STOREY astorey@dailycorinthian.com
Five people have been arrested in connection with the theft of approximately $900,000 to a million dollars worth of equipment stolen from a North American Pipe warehouse in Booneville and taken to a local scrap yard and sold. Booneville Police Department’s Criminal Investigation Division (CID) has been working on this case some five to six months, said Police Chief Michael Ramey. Arrested were: Michael Daniel McNees, 27, of 111 Jefferson St., Booneville; Jackie Zaccheus Field, 29, of 101 Bell Ave., Booneville; Jason Lee Smith, 34, of 81 CR 1210, Booneville; David Michael Gauthier, 30, of 202 West
actually recovered at the scrap yard and then investigators started going back through tickets from the scrap yard.” Several thousand pounds of metal were apparently stolen and processed. One of the items stolen weighed around 5,000 pounds. The warehouse housing the items was actually North American Pipe’s old building across from Plumrose. The scrap yard paid in excess of $30,000 for the items. West Lake Chemical of Houston, Texas, the owner of North American Pipe, hired a private investigation firm to also work on the case, said Ramey. Charges against all five suspects were presented to a Prentiss County grand jury, which then returned indictments
against the suspects, he said. “Some remain in jail for different reasons because of probation violations or are waiting to make bond,” Ramey said. The grand jury also returned an indictment against Gauthier on a charge of burglary of a commercial building, a case also presented by Booneville CID, he said. This charge stemmed from the burglary of a shed on Caldwell Road. Two of the suspects, McNees and Smith, were transported by Booneville PD from Missouri to Booneville after being extradited to face the local charges. McNees is originally from Missouri, he said. There may be future charges Please see THEFT | 2
FAA report: Severe weather caused plane crash last July left wreckage scattered across a large area just off of County Road 4111 near New Site High School on July 8. Bartley, his wife, Terry Hammond Bartley and their daughter, Caroline Victoria Bartley, a student at the University of Mississippi, were killed in the crash. The family was traveling from Andrews, N.C. where the family had a vacation home to Oxford when the plane encountered the violent storm. The factual report on the crash released last week by the FAA states James Bartley, an experienced pilot with multiple certifications, contacted the Memphis Air Route Traffic
BY BRANT SAPPINGTON bsappington@dailycorinthian.com
A new report from the Federal Aviation Administration appears to point towards severe weather as the likely cause of a plane crash near New Site that claimed the lives of three members of a Georgia family last July. Severe thunderstorms were located directly in the flight path of the single-engine Piper Cherokee Lance piloted by Georgia podiatrist Dr. James Joseph Bartley Jr. The plane was spotted by witnesses entering a storm cloud and then exiting the cloud in a vertical dive prior to the crash which
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Men’s feud looms over ricin probe BY EMILY WAGSTER PETTUS AND HOLBROOK MOHR
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Control Center shortly prior to the crash and indicated heavy weather was building up near the plane and he was planning to deviate from his original course to find a way around the storm. Weather information from surrounding airports and the National Weather Service indicated significant thunderstorm activity in the area in close proximity to the plane’s flight path. The FAA report states the plane was not equipped with its own weather radar system but had a receiver for XM WX Satellite Weather, a realtime, high resolution weather service used by pilots of small to medium-
Second intersection meeting set BY JEBB JOHNSTON jjohnston@dailycorinthian.com
The discussion of removing Liddon Lake Road from the intersection of U.S. Highway 72 and South Parkway is not yet over. A special meeting of the Board of Mayor and Aldermen is set for 10 a.m. Monday for further discussion of the proposed changes at the intersection of the three roads. Eddie Robinson, traffic signal engineer with the Mississippi Department of Transportation, will again be present, along with representatives of Cook Coggin Engineers, to discuss the project and answer questions. In a special meeting earlier this week, the board voted 4-2 to scrap one of the three components of the project — the removal of Liddon Lake Road from the intersection. If removed, a new connector road to the highway would be built near Auto Zone. Mayor Tommy Irwin said that meeting included input only from residents who are opposed to the change to Liddon Lake Road, and he has since been overwhelmed with reaction from people who feel the project should move forward as originally proposed. Please see MEETING | 2
PBS ‘Roads’ show features Jimbo Mathus BY BOBBY J. SMITH bjsmith@dailycorinthian.com
sized aircraft. The report goes on to state that FAA guides encourage pilots to avoid traveling into areas where storms could occur and not to attempt to use electronic weather data information to attempt to navigate a flight path around severe storms. The crash brought a massive response from area law enforcement, fire departments, rescue squads and the general public who gathered at a staging area at New Site High School and then fanned out across the area aboard ATVs, horses and on foot to search for the plane and
Corinth and one of her native sons will be in the spotlight on the new episode of Mississippi Roads, premiering tonight at 7 p.m. on Mississippi Public Broadcasting. Tonight’s show will focus on the music and life of Corinth native Jimbo Mathus, an award-winning musician whose genre-jumping style defies easy categorization. “This segment is a slice-of-life with Jimbo Mathus,” said John Allen, producer of the show. “We look at who Jimbo Mathus is. He’s impossible to pin down, and his music spreads across genres.” The show begins with Mathus taking the Mississippi Roads crew on a tour of his youth in
Please see CRASH | 2
Please see ‘ROADS’ | 3
Vera Bradley’s daughter talks breast cancer awareness BY BOBBY J. SMITH bjsmith@dailycorinthian.com
A local clothing and accessories boutique welcomed an ambassador from the world of fashion this week. Joan Bradley Reedy, the daughter of Vera Bradley — namesake of the popular design company known for its patterned bags — visited Ginger’s to talk about her mother, the Vera Bradley designs and how to make a difference in the fight against breast cancer. “This is extremely exciting,”
said store owner Ginger Stockton. “This is a rare opportunity, not only for our town, but for the state.” As ambassador for Vera Bradley, Reedy travels around the country sharing the company’s story as well as personal stories about her mother and the Vera Bradley Foundation’s support for breast cancer research. “We’ve pledged $20 million for breast cancer research in Indianapolis — and have raised Please see BRADLEY | 2
Staff photo by Bobby J. Smith
Vera Bradley sales representative Mary Austin Jones, Ginger’s store Vera Bradley specialist Heather Kuykendall, Vera Bradley Foundation ambassador Joan Bradley Reedy and store owner Ginger Stockton got together in the Vera Bradley section at Ginger’s.
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On this day in history 150 years ago
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Pro-Confederate Cherokee troops under Gen. Stand Watie engage Union troops in the Indian Territory while Apaches, who have no interest in the war, attack Union troops near Fort Bowie in Arizona Territory.
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