Local News: Wednesday January 15th 2025
A man has been charged with arson after a fire destroyed a camper on December 30 on south Red Bank Road in Evansville. Vanderburgh County Sheriff’s deputies and fire personnel responded to the scene and found the camper fully engulfed in flames. Witnesses reported seeing a man, later identified as Joseph Wayne Desper, near the property before the fire and leaving the area in a red truck shortly afterward. Investigators determined that Desper had entered the camper while intoxicated and allegedly used a gas lighter inside before leaving. Witnesses also stated that Desper had previously made threats to burn the camper, which was being used to store personal belongings. The camper and its contents were completely destroyed. In early January, a felony warrant for arson, classified as a Level 4 felony, was issued for Desper. And on January 12, the investigation led Vanderburgh County Sheriff’s deputies assigned to the U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force, to the 4200 block of Stewartsville Road in Posey County. The address was surrounded, but Desper refused to cooperate and barricaded himself inside the residence. A judicially signed search warrant was obtained and less lethal munitions were later deployed at the property. With the assistance of the Posey County Sheriff’s Office, Evansville Police Department SWAT Team, the Indiana State Police, and Department of Natural Resources Conservation officers, Desper eventually surrendered to law enforcement after a six hour standoff and was taken into custody without further incident. Desper faces arson charges related to the fire, and the investigation remains ongoing.
This week is National College Financial Prep Week and the Posey County Community Foundation has several scholarships available for local areas students. You can find a full list of scholarships online at PoseyCountyCF.org/scholarships. The deadline to register is Monday, January 20th. If you need help applying or have questions, you can visit the Posey County Community Foundation office at 402 Main Street in Mount Vernon, or call the office at 812-838-0288.
The Posey County Council on Aging has announced many activities and trips for the year. This year, they have eight day trips planned, four extended length bus trips and an eight day / seven night cruise. They have shared the full details and pricing for all of the trips online on Facebook on the Posey County Council on Aging page. You can also visit their web site at PoseyCOA.org or call their office at 8812-838-4656.
The Inaugural IHSAA Girls Wrestling State Finals are coming up this Saturday and will take place at the Indiana State Fairgrounds. Posey County has three ladies that have qualified for the honor this year. They include North Posey's sophomore, Kenna Kleinschmidt with a 25 and 2 record in the 105 weight class, Mount Vernon's Junior, Madalyn McCarty with a 15 and 3 record in the 135 weight class and Mount Vernon's Junior, Ambryn Siddons with a 22 and 1 record in the 155 weight class. The first round of the State Championship will begin at 9AM Central Time on Saturday. All matches will be streamed online at IHSAAtv.org.
Last night in high school sports, the Mount Vernon Wildcats boys wrestlers hosted the Jasper Wildcats. Mount Vernon fell to Jasper with a final score of 46 to 28. The Wildcats have one more dual meet next week before the post season begins. And the North Posey Lady Vikings Basketball team hosted the Heritage Hills Patriots. The Vikings outscored the Patriots in all but the 3rd quarter. Final score, 62 to 53 in favor of the Vikings. They now move to 10 and 5 on the season with 5 regular season games remaining. They will take on Pike Central on Saturday.
In college action for Tuesday night, Evansville Men’s Basketball got tripped up at Northern Iowa, 73-56. The Purple Aces fall to 3-4 in the Missouri Valley Conference and 6-12 overall. UE plays at home on Saturday against Belmont. Indiana Men’s Basketball got ran off their own court up on Bloomington against 19th ranked Illinois, 94-69. The Hoosiers are now 13-5 and 4-3 in the Big 10. The Fighting Illini run their record to 13-4 and 5-2 in the conference. 8th ranked Kentucky beat 11th ranked Texas A&M at home, 81-69. The Cats record jumps to 14-3 in the year and 3-1 in the SEC. And from the NBA last night…the Indiana Pacers saw their 6-game winning streak come to an end with a 127-117 home loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Pacers drop to 22-19 overall.
Coming up in high school sports tonight, the Mount Vernon Wildcats have a day off in all sports, and the North Posey Vikings welcome Vincennes Lincoln for boys varsity wrestling. That meet will start at 5:30.