Around The Region

Police crack three-state burglar ring\nANGOLA, Ind. -- Four people have been arrested on theft charges alleging that they took part in a multi-state burglary ring involving about 115 break-ins in Indiana, Ohio and Iowa.\nThe four were arrested after an investigation by Indiana State Police and 10 police agencies in Indiana and Ohio.\nPolice in Shawnee Township, Ohio, said one of the men furnished an entire house with goods stolen from a single storage unit in Lima, Ohio.\nJoshua Piper, 23, formerly of Orland is charged in Steuben County with one count of burglary and 10 counts of theft. Richard C. Stuber, 33, of Cridersville, Ohio, and James Marion Lee, 26, of Lima are each charged in Steuben County with four counts of theft, according to court records.\nThe trio was arrested in Ohio and will face charges there before being extradited to Indiana, said Angola police Detective Sgt. Tim Crooks.\nPiper is accused of renting a Lima area house and furnishing it with a complete living room and bedroom set and other items taken from a storage unit belonging to a recent college graduate from Lima, said investigator Rick McPheron of the Shawnee Township Police Department.\n"They were even using her salt and pepper shakers," McPheron said.\nPiper's wife, Amanda Piper, 21, of Des Moines, Iowa, is charged in Steuben County with one count of burglary and five counts of theft. She has been released on bond, Crooks said.\nHe said the burglaries, which began in December and end in May, occurred in five Ohio counties, four Indiana counties and one in Iowa.\nPolice estimate several hundred thousand dollars worth of tools, equipment and other items were taken from construction sites, businesses, vehicles and vending machines.\nSupreme court rejects convicted murderer's appeal\nINDIANAPOLIS -- The Indiana Supreme Court has rejected the appeal of a man sentenced to 85 years in prison for killing a man he lured to a rural Jay County home with the promise of a drug deal.\nTimothy J. McAbee, 31, of Portland claimed prosecutorial misconduct during his trial, a violation of Indiana's double jeopardy law, and an unreasonable sentence as grounds for the appeal.\nMcAbee was convicted along with Bobby Brummett in the 1999 slaying of Tony Thompson. Both are serving sentences in state prison.\nMcAbee contended that Jay County prosecutor George Lopez overstepped his authority during his characterization of the defense's role in opening arguments and by repeatedly referring to McAbee's nickname, "Smack," during the trial.\nThe Indiana Supreme Court ruled that Lopez's conduct was allowable and noted that no objections were raised during trial. McAbee's nickname, the court noted, first surfaced during Brummett's direct testimony.\nThe double jeopardy issue arose from McAbee's conviction of a robbery charge and murder.\nThe court also ruled that McAbee's prior criminal record, his lack of remorse, and his failure to recognize the seriousness of his actions were also ruling circumstances.\nDoctor reinstated after writing 140 personal prescriptions\nINDIANAPOLIS -- State medical regulators have dropped a restriction that had prohibited an Auburn doctor from prescribing drugs to patients.\nThe Indiana Medical Licensing Board found on Thursday that Kenneth Chaffee, 51, was no longer chemically dependent on illegal prescriptions. The panel then halted all disciplinary action against him.\nThe board originally suspended Chaffee's license for 90 days in 1995 after he admitted writing more than 140 prescriptions for his own use.\nA test one year later found barbiturates in Chaffee's urine. He was placed on probation and his license was suspended for an additional 90 days. It was reinstated after he had successfully completed a drug rehabilitation program, with some restrictions.\nCandace Backer of the Indiana State Medical Association's Physicians Assistance Program testified during the proceedings, saying that Chaffee had exceeded all expectations of the program.\nBurglar gets 12 years for Pacer break-in\nINDIANAPOLIS -- One of the six men suspected of breaking into the home of Indiana Pacers forward Jonathan Bender was sentenced to 12 years in prison.\nEdward A. Purnell, 19, was sentenced Thursday to 15 years for one count of burglary, with three years suspended. Purnell will be on probation during those three years.\nHe could be out of prison in as little as six years with good behavior, said D. Lee Buckingham II, deputy prosecuting attorney.\nPurnell is the first man to be sentenced for charges relating to the burglary of Bender's Carmel-area home Oct. 31. He pleaded guilty in June. Three other charges were dismissed.\nTwo other men, Kormanti Allison, 22, and Marquette Thomas Jones, 21, also accepted a guilty plea and await sentencing, said Buckingham. Herbert L. Jones III, 19, DanTerance L. Hobert, 20, and DeJuan Baker, 20, will allow their cases to go to trial.\nAll defendants were offered the same plea, Buckingham said, which includes the possibility of serving six to 15 years for the single burglary charge.