Free Republic

AUTHORITIES WANT TO QUESTION A POSSIBLE CON ARTIST Police say he told everyone he was in charge of the I-40 bridge collapse just moments after the disaster. Now the alleged imposter shows up in Arkansas. Searcy police say 36-year old William Clark of southeast Missouri entered the Truman Baker Dodge dealership on may 29th wearing army fatigues and a beret. Clark told the dealership he was a captain in the US Army Special Forces and wanted to borrow a truck to haul supplies to Oklahoma. After showing the salesmen a video of the bridge collapse they tossed him the...

The FBI is investigating a man who called himself an Army captain and looked through a briefcase and laptop computer belonging to a victim of last month's deadly interstate bridge collapse. The man, wearing fatigues and a beret, showed up within two hours of the Interstate 40 collapse and told the mayor he was in charge. He identified himself as Capt. William Clark. Mayor Jewell Horne said Wednesday that the man told her Army Capt. Andrew Clements had died in the river and that his briefcase and laptop were in the water. A fisherman found the items the day...

The owner of the towboat whose barge collapsed the Interstate 40 bridge near Webbers Falls has asked a federal court to limit its liability. The injured and the families of the 14 people killed in the May 26 bridge collapse would be unable to receive more than a combined total of about $1.2 million for their losses if a judge approves the petition filed Monday by Magnolia Marine Transport Co. If the petition succeeds, that total also would apply in case the state and federal governments seek monetary damages for the bridge. "We filed a petition for exoneration and/or...

MUSKOGEE, Okla. (AP) — The towboat pilot who said he blacked out before his barge struck an interstate highway bridge, killing 14 people, had a heart condition he didn't know about, an official said. Joe Dedmon, 61, has heart blockage, said Ken Suydam, an investigator for the National Transportation Safety Board. His comments were made at a non-public meeting on Friday, the Muskogee Daily Phoenix reported. NTSB spokeswoman Lauren Peduzzi said it was not known if Dedmon's condition had anything to do with the blackout or the crash. She said Dedmon was transferred Friday to a hospital in Jackson,...