Four people have been arrested in connection to the Tuesday death of Charles Bethel in Bartlesville. Omar Marano, Cynthia Fish and Amber Hall all made court appearances in Washington County on Wednesday.
Bartlesville Police Sergeant Daniel Elkins was on the lookout for a fourth suspect, Austin Prater, who was arrested later that day. Marano is being held on recommended charges of murder in the first degree while Fish and Hall could be charged with conspiracy. Prater has yet to be presented with charges. According to an affidavit, the victim had asked Hall if she wanted to hang out and smoke methamphetamine. Hall took offense to this. Marano and Fish helped her devise a plan to rob Bethel. She told him to arrive at 1116 South Maple Avenue in Bartlesville, a residence that belonged to Marano. The three were hanging out at a different residence on Armstrong Avenue in Bartlesville. The two left together and arrived at the Maple Ave. home. A witness statement says the two arrived in a truck. She saw a male exit the truck with a baseball bat in his hands. She heard screams of pain coming from inside the residence. The witness—Bethel’s roommate—went into the home and found him bleeding from his head. Police say there was evidence of blood related to a violent crime in the room. A bat matching the description was found behind the Armstrong Ave. residence later. The witness took Bethel back to the residence they shared in Shidler, Oklahoma. She says he refused medical attention. When the witness woke up in the morning she found Bethel dead in his bed. Elkins comments on what he has learned from the investigation thus far. Bond for Marano was set at $500,000. Fish and Hall’s bonds were each set at $250,000. All three will appear in court on Friday where formal charges could be presented. As Prater walked into the Washington County Detention Center, our news partners with the News on 6 caught Prater saying, "I had nothing to do with it." The Pawhuska City Council held a special called meeting Wednesday evening to appoint an interim city manager after Dave Neely turned in his resignation last Friday. City Clerk Tonya Bright was hired on to fill that void for the time being, but there were other items the council needed to discuss as the coronavirus has been the topic of discussion across the nation recently.
The council decided to close the Pawhuska community center, Pawhuska public library and the Pawhuska fitness center until further notice. City Hall will remain open, but Mayor Roger Taylor says it is important to take the proper precautions in these uncertain times. The next regularly scheduled Pawhuska City Council meeting will take place Tuesday, April 14th at 5:30 in the evening. For the most part, The Tulsa International Airport continues to operate business as usual in the midst of the coronavirus outbreak. The Director of Airport Development and Marketing, Andrew Pierini did say they are taking extra precautions to keep surfaces clean.
Pierini went on to say that most restaurants in the airport have reduced their hours, but remain open. He did say they are practicing social distancing, as many chairs and tables have been removed. Pierini said the number of people coming in and out of the airport has been constant and daily routines are largely the same. Pierini said those entering the airport have been following protocol with no issues. Kansas Governor Laura Kelly made the announcement Tuesday afternoon that all public schools will be closed for the remainder of the semester. Kelly made it clear that school will still go on, as she said there is a task force in place right now that is working on ways to allow students to learn in the most effective way possible.
The task force will produce a report in the near future about the best way to proceed. In the wake of Monday mornings announcement that the Board of Osage County Commissioners have decided to close all county-owned properties, Executive Director for Osage County Tourism, Kelly Bland, still said Osage County is a bright spot for people to come visit.
Bland said the tourism board had been following the lead of the Pioneer Woman Mercantile in terms of promotion. It was announced Monday afternoon that the Pioneer Woman Mercantile would be closed through Saturday, March 28th. This will change the way Bland operates moving forward. Bland recently returned from a successful trip in St. Louis where she got to mingle with more than 40,000 people. She was scheduled to go to a trip in northwest Arkansas this month, but she said that has been postponed until further noticed. The board approved Bland to use $2,500 to advertise the Ben Johnson Memorial Steer Roping Event in June. A press release from Elder Care states that their board of directors have decided to close its building to the public through Tuesday, March 31st.
The release states that the decision was made in part because of the most recent government recommendations and in an effort to keep clients, staff and visitors safe. The release further stated that community health and safety is paramount and that Elder Care staff have been asked to stay home with compensation during this time. The Bohon Senior Health Clinic will remain open with access only granted to scheduled patients. Brighter Living Companion Services and Care Management will continue serving their clients as long as safely possible. The state of Oklahoma is beginning to see the trickle down effect of the financial losses that the coronavirus brings with it. A major industry that will be affected includes those in the restaurant business. Owner of Dink's Real Pit BBQ and Sterlings Grille, Jim Curd, says he is taking the proper precautions.
Curd is also a member of the Bartlesville City Council. Curd knows this will be a challenge, but he expects the community to pull through. As of right now, Curd is keeping his restaurants open, but they are limiting hours. Dine-in seating is available, but they are practicing social distancing by spacing their tables apart. All access to Osage County owned property will be suspended to the public for two weeks effective immediately. This includes buildings such as the courthouse, sheriff's office and fairgrounds buildings. All events scheduled to take place at these county-owned buildings are also suspended. Osage county employees will still work. Osage County District Attorney Mike Fisher explains what it takes for the commissioners to make that decision.
This is something the commissioners will re-visit on a weekly basis until they feel it is safe to open the buildings back up. Osage County Sheriff Eddie Virden said his officers will begin policing things a little bit differently as well. Fisher explains how that process will work. Virden was sure to let the public know that if he runs across a violent criminal who is a danger to society, he or she would be arrested. Pawhuska City Manager Dave Neely has resigned from his post effective immediately. Neely didn’t want to comment on the matter, citing that his reason for resignation involved an employee situation. Following a nearly two-hour long executive session meeting at Pawhuska City Hall, this is how things unfolded.
Neely had served as the City Manager of Pawhuska since August 1stof 2019. In mid-January, Neely suspended former Pawhuska Police Chief Nick Silva for alleged misconduct with a confidential informant. Silva was cleared of those charges in Washington County Court earlier this month. There will be a meeting at 5 p.m. this Wednesday to hire an interim city manager. A Bartlesville man has been arrested and is being charged with his second offense of driving under the influence since the start of 2020. Charles Cody Cummings is also being charged with driving with a canceled, suspended or revoked license, resisting arrest and malicious injury or destruction to property.
On Wednesday evening, police officers received a phone call regarding a rolling domestic assault and battery traveling northbound on highway 75 near Ochelata. Officers learned that there were two passengers in the car and said car was traveling in excess of 100 miles per hour. After several location updates, officers located the vehicle near 2400 Rd and Silverlake Rd. The officers chased the vehicle for a short time before Cummings parked the car. Officers instructed Cummings to get out of the vehicle and he was informed that he was being placed into investigate detention. Officers noticed Cummings was sweating profusely and that his muscles were twitching uncontrollably. His mood would swing rapidly as well. Officers determined that he was under the influence of methamphetamine and alcohol. While talking to the two victims, officers noted that they were driving back from Tulsa and Cummings demanded to drive. During the ride home, an argument broke out causing his driving to become erratic. They asked Cummings to pull over so that someone else could drive multiple times. Cummings saw his bond set at $25,000. He is next due back in court on Friday, March 27th at 9 a.m. |
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