Monroe County man faces child sex crime charges

MONROE COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI) – A Monroe County man is facing a child sex crime charge. 26-year-old Matthew Blackston was charged with child molestation. Sheriff Kevin Crook said Blackston was arrested at his Sunshine Lane home earlier this week. Bond for Blackston was set at $100,000. He’s being held in the Lowndes County jail. Crook said if anyone has any…

Bond has been set for Yokohama Tire factory shooter

CLAY COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI) – Bond is set for the man accused in a deadly shooting at Yokohama Tire. 41-year-old Willie Swain was charged with murder. He turned himself in yesterday. Clay County Sheriff Eddie Scott said bond for Swain was set this morning at $1.2 million. A preliminary hearing is now scheduled for March 9. Scott told WCBI an…

Columbus Police Department gears up to get ZAZA out of town

Zaza Ban

COLUMBUS, Miss. (WCBI)- Zaza sellers and users beware, the Columbus Police Department is gearing up to roll out its plans for getting ZAZA off the shelves and out of town. WCBI spoke with CPD public information officer, about the department’s timeline for getting ZAZA out of town. In a unanimous vote Tuesday night, the Columbus City Council voted to ban…

Tupelo High School Quill and Scroll hosts Journalism Career Fair

Students were able to get a look at possible career pathways in journalism

TUPELO, Miss. (WCBI) – Journalism students at Tupelo High School had a chance to explore possible career paths. It was part of a journalism career fair hosted by the Quill and Scroll Honor Society. Camden Shaw likes to hear other people’s opinions on a variety of subjects. His interest in journalism brought him to the career fair in the Media…

Miss. Spelling Bee contestants will meet on MUW campus to compete

COLUMBUS, Miss. (WCBI) – The top spellers in the state will battle for the big prize next weekend in Columbus – a trip to the National Spelling Bee in Washington D.C. For the second straight year, the Mississippi Spelling Bee will be held on the MUW Campus. This is a video from last year’s bee. 40 spellers from counties across…

Lee County deputies stop woman for swapped tag, find meth

LEE COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI) – A suspected swapped tag landed a Lee County woman in jail on drug charges. Lee County deputies stopped a vehicle on Highway 45 for having a switched tag. They said the driver, Melony Henderson, of Brewer also didn’t have insurance and was driving without a license. But that wasn’t the end of the road. Deputies…

FORGE partners with EMCC to host fair showing job interviewing process

LOWNDES COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI) – Hundreds of area students learn what’s it like to apply for a job and to be asked some tough questions. Teens from five counties and nine different schools converged at EMCC’s Communiversity Thursday. The FORGE organization partnered with the school to host the event. Small businesses and others were there to interview the students, take…

Noxubee County deputies ask for help locating missing man

NOXUBEE COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI) – The Noxubee County Sheriff’s Department needs your help in finding Kenneth Reed. Reed was last seen on Tuesday around 10:30 in Shuqualak. His vehicle was found on Paulette and Mahorner Road. If anyone has any information, please call The Noxubee County Sheriff’s Department or Noxubee County Emergency Management (E-911). For 24/7 news and updates, follow…

February 23, 2023 marks 4 years since deadly EF3 tornado in Columbus

COLUMBUS, Miss. (WCBI) – Thursday, February 23, 2023 marks four years since a deadly EF3 tornado roared through the Friendly City. It left a trail of destruction from parts of downtown to 7th Avenue North and Railroad Street. Dozens of homes were damaged. Hunt Intermediate School was destroyed in the tornado while Sim Scott Park was heavily damaged. Ashley Pounds…

Former deputy chief, councilman urge caution before other cities disband special police units

Former Tupelo Councilman Willie Jennings and former Deputy Chief Robert Hall point to Haven Acres turnaround as a model for community oriented policing

TUPELO, MISS. (WCBI) – Willie Jennings remembers a time when it was considered risky to be in Haven Acres in the daytime, and dangerous once the sun set. “We was having a lot of problems with drugs, prostitution, all different sorts of crime,” said Jennings, a former Tupelo City Councilman.  He lived in Haven Acres in the late 80s and…

City leaders and Community members come together to pray

LOUISVILLE, Miss. (WCBI) -Ask many grandfathers in the South to help you solve and problem and they’ll tell you to pray about it. That’s exactly what happened this morning in Louisville. Louisville went from scenes of a horrific deadly shooting just weeks ago to a prayer circle. On the heels of the convenience store shooting and other violence, city leaders…

Former Columbus mayor appointed to school board

Former Columbus mayor is appointed to the local school board.

COLUMBUS, Miss. (WCBI) – Former Columbus Mayor Robert Smith finds himself in public service once again. The city council appointed Smith the Columbus Municipal School District Board of Trustees. Smith will take over current board president, Yvonne Cox’s seat early next month. The former mayor worked in education as a teacher, coach, and administrator before going to city hall. He…

West Point pharmacy looks to provide accessible healthcare

WEST POINT, Miss. (WCBI) – Across the country, many independent pharmacies are selling out or closing up, and even large retailers are cutting staff and services. A home-owned pharmacy in West Point is bucking those trends. It is rolling out a new service to help its customers with their healthcare needs. A pharmacy tech at Point City said they’re stepping…

BMH-Golden Triangle CEO gives updates at Rotary Club meeting

COLUMBUS, Miss. (WCBI) – Baptist Memorial Hospital-Golden Triangle once received COVID-19 patients from across the southeast but not anymore. That’s one of the updates CEO Paul Cade gave the Rotary Club today in Columbus. Cade also talked about RN staffing, where the hospital only has an eight percent turnover rate. It is also no longer using contract nurses. The administrator…