Wyoming News Briefs

Cheyenne woman arrested following shots fired

CHEYENNE (WNE) —A woman has been arrested following reports of shots being fired Thursday morning at a residence east of Holliday Park. 

At approximately 10:55 a.m., Cheyenne Police officers responded to the 1400 block of Rollins Avenue. The preliminary investigation shows the property owner, Peggy Zdenek, 60, of Cheyenne, attempted to conduct an inspection of a tenant’s room but was refused entry. 

It is alleged that the two had been involved in an ongoing verbal altercation prior to the incident. Zdenek then reportedly pulled a firearm and shot at the door multiple times while the tenant was inside. 

There were two other tenants in the home at the time of the incident. No injuries were reported, according to a CPD news release. 

Upon arriving at the scene, officers located Zdenek in the front yard of the residence. She was apprehended at approximately 11:07 a.m. without further incident. 

Zdenek was booked into the Laramie County jail on charges of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and reckless endangerment. 

This case remains under investigation by the Cheyenne Police Department.

Decades-old Arby’s sign comes to Gillette museum

GILLETTE (WNE) — The 15-foot-tall boot outside of the Frontier Relics and Auto Museum now has company. And somehow, the new antique sign resting on the side of the museum building is even taller than the boot itself.

The original neon 10-gallon hat sign that graced the Arby’s fast food restaurant in Casper for decades has made its way to a new resting place.

“It kind of just fell in our lap,” said Ryan Swanson, a maintenance and marketing employee at the museum. “Jeff [Wandler] was interested because it’s Western and from Wyoming but thought someone else had bought it. All of a sudden we got a call and we got it the next day.”

The two traveled to Casper where the giant sign was loaded by crane onto a trailer and made it safely to Gillette.

“The thing is great. It’s a cowboy hat that’s Western and will match our cowboy boot — and it’s from Wyoming, which we love,” Swanson said.

Because of its height, the sign will go up outdoors rather than in, which wasn’t the initial hope since upkeep on neon outside is more difficult than inside. 

Swanson said all ideas were considered, even the possibility of cutting a hole in the ceiling and then rebuilding the ceiling around it. But ultimately, outside seemed best and also was where the signs were built to shine.

Swanson said work on putting up the sign and finding its precise location at the museum will continue in warmer weather. For now, the roughly 60-year-old sign mans its post and brings in curious eyes.

“You definitely can’t miss us now,” he said.

Plane slides off runway during landing 

ROCK SPRINGS (WNE) —A flight into Rock Springs had an unusual — but safe — landing on Tuesday, Dec. 27. 

A Skywest commercial passenger airplane, arriving in Rock Springs from Denver at about 9:40 p.m., reportedly slid off the runway upon landing at the Southwest Wyoming Regional Airport. 

Passengers were transported from the plane by Sweetwater County Sheriff’s Office officers and other local emergency personnel. 

Jason Mower, public information officer for SCSO, and Devon Brubaker, Southwest Wyoming Regional Airport director, both commended airport personnel and community emergency responders for handling the situation effectively and seeing to the safety of the plane’s passengers and crew. 

“While we never like to see incidents like this occur, we’re very grateful for all of the passengers and crew being safe,” said Brubaker. “We’re also grateful that we were able to deplane the passengers and crew and get them to the terminal in a safe manner with no injuries.” 

Brubaker also applauded the passengers for not panicking. 

“We also want to thank the passengers that were impacted because they were more than patient and more than calm throughout the incident,” he noted. “That allowed all of our airport personnel and the emergency responders to focus on the critical task of getting those folks to the terminal in a safe manner and not having to worry about having passengers that are just not as cooperative. 

The cause and details of the incident remain under investigation by airport personnel and federal aviation authorities.

Man arrested after pointing loaded gun at deputy

GILLETTE (WNE) — A 65-year-old man was arrested for aggravated assault after pointing a gun at a deputy Thursday morning.

The man’s nephew, a 31-year-old man, called the Sheriff’s Office, saying the two had been in a fight at the uncle’s house. The nephew had left the house before calling law enforcement, said Sheriff’s Lt. Paul Pownall. 

A deputy went to the older man’s house on Olmstead Road to talk to him. The man, Roger McLean, answered the door with a .38 Special snub-nose revolver and told the deputy he would shoot him, Pownall said.

The deputy took cover, grabbed his own gun and told the man to drop the revolver. McLean eventually did, and he was arrested for aggravated assault.

McLean’s gun turned out to be loaded, Pownall said, and alcohol is believed to have been a factor in the incident.

Cody Elks’ 140 holiday food baskets gone in six minutes

CODY (WNE) —Although the Cody Elks had blocked out three hours to distribute free meals on Christmas Eve morning, they ended up giving away the 140 holiday baskets in six minutes. 

It began at 9 a.m.

“And we were done at 9:06. It was pretty crazy,” said Jessica Cogdill, organizer and manager of Elks Lodge No. 1611. 

The notice about the giveaway was announced only on the fraternal order’s Facebook page, prompting her to say, “The news got around quickly.”

The baskets included a “good-sized” ham, stuffing, green beans, potatoes, dinner rolls and crackers – enough for a Christmas meal for four to six people, she said. 

The groceries’ purchase was funded by a $4000 grant from the national organization, the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks. With those funds, Cogdill went to Albertsons and presented a list of food and a budget. The staff fulfilled the order, which was so large that it required four pickups to haul the items to the lodge. 

“A group of us” – volunteers and some officers – then assembled the meals, she said. A crew of 15 helped with the distribution.

“Anyone could come by and grab a basket,” she said. “We don’t ask questions.”

This year’s Christmas giveaway was the group’s second and generated a much bigger response than last year’s, Cogdill noted, “because the word didn’t get out.” 

She hopes other organizations will join them in December of 2023.

“We’ll definitely do it next year,” she added. “This is what Elks are all about – ‘Elks care, Elks share,’ that’s our motto, to help the needy.”

Powell businesses refuse to serve underage buyer

POWELL (WNE) — Staff at Powell’s bars and liquor stores aced a police test last week: Employees at 11 establishments all refused to sell alcohol to an underage customer dispatched by police. 

In accordance with state law, authorities periodically conduct “compliance checks” to ensure that liquor license holders are not selling alcohol to people under the age of 21. 

Police choose someone who’s at least 18 but younger than 21 and supervise as the youth tries to purchase an alcoholic beverage. 

Employees who serve the underage customer are typically issued a criminal citation — which can bring hundreds of dollars of financial penalties and probation — while the business receives a negative mark in the annual review of its license. 

In contrast, employees who follow the law and refuse to serve the young person may receive a gift card from police as a reward, and the business gets a positive write-up. During the checks performed on Dec. 28, the would-be buyer was turned away at each stop: the Backstreet Pub, Blair’s Market, K-Bar Saloon, Lamplighter Inn, The Market at Powell (Mr. D’s Food Center), Maverik, The Peaks, Pit Stop Travel Center #11, Pizza Hut, The Red Zone and Sage Brews Wine Spirits. 

“The businesses and employees who successfully passed the compliance check deserve well-earned congratulations for their diligence in preventing alcohol sales to underage purchasers,” Powell police said in a Facebook post. 

The city’s bars, restaurants, fraternal organizations and brewery are coming off what Police Chief Roy Eckerdt called an “outstanding” 2021- 2022, in which all 22 license holders received only positive marks from police. 

That included 10 businesses passing compliance checks last May. 

Geese in Cheyenne test positive for avian influenza

CHEYENNE (WNE) —Two Canada geese from Laramie County have tested positive for highly pathogenic avian influenza.

The geese were recovered from Lions Park in Cheyenne, where several dead geese were reported.

The Wyoming Game and Fish Department has been monitoring for the virus’ presence in wild birds.

As of Dec. 21, there had been 97 detections of HPAI in wild birds in Wyoming, according to the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, a division of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Wild birds can be infected with HPAI and show no signs of illness, according to APHIS. They can carry the disease to new areas when migrating, potentially exposing domestic poultry to the virus.