Latest news with #MerrillvillePoliceDepartment
Chicago Tribune
03-03-2025
- Chicago Tribune
‘Fox & Friends' co-host sworn in as auxiliary Merrillville Police officer
The Merrillville Police Department has added a national network personality charged with 'fostering a deeper connection with the community' to its ranks. The town swore in Lawrence B. Jones, a co-host for 'Fox & Friends,' as its first auxiliary officer during its February 25 meeting. As an auxiliary officer, Jones will accompany Merrillville officers on ride-alongs to 'help share what Merrillville officers experience and what the department is able to accomplish with limited funding,' Police Chief Kosta Nuses said in a release. 'Lawrence will be working closely with us to amplify our story, ensuring that the public understands who we are, what we stand for and how we serve our community,' Nuses said. 'In addition, his experience in K-9 training will also help enhance our force as we continue to grow and evolve.' Nuses and Jones met through Baden K-9, the dog training company in Ontario, Canada responsible for training all of Merrillville's K-9s, Nuses said at the swearing-in. Jones, along with Baden, were instrumental in getting Merrillville K-9 officer Yaga into the fold; in all, Jones and Baden have been instrumental in procuring about $25,000 worth of dogs and services for Merrillville, he said. 'The one constant (in police work) is how police officers are viewed by the public, so we want to strengthen the bridge,' Nuses said. '(Jones and I) share a deep passion for policing and canines, and he will be working closely with us to promote what we stand for and help enhance our force.' Jones, who studied political science and criminal justice at the University of North Texas, said at his swearing-in that he's wanted to be a cop ever since he was a little boy. 'My job here is not to do anything different than your cops have already been doing on the street, but to help bring our communities together,' Jones said in the release. 'I have a passion for the K-9 program. I know the work and the healing that they can bring to communities, not just from a law enforcement standpoint, but for the kids to have heroes, people to look up to like they already do today.' Council President Rick Bella, D-5, said Tuesday that Jones, who lives in New York City, is donating his services to the town. Jones is also slated to attend 'a prebasic law enforcement training course that will grant him limited police powers that aren't available to civilians,' according to the release. 'It's wonderful to see how so many organizations have come together to make this important venture happen,' Bella said. Indiana Director of Homeland Security and former District 1 U.S. Representative Republican candidate Jennifer-Ruth Green brought Jones greetings from Governor Mike Braun and awarded him a congratulatory letter from her department. Jones, who did not respond to emails requesting comment, was named cohost of Fox & Friends in 2023 after hosting Fox News Tonight when former Fox Host Tucker Carlson's was canceled. Previously in his career, Jones went undercover in 2016 for Project Veritas — an organization known for producing and publishing deceptively edited videos — attempting to expose allegations of fraud among Affordable Care Act providers, according to the Dallas Observer. Also that year, Jones hosted a fundraiser for Memories Pizza, a restaurant in Indiana that closed from the fallout of declaring it wouldn't cater the wedding of LGBTQ people if asked, the New York Daily News wrote. He raised $844,000, which was donated in part to the owner's church. More recently, Jones in 2019 incorrectly identified former President Barack Obama's administration for a lenient 2008 plea deal given to Jeffrey Epstein, Vox reported; and Thursday, President Donald Trump was caught on a hot mic asking Jones to say Trump's first cabinet meeting was 'unbelievable' and that he did 'a great job,' according to The Daily Beast.
Yahoo
17-02-2025
- Yahoo
2 suspects arrested in carjacking incident near Merrillville
MERRILLVILLE, Ind. – Two men were arrested Friday for carjacking a vehicle near Merrillville, Indiana. Indiana State Police said dispatch received reports of a vehicle driving recklessly on I-65 while traveling southbound from I-80/94. The vehicle reportedly had been driving from the left shoulder to the right shoulder at a high rate of speed and almost hit several vehicles while doing so. As troopers were sent out to find the vehicle, described as a silver Honda, they were notified the vehicle crashed near the ramp to U.S. 30. After the crash, the two people inside the Honda got out of the vehicle and starting running up to other vehicles that had stopped for the crash, according to investigators. Two dead in Merrillville gas station shooting ID'd Police said the suspects reportedly carjacked a black Acura while armed with a knife and physically assaulted the driver. They then drove off in the Acura, heading westbound on U.S. 30. Officers with the Merrillville Police Department, Hobart Police Department and the Lake County Sheriff's Department were also sent to the area and found the Acura abandoned in the 7900 block of Rhode Island Street in Merrillville. Investigators noticed footprints in the snow and called in a K-9 unit to help track the suspects. While searching for the suspects, dispatch received a call from the Merrillville Fire Department saying two men walked into the fire station on West 73rd Avenue and said they had been robbed, according to authorities. Police said the descriptions of the two men at the fire station matched the descriptions of the two suspects who carjacked the Acura. Officers then went to the fire department and took the two men into custody. The suspects have since been identified as 26-year-old Cain Knaus of Walshville, Illinois, and 34-year-old Stephanie Raices (aka Victor Zarate) of Chicago and the Bronx, New York. Authorities added Knaus had an active warrant for a parole violation through the Illinois Department of Corrections. Read more: Latest Chicago news and headlines Both suspects were taken to the Lake County Jail and have been charged with the following: Armed Robbery- Level 3 Felony Robbery- Level 5 Felony Auto Theft- Level 6 Felony Battery- Class B Misdemeanor Leaving the Scene of a Crash- Class B Misdemeanor Reckless Driving- Class C Misdemeanor Authorities said they are still trying to determine who was driving the Honda at the time of the crash. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
