Parents of 3 month old charged in childs death, father in custody, mother sought

Cassie Cranford Rivera                    Alberto Rivera

Etowah County sheriff's officials say a man has been arrested in the 2013 death of his 3-week-old son and the child's mother is also sought by police on a murder warrant.

 Sheriff Todd Entrekin said in a statement Wednesday that 35-year-old Alberto Rivera was arrested and charged with capital murder in the death of a boy who suffered blunt force trauma in early September.

 Authorities say Rivera is being held without bond in the Etowah County detention center.

 Entrekin says a murder warrant is also out for the infant's 33-year-old mother.  Deputies are still searching for the baby's mom, Cassie Cranford Rivera.

 An autopsy showed the baby died from blunt force trauma to the head in September 2013. Sheriff Todd Entrekin said evidence returned to his office on Wednesday helped complete the case against the Riveras.

Anyone with information on Cassie Rivera's whereabouts is asked to contact 256-312-0060 or 256-546-2825.

Suspects arrested in Jacksonville Robbery

Jacksonville police have arrested Two suspects in a convenience store robbery Wednesday morning and are continuing to search for a third suspect.

According to Jacksonville police Chief Tommy Thompson, two 17-year-olds were in jail after confessing that they’d robbed the Samco store on Pelham Road South at gunpoint some time between 8 a.m. and 9 a.m. No one was injured during the robbery.

Both suspects were in custody within an hour of the robbery.  Thompson originally said that one of the men arrested at that time allowed the robbery suspects to hide in his apartment at Cottonwood Apartments on Church Avenue.

Calhoun County sheriff's deputies and Jacksonville police searched neighborhoods in southeastern Jacksonville for that man, who fled when confronted by police at the apartments.

Thompson said Wednesday afternoon that investigators no longer believed that man was involved with the robbery.

Thompson added that with both suspects in custody and both guns they’d allegedly used were recovered..

He declined to name the suspects in custody, but said that would be done later, when felony arrest warrants are issued.

Thompson said that While the suspects are minors, they would be charged as adults because armed robbery is a violent crime.

Fire destroys Jacksonville Home

A fire destroyed a home in Jacksonville Wednesday morning, just hours after the homeowners departed on a trip to Tennessee.

 According to Jacksonville Fire Chief Wade Buckner, a concerned citizen who lives next to the Stoney Brook Golf Course spotted smoke and flames coming from a home over a half-mile away at 1507 Valley Brook Drive.  Firefighters arrived at the scene at 7:20 a.m. and spent three hours working to extinguish the blaze.

 A relative of the homeowners said the family left town on Tuesday for a New Year's vacation in Gatlinburg. 

 The initial report said that there was a possible entrapment inside, that some of the occupants were possibly in there when firefighters arrived and saw the vehicles in the driveway.  Firefighters were able to quickly determine that no one was home .

Jacksonville firefighters, many of whom are still recovering from a flu virus that sickened half of the department, were assisted by crews from Weaver and Alexandria. Altogether, 18 firefighters helped to put out the fire and monitor for hot spots.

Gadsden man arrested after holding cellphone hostage

Marqualin D. Sumpter

A 19 year old Gadsden man has been charged with receiving stolen property after contacting a woman about her lost cellphone and demanding money for its return.

A woman told police she placed her cellphone by the sink at a store in the Gadsden Mall while washing her hands and walked out without it. When she returned for the phone, it was gone.

A few hours later, she was contacted by a young man about her phone. He told her if she wanted her phone back, she needed to bring him money. She was told to bring $175 to an address on Jupiter Street, and that he would be waiting for her.

When she arrived, Marqualin D. Sumpter,  flagged her down. He immediately was taken into custody by police accompanying her for second-degree receiving stolen property.

The woman’s phone was found in his possession, minus its Lifeproof case and SIM card.

Gadsden police investigate multiple shootings

Authorities report that two people were injured Tuesday night on Springdale Road when a 16-year-old allegedly pulled a gun and fired shots.

 Police were called to both Gadsden hospitals when gunshot victims came into the emergency rooms.

 An 18-year-old told police he was shot about 11 p.m. while standing outside a residence on Springdale Road. A witness told police who the assailant was, but the victim told police he didn’t know the young man who shot him and he was uncertain as to why shots were fired.

 A single gunshot entered the side of the teenager’s right foot and exited his second toe.

 A second victim, a 27-year-old man, told police he was standing on the sidewalk at a residence on Springdale Road when a friend got into a verbal altercation with the suspect. The suspect got angry and pulled a gun, firing two shots at his friend.

The second victim said he didn’t realize he’d been shot until he got home, then he was rushed to the emergency room.

2014 Record year for Honda in Lincoln

2014 was a record year for Honda Manufacturing of Alabama.

The plant build 361,948 Hondas and Acuras at its 3.7 million square-foot Lincoln facility this year. Including, 144,382 Odyssey minivans

133,692 Pilot SUVs  10,015 Ridgeline pickups and 73,859 Acura MDX luxury SUVs

Production of Ridgeline is on hiatus. The pickup truck was introduced in 2005, but Honda has said an all-new version will appear on the market in the next two years.

 The Lincoln facility is the only factory that makes each of the cars. More than 4,000 people work there.

The Talladega County facility produced 333,531 vehicles in 2013, which was down slightly from 2012 as the company shifted focus onto luxury vehicles.