Wednesday Jan. 16,
2013
50 cents
Daily Corinthian Vol. 117, No. 14
Partly sunny Today
Tonight
45
29
30% chance rain/snow
• Corinth, Mississippi • 22 pages • Two sections
Scam terrifies parent, kidnapper seeks ransom BY BRANT SAPPINGTON bsappington@dailycorinthian.com
A Crossroads area woman was left terrified for the safety of her child recently before learning it was all just a scam. The Prentiss County woman reported to law enforcement she had received an anonymous call stating her son had been kidnapped by some type of gang and asking for ransom money for his release. She re-
ported the call to law enforcement and was able to determine that her son was safe and the call was a hoax. Prentiss County Sheriff Randy Tolar said the woman’s report was the first time he had heard of this particular version of the scam. However, shortly after she reported it to his department he began hearing other reports of scammers using a similar hoax in the coun-
ty. “These scammers change their methods regularly trying to stay a step ahead,” he said. A similar scam has been making the rounds for years. Tolar said the most common version involves callers claiming to be the victim’s child or grandchild and stating they had been robbed while traveling somewhere far away and need money to be wired so they
can get back home. Anyone who receives a frightening or suspicious call or e-mail of this nature is encouraged to contact law enforcement to determine if it’s true before taking any action. “It breaks my heart to hear about someone that has been taken in one of these scams,” said Tolar. He said the best advice he can give to residents is if some-
thing sounds too good to be true or too far fetched to be true, it probably is. People need to be skeptical of any unsolicited call or e-mail. He also warns of the ongoing variety of prize scams and reminds everyone that if someone says they’ve won a prize but must pay a fee to collect it, it is a scam. No legitimate contest will require a fee to collect a prize.
Burn victim remains in serious condition BY JEBB JOHNSTON jjohnston@dailycorinthian.com
One victim was seriously injured in Friday night’s house fire while the other has been released from the hospital. A 9-month-old who was in the home at 1803 East Fifth St. has been released and is doing well, said Assistant Fire Chief John Wood. However, Don Pruitt, who dropped the baby out a window to safety, has serious in-
juries and is at the burn center at Crossgates River Oaks Hospital in Brandon. The investigation remains open and a cause of the fire has not been determined. Wood said the state fire marshal’s office has visited the scene, and it could take weeks to learn the findings. The fire department cannot confirm reports of an explosion accompanying the fire. Please see FIRE | 3A
Corinth man arrested for sale of cocaine BY STEVE BEAVERS sbeavers@dailycorinthian.com Staff photo by Steve Beavers
Ice storm preparation
As the Crossroads area braced for a possible ice storm Tuesday evening, people began taking precautions. Gardner’s employee Chris Gardner took time out from his job at the market to stock up on bread. The National Weather Service forecast an upper level disturbance to bring a round of precipitation and potentially icy troubles to the area through early Wednesday morning. Motorists were urged to drive with extreme caution, especially over bridges and overpasses. County schools were closed Tuesday and many meetings were postponed. Going into the evening hours Tuesday, Corinth had a steady rain for most of the day and no reports of any traffic accidents.
IUKA — A Corinth man remains jailed in Tishomingo County following an arrest for the sale of cocaine. According to Tishomingo County Sheriff Glenn Whitlock, Rodney Grayson was arrested by deputies and also faces the same charge in Alcorn County. In other arrests in Tishomingo County:
■ Iuka's Tina Weathers was arrested on three counts of sale of a controlled substance. Weathers, on probation at the time of the arrest, remains in custody at the Tishomingo County Jail with a hold placed on her by the Mississippi Department of Corrections. ■ Karen Carter of Iuka was arrested for two counts of sale of a controlled substance.
Please see ARRESTS | 3A
Northeast promotes Hopewell Church celebrates unity Ford to vice president BY STEVE BEAVERS
sbeavers@dailycorinthian.com
For the Daily Corinthian
BOONEVILLE — Former Northeast Mississippi Community College head women’s basketball coach and current dean of students and athletic director Ricky Ford has been named the college’s new executive vice president. Ford will move into the new position effective Feb. 1 and will take the place of Dr. Larry Nabors. Dr. Nabors has accepted Mississippi Delta Community College’s offer to be the new president, which opened the door for Ford. “Ricky Ford has been an institutional asset for more than 31 years,” Northeast president Dr. Johnny L. Allen said. “I value his judgment and look forward to working with him in the capacity of Executive Vice President.” On March 7, 2011 Ford announced he was stepping down as women's basketball coach at Northeast but continued to be the athletic director and eventually accepted the role of dean of
Ricky Ford students after the retirement of Kenneth Pounders in the Spring of 2011. “I have a tremendous passion for Northeast Mississippi ComPlease see FORD | 3A
RIENZI — Hopewell Church wants to bring all people together. To celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day and the 50th anniversary of his famous “I Have a Dream” speech, the congregation is hosting a program to unite the area on Sunday at 2:30 p.m. “We would life to fill our life center and form a human unity chain to signify our coming and working together,” said Hopewell Church’s Rebecca Spence. “That was Dr. King’s dream and it is what we want to happen Sunday — all races and denominations coming together and being united.” The program features individuals from the community, including State Representative Tracy Arnold, reading excerpts from the famous speech made August 28, 1963, during the March on Washington. During that day, more than 250,000 were in attendance. Other excerpts from his well-known speeches will be read with the climax ending with a video of the “I Have
Index Stocks...... 7A Classified......5B Comics......3B Wisdom......2B
Weather......5A Obituaries......3A Opinion......4A Sports......8A
Staff photo by Steve Beavers
Hopewell Church’s Rebecca Spence puts up a photo of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The church is hosting a program to honor Dr. King on Sunday at 2:30 p.m. a Dream” speech. “It was a day when all people came together for the betterment of mankind,” added Spence.
During the 17-minute speech from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial, King called Please see UNITY | 3A
On this day in history 150 years ago Under the cover of darkness, the Confederate raider CSS Florida makes a stealthy departure from Mobile, Ala., and slips past the Union blockade. She would capture 37 U.S. merchant ships. She in turn would be captured in Brazilian waters, which turned into an international headache for the Union.
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