PIKEVILLE, Ky. — The University of Pikeville will receive $593,280 to support research activities, personnel, equipment purchases, travel, materials/supplies and student stipends, as part of its participation in an initiative funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation. Through the Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) Research Incubators for STEM Excellence (E-RISE RII), UPike will collaborate with multiple institutions to promote research competitiveness, build academic partnerships and create workforce development opportunities in soilless agriculture. E-RISE RII is a new program that aims to further EPSCoR’s programmatic goals by developing and implementing sustainable networks of diverse research teams to tackle critical […]

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BECKLEY, W.Va. — A Pike County travel nurse who has been under investigation for the past two years has now been indicted on federal drug charges. Jacqueline Brewster, 54, of Belfry, has been charged in U.S. District Court in Beckley, W.Va., with obtaining controlled substances by fraud, tampering with consumer products, and wrongfully obtaining individually identifiable health information under false pretenses. Federal officials say Brewster used her credentials as an LPN to determine which patients had been prescribed hydromorphone, also known by the brand name Dilaudid, while she was working at Raleigh General Hospital, in Beckley. She is accused of […]

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SALYERSVILLE, Ky. — Two Magoffin County women have been named in a federal drug indictment handed down last week. Minnie Johnson, 60, and Jennifer Fletcher, 44, both of Salyersville, are the only two defendants who have been publicly identified in the case. The identities of one or more additional defendants remain under seal, indicating they are not yet in custody. Fletcher and Johnson are each charged with conspiracy to distribute and possession with intent to distribute more than 500 grams of meth and more than 40 grams of fentanyl. Fletcher is also charged with one count of distributing controlled substances, […]

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PAINTSVILLE, Ky. — A Johnson County man who was arrested back in May after his girlfriend found explicit pictures and videos of her daughter on his phone has now been indicted in federal court. Jason Ryan Campbell, 45, of Hager Hill, was arrested May 24, after the girlfriend turned the phone over to police. On the phone, police reported finding a hidden folder containing hundreds of photos and videos of young girls, including the woman’s daughter. Last week, a federal grand jury indicted on three counts of producing child pornography between 2022 and 2024, as well as one count of […]

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UPDATE: The girls have been found safe. SHELBY VALLEY, Ky. — Kentucky State Police is asking for the public’s help in locating two missing 12-year-old girls who went missing overnight. Mollie Evans and Layla Johnson, both of Shelby Valley, were last seen around 11 p.m. Thursday at Shelby Valley. Evans is described as 5 feet, 2 inches tall and 120 lbs, with brown hair and blue eyes. She was last seen wearing a white shirt and pajama pants. Johnson is described as 5 feet, 3 inches tall and 150 lbs, with brown hair and blue eyes. She was last seen […]

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