ST. LOUIS – A man who was indicted nearly six years ago and accused of a $28 million fraud scheme involving apartment complexes in Missouri and Oklahoma was extradited from Israel Thursday. Michael Fein, now 47, was indicted Aug. 20, 2020, on one count of bank fraud and one count of wire fraud. The indictment accuses Fein of routinely providing false information on loan applications to obtain financing and refinance loans on projects for the company he co-owned, T.E.H. Management and
PONTOON BEACH - Madison County Transit celebrated the opening of a new pedestrian/bike bridge in Pontoon Beach. The MCT 111 Trail Bridge crosses over IL-111. During a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Thursday, June 25, 2026, MCT Managing Director SJ Morrison expressed his appreciation for the communities that worked to install the bridge. “It takes vision, it takes support, it takes financial backing in order to make a project like this happen, and that only happens if you have the support
JERSEYVILLE – A Jerseyville man accused of violating the conditions of his 24-month sentence for domestic battery may face re-sentencing amid more recent felony charges. Elias L. D. Fraley, 34, of Jerseyville, was charged on June 15, 2026 with a Class 4 felony count of criminal damage to property. Fraley allegedly caused over $500 in damage to another individual’s 2024 Kia sedan which was located in Fieldon at the time of the offense. The Jersey County State’s Attorney’s
COLLINSVILLE - The State Park Volunteer Fire Department was dispatched to a fully involved house fire in the 2900 block of Princeton Street in Collinsville on Wednesday morning, June 24, 2026. Mutual aid was requested, and crews from Fairmont City, Caseyville, and the French Village Fire Departments battled the blaze, according to the St. Clair County Emergency Management Agency. The home suffered significant damage. No injuries were reported, and a cause of the fire also has not been
CAHOKIA HEIGHTS - A 66-year-old Waterloo man died after an Illinois Route 157 crash late Wednesday morning, June 24, 2026, that also injured multiple people. The Illinois State Police Traffic Crash Reconstruction Unit assisted Cahokia Heights Police in the investigation, authorities said. Michael A. Kuhlmann, 66, of Waterloo was pronounced dead at a hospital emergency room following the crash, according to the St. Clair County Coroner's Office. Multiple people were also taken to a nearby hospital
CAHOKIA HEIGHTS - Members of the Cahokia Heights Fire Department joined city officials, community leaders, law enforcement officers and the Jonas family in Cahokia Heights to dedicate a stretch of Bond Avenue as “Lt. Gregory Jonas Memorial Avenue,” honoring the late lieutenant’s service and sacrifice. The designation covers Bond Avenue from South 43rd Street to South 47th Street in Cahokia Heights. State Rep. Jay Hoffman, D-Swansea, and State Sen. Christopher Belt, D-Swansea,
HARDIN — Illinois American Water on June 25, 2026, lifted the boil water order for customers in the City of Hardin after tests confirmed that water samples meet all regulatory standards. The action affects customers in Hardin, where impacted residents will receive a notification from Illinois American Water informing them that the boil water order has been lifted. Illinois American Water said the order was lifted based on test results showing the water meets all regulatory standards.
EDWARDSVILLE/GRANITE CITY - Free clothing, food, toys and more are available this weekend in Edwardsville. From 1–3 p.m. on June 27, 2026, at the Cardinal Portable Buildings in Edwardsville, community members can enjoy a meal and DJ while also picking up free clothing, shoes, toys and other supplies. Hosted by Wolf Pack Den of Hope, the community pop-up giveaway is for anyone who needs a hand up this summer, no questions asked. “It’s for anyone that’s trying to ge
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Ahead of the four-year anniversary of the Supreme Court’s disastrous Dobbs decision that overturned the constitutional right to choose, U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) slammed Donald Trump and the radical, anti-freedom movement that has women’s lives in danger and continues to push for extreme laws that would lock up women and doctors, prohibit safe and effective medication and ban IVF. At U.S. Senate Democratic Senate Pro-Tempore Patty Murray’s
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Combat Veteran and U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) slammed the Trump Administration for once again betraying our nation’s heroes by gutting the Immigrant Military Members and Veteran Initiative (IMMVI)—a collaboration between the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Veterans Affairs (VA) created in 2021 to help streamline immigration processes for Veterans and their families. In a letter to the Secretary of Homeland Security, United States
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) issued the following statement after Donald Trump announced he will not sign the bipartisan 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act , which passed the House and the Senate with strong bipartisan support, until Congress passes his voter suppression bill: “How evil can Donald Trump get? Congress just passed the biggest housing bill in 30 years, and this President is stomping on the brakes and holding it hostage until we pass his
SPRINGFIELD – Today, the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) announced an updated contraceptive standing order expanding the ability of trained pharmacists to provide prescription birth control methods directly to Illinois residents. The updated order is intended to ensure residents have easy access to contraceptive methods. The updated order builds upon an order issued in 2023 that gave pharmacists, licensed by the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation
EDWARDSVILLE - Community members can access laundry and hot showers at First Baptist Church of Edwardsville. From 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. every Friday, the church offers these services to community members who need them. Allison Bell, the youth director, noted that this new program has helped many neighbors in need, and they hope to reach more people in the future. “We’re very blessed, and I’m grateful to be able to offer this service to people who need it,” she said.
Thunder was once treated like a voice with intentions. That idea may sound distant now, but it shaped stories, warnings, rituals, and everyday habits in many cultures. A sudden flash and a shaking sky are hard to ignore. Before science explained pressure systems and electricity, storms felt personal. They seemed like signs of anger, power, protection, or change. Summer storms in particular stood out because they arrived with force, often after heat and tension had built for hours. That dramatic
On June 25, the most far-reaching event in global history is the outbreak of the Korean War in 1950, when North Korean forces crossed the 38th parallel and invaded South Korea. What began as a civil and regional conflict quickly became an international war, drawing in the United States, China, and forces from many other countries under the United Nations flag. At the time, it mattered because it turned Korea into the first major battlefield of the Cold War and showed that tensions between rival
ALTON – Alton officials took action this week to tighten the city’s regulations on short-term rental units. A resolution amending zoning regulations for short-term rental units was unanimously approved at the June 24, 2026 Alton City Council meeting, following a positive recommendation from the city’s Plan Commission. The newly approved amendments aim to strike a balance between preserving the character of Alton’s historic neighborhoods while promoting tourism and
EAST ST. LOUIS - East St. Louis School District 189 Superintendent Arthur Culver told families the district was recently notified of the arrest of Chad D. Gray Jr. of New Baden, Illinois, on charges that reportedly include traveling to meet a child, grooming, indecent solicitation of a child, and solicitation to meet a child, according to a letter sent after the district was informed by a partner organization Go International. In the letter, Culver said Gray was not employed by the district
EAST ALTON – An East Alton man facing his latest felony domestic battery charge in Madison County was recently brought into custody. Eli Z. Steele-Moss, 34, of East Alton, was charged on June 11, 2026 with his second or subsequent count of domestic battery, a Class 4 felony. Steele-Moss allegedly knowingly caused bodily harm to a household or family member on the same date after previously being convicted of domestic battery in 2014, also in Madison County. At the time of this latest
GODFREY - Vitality Women’s Clinic has expanded to offer much more than medical resources for individuals experiencing unplanned pregnancies. At 10 a.m. every Monday, community members are invited to come together for a grief support crafting group. The group, called “Pennies From Heaven,” fosters connection between widows, people recovering from miscarriages, and other folks who are grieving. Vitality also offers a “Grandma Gang” group that writes letters
GILLESPIE/CARLINVILLE - A Carlinville man was charged May 18, 2026, by the Macoupin County State’s Attorney’s Office with aggravated assault on a peace officer and resisting a peace officer after authorities alleged he attempted to strike a Gillespie police officer with a baseball bat a day earlier and refused lawful commands during his detention, according to the Gillespie Police Department. The defendant was identified as James J. Chapman, 53, of Carlinville. According to
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