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Defendant who was serving life for murder gets unusual deal

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:43 GMT

ST. LOUIS – A man who admitted in court that he’s a killer received an unusual plea deal Thursday. Moments after Darin Schmidt, now 37, admitted his crime, he learned he’ll soon be eligible for parole.Three witnesses took the stand in Schmidt’s 2019 St. Louis murder trial, all testifying that defendant Schmidt admitted to them that he shot and killed music promoter David Bewig Jr. A jury returned a guilty verdict that an appeals court later overturned on a technicality. The three witnesses then failed to continue cooperating.In a cruel twist for the Bewig family, this was the first day in five years that the defendant took accountability, in court, for shooting and killing their loved one.“He admitted to it, and he gets a deal,” David Bewig Sr. said.Bewig Jr. was shot and killed while sitting in his car in north St. Louis in 2016. Lawmaker to review law ‘in-depth’ after cars with expired tags towed from driveways “He wouldn’t take the stand in the first trial,” Bewig Sr. said.A un...

Webster Groves C.J. Muggs closes; employees and locals say last goodbyes as new restaurant will take its place

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:43 GMT

WEBSTER GROVES, Mo. - C.J. Mugg's Bar and Grill in Webster Groves prepared its staff and long-time customers for a harsh reality: they would be shutting down on Thursday.The city has now announced that a new Italian-style restaurant will take its place. It was nearly a full house inside the pub-style grill by later in the evening.However, the employees are still in shock."It will be devastating for our regulars and for us because this is such a family unit of a place," said one of the girls who has worked at C.J. Muggs for nearly 10 years.It's the family bond that the employees have developed over time, but as the building sits steadily on the corner, it has now become anything but inside."It's unfortunate just watching the staff because nobody knew it was going to happen," said BJ Bupillo, an attorney who owns the firm just across the street. Federal charges in robbery, murder of St. Louis Kitchen owner C.J.'s is one of his go-to places. Bupillo recalled the moments when employee...

Mayor's driveway: Expired plates and dealer tags

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:43 GMT

JENNINGS, Mo. - The mayor of Jennings has been driving a car with dealer plates while a car with expired tags is parked in his home's driveway.The Fox Files started to investigate towing practices after a resident called FOX 2 to report the city was trying to tow his vehicle with expired tags from his private driveway.St. Louis County police officers were called, and the truck was never towed.While trying to get answers about the tow, Jennings Mayor Gary Johnson canceled our interview and began ignoring our calls. We waited for him to show up at a city council meeting and, when he did, the mayor was driving a car with dealer tags.According to the Missouri Department of Revenue, the plates are connected to Drive Right Auto on West Florissant. Lawmaker to review law ‘in-depth’ after cars with expired tags towed from driveways Missouri Secretary of State records reveal the business is owned by two men; neither are Gary Johnson. One of the owners appears to be the mayor's business par...

How to keep your pets cool in the summertime

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:43 GMT

ST. LOUIS - The dangerous heat has pet owners looking for ways to keep their animals cool. A handful of people braved the heat at Creve Coeur Memorial Lake Park, which is normally full of runners, kayakers, and dogs."I wouldn't bring him around this park. It's just way too hot for him," said Derrick Burney.He said keeping his dog, King, cool in the summertime is a top priority."We don't let him out a lot because it's extremely hot, but when we do let him out, like in our yard," Burney said. "We have a little sprinkler system, and we play out there with him, and he likes running in the water."Dr. Jennifer Pearl with the Humane Society said there are a few lesser-known actions pet owners can take to cool their pets. Federal charges in robbery, murder of St. Louis Kitchen owner "Offering water is good, but when they're panting very heavily, it's hard to drink water, it's hard to drink enough," Pearl said. "So getting cool by other means is good. Getting the paw pads wet is a good one...

A deeper look into fatal Greyhound bus crash, some say it could have been prevented

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:43 GMT

HIGHLAND, Ill. - The deadly mass casualty crash on Interstate 70 east of St. Louis could have and should have been prevented, according to St. Louis area Congressman Mike Bost.His district borders the crash scene near Highland, Illinois, about 35 miles from downtown St. Louis.“There are not enough areas, safe areas, for our commercial drivers to pull into (for rest),” Bost said.The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) confirmed that rest area safety and a lack of available parking for commercial trucks were potential contributing factors to the crash. It was around 2:00 a.m. Wednesday when a Greyhound bus headed from Indianapolis to St. Louis crashed into three semi-trucks parked on the shoulder of the Silver Lake Rest Area entrance, killing three and injuring 14.Truck drivers commonly park in such spots to get their federally mandated rest when all the rest area parking spots were full. Lawmaker to review law ‘in-depth’ after cars with expired tags towed from driveways “Ev...

Severe storm left behind debris and tree limbs around St. Louis County

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:43 GMT

ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. - Debris and tree limbs could be found across south St. Louis County after Wednesday's storm."We're trying to get a little bit cut up at a time. Maybe cut that end off, and maybe we can get it off there," said Tom Carter.He said Thursday morning that he came home to chaos."I got four trees in the back that's down. This whole privacy fence is down," Carter said. "The roof off the shed and the roof off my house is tore up."He estimated around $8,000 of damage to his roof and has already filed an insurance claim. Federal charges in robbery, murder of St. Louis Kitchen owner "Pay insurance. You're going to use it one day. I paid 30 years and I never used it, but I will now," Carter said.Down the street, Ameren trucks and tree cutters flooded the streets."I've already got power back; they've been out here all night, and they did a phenomenal job," said Clint Cafolla.He said the strong winds didn't last long."I didn't hear the typical, you know, it sounded like a f...

Spire warns of misinformation online regarding customers’ bills

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:43 GMT

ST. LOUIS - “It’s gotten a little more concerning lately because we’re getting about one a day," said Christopher Gagliano, Spire Vice President of Customer Experience. Federal charges in robbery, murder of St. Louis Kitchen owner “They send in their bill stub, and they’ll write some information on the bill stub, usually from the Uniform Commercial Code," he said. "They will attach IRS Form 1040 or 1041. In a lot of cases, customers are getting that information notarized, and then they’re sending it to us via certified mail.”Gagliano said Spire customers are doing this in response to posts they’ve seen on various social media platforms.“The folks who’re sharing this information are saying that they’re financial experts," he said. "They’re quoting things like the Uniform Commercial Code, Federal Reserve, and even in some cases, telling customers to send in an IRS Form 1040 or 1041 in lieu of actually making a payment for their bills.”Simply put, Gagliano said people are wasting tim...

After You Paid For It expose, Interim director of East St. Louis Housing Authority suspended

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:43 GMT

EAST ST. LOUIS, Ill. – The interim executive director of the East St Louis Housing Authority has been suspended following a You Paid For It expose on horrendous conditions in an apartment in the Gompers Housing Project.Meanwhile, Serria Hall, the mother of three whose bug-ridden apartment was featured in the FOX 2 report, has been moved to new residence in the Gompers development.Interim Executive Director Angela Russell-Perry came under heavy fire after the story aired. The Housing Authority Board of Directors met Wednesday and decided to suspend her.FOX 2 could not get hold of any members of the board. However, KaKeesh Branigan, a spokeswoman for East St. Louis Mayor Charles Powell III, said Russell-Perry would remain “suspended until further notice.” Lawmaker to review law ‘in-depth’ after cars with expired tags towed from driveways The East St Louis City Council, which includes Mayor Powell, appoints the members of the Housing Authority board, but the board itself hires and fi...

Orange County man pleads guilty to endangering aircraft with drone

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:43 GMT

An Orange County man pleaded guilty to federal charges of unsafely operating a drone, flying it dangerously close to several different aircraft, including a United States Coast Guard helicopter in mid-flight, authorities announced Wednesday.  In Nov. 2022, law enforcement was notified of videos posted to the social media platform TikTok of 62-year-old Laguna Beach resident Alexander Milinovic threatening others safety with his drone.  The 62-year-old is accused of launching his unmanned craft on June 19, 2022, Father’s Day, within 10-20 feet of an “open-cockpit gyrocopter operated by a boy and his father,” a news release from the United States Attorney’s Office stated. The drone’s proximity required the boy, who was piloting the gyrocopter, to make an emergency course correction to avoid a collision and crashing into the Pacific Ocean.  A little more than a month later, in July 2022, Milinovic flew his drone to an altitude between 500 and 1,000 feet over the ocean in ...

Man arrested after alleged stabbing attack in Garden Grove

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 11:00:43 GMT

A man was arrested after he allegedly broke into an apartment before stabbing a woman in Garden Grove on Wednesday.The suspect was identified as Anh Duy Phan, 27, by the Garden Grove Police Department.Police responded to a disturbance at an apartment on the 12500 block of Lorna Street around 1:22 p.m.Arriving officers found a woman in her 40s who had been stabbed multiple times around her body. She also had trauma to her neck that was consistent with strangulation, police said.The victim told police Phan had let himself into her apartment uninvited. Phan was an acquaintance of the victim.An argument erupted and that’s when Phan allegedly brandished a knife while threatening to stab the woman. The victim attempted to leave the apartment but was pulled back in by Phan, police said. 8 arrested in Los Angeles County prostitution bust The suspect placed his arm around the victim’s neck and began repeatedly lunging the knife toward her. The woman received “multiple cuts and puncture wou...