News

William Edward Ruffin, Jr. of Many was inducted as the 20th honoree to the prestigious Sabine Hall of Fame hosted at The Life Church on Tuesday night, March 28. Surrounded by his wife, Gloria and sons, four brothers and many other relatives, the 70-year-old former educator and dedicated community servant accepted the honor with music and reminiscing about his career.

A capacity crowd was seated in the beautifully decorated venue to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the organization chaired by Pete Abington.

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Toledo Bend, the #1 Bass Fishing Lake in the Nation as designated by Bassmaster Magazine for two years in a row, will host the best bass fishing pros in the world April 6-9 when the Bassmaster Elite Series Tournament presented by Econo Lodge comes to Cypress Bend Park. 100-110 pros will fish Thursday and Friday, April 6 and 7. The field is cut to 50 pros on Saturday, April 8, with the top 12 competing on Sunday, April 9. Daily launch is at 6:45 a.m. at Cypress Bend Park with weigh in daily at 3:15 p.m. Brightly painted boats and trucks began driving into Toledo Town this past weekend for pre-fishing.

By Daniel Jones

On March 25, after a court case that lasted almost six days, Melvin C. Maxie was found guilty of the murder of Tyruss Thomas in the second degree.

The verdict of second-degree murder in Louisiana carries a penalty of life in prison at hard labor without benefit of parole, probation, or suspension of sentence. The verdict was handed down after several hours of deliberation by the jury.

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By Alexandra Walsh

On Thursday, March 23 an urgent community meeting was held at the Many Community Center hosted by Mayor Ken Freeman and the Friends of Hodges Gardens. Close to 200 Sabine Parish residents were in attendance to see how they could help keep the beloved park open, along with news crews from different areas of the state.

As the residents walked in, members of the Town of Many and Sabine Parish Tourist Commission handed out six letters for each person to sign and put their addresses. The letters are to be sent to Governor John Bel-Edwards, Lt. Governor Billy Nungesser who is in charge of deciding which parks in the state stay open, Senators Gerald Long and John Smith, and Representatives Frankie Howard and James Armes.

By Daniel Jones, editor

On March 25, after a court case that lasted almost six days, Melvin C. Maxie was found guilty of the murder of Tyruss Thomas in the second degree.

The verdict of second-degree murder in Louisiana carries a penalty of life in prison at hard labor without benefit of parole, probation, or suspension of sentence. The verdict was handed down after several hours of deliberation by the jury.

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The Bassmaster Elite Tournament is returning to Many on April 6-9. Come watch the best bass anglers in the world weigh in their catch from the top ranked lake in the nation, Toledo Bend Reservoir, and tap your toes along to the zydeco sound of Keith Frank and the Soileau Zydeco Band.

They will be performing Saturday, April 8 from 12- 2 p.m. This show will be free to the public. Hailing from Soileau, Louisiana, Keith is known as “The Zydeco Boss” and he has blazed a trail in the zydeco community. His music has drawn record-breaking crowds and hits like “Pieces to my Heart,” “They Stole my Chicken,” and “Haterz” propelled him to the forefront of South Louisiana’s music scene.

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On March 28, 2017, at approximately 4:06 A.M., an inmate at the Sabine Parish Detention Center was discovered missing.

Jason “Scotty” Meshell, 36, of Zwolle, was discovered missing during regular rounds and it was later found that he was able to gain access to an unlocked gate after attending religious services in the chapel, which was under repair.

Meshell is a 5’4” tall white male and weighs approximately 130 lbs. He has black hair with a beard and was last seen wearing a navy jumpsuit. He was being held on a parole violation for possession of Schedule II, as well as failure to register as a sex offender, obstruction of a public passage, careless operation, resisting by flight, flight from an officer, and switched plates.

Update:

By Daniel Jones, editor

On March 25, after a court case that lasted almost six days, Melvin C. Maxie was found guilty of the murder of Tyruss Thomas in the second degree.

The verdict of second-degree murder in Louisiana carries a penalty of life in prison at hard labor without benefit of parole, probation, or suspension of sentence.

The verdict was handed down after several hours of deliberation by the jury.

Judge Stephen B. Beasley of the 11th Judicial District Court of Sabine Parish called court to order on March 20, with the state being represented by District Attorney Don Burkett and Assistant District Attorney Anna Garcie, while Maxie was represented by the team of Meghan Shapiro of the Louisiana Capital Assistance Center and attorney Casey Secor.

Read more in Wednesday’s Sabine Index.

Hill Kemp of Many has inked a deal to put his patented solar powered Suns River desalination equipment into a Middle East desert and use seawater feed to grow food crops.

Merlin Digital of Dubai, United Arab Emirates, will install the demonstration one-half acre system. The site will be the research center of the American University of Sharjah in the Dubai area. Merlin will also showcase their new approach to housting, which features a home built with bolt-together panels that can be erected in a day or two.

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An emergency community meeting to seek ways and solutions to save Hodges Gardens State Park will be held at 5:30 p.m. on Thursday, March 23 at the Many Community Center (old Sabine Theatre).

The State of Louisiana and the Hodges Family Foundation have been unable to agree on a solution to keep the gardens open. Unless the State of Louisiana can find adequate funding to operate the gardens for the 2017-2018 fiscal year, the gardens will close and will revert to the Hodges Foundation.

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