Joplin Man Sentenced To 8 Years For 2009 Baseball Bat Beating Death:

Aaron E. Pilgrim (mug shot JCSO)

A man from Joplin has been sentenced to eight years in prison after pleading guilty to beating a man to death in 2009.

Aaron Eugene Pilgrim, 37, of rural Joplin was originally charged with second-degree murder for 50 year-old Ralph "Bub" Ernest Ivy Jr.'s death but pleaded guilty in February to involuntary manslaughter.

Jasper County Sheriff's Captain Derek Walrod says Pilgrim, Ivy and Pilgrim's former girlfriend Crystal Lynch were drinking at the woman's home on Red Fox Road when a fight broke out inside the house.  Acording to Walrod, Pilgrim confronted Ivy about some alleged sexual advances the older man made to Lynch's 11 year-old sister.

Ralph E. Ivy Jr. (mug shot JCSO)

After the fight spilled out onto the front yard Ivy went back inside the house and retrieved a baseball bat while Pilgrim armed himself with "a wooden club," according to Walrod.  Investigators also recovered a silver knife and a pair bloody scissors from the crime scene.

At the plea hearing in February, Pilgrim told Judge David Dally that he took the deal because he was afraid he would be found guilty of murder (which carries up to 30 years in prison) at trial and admitted that he hit Ivy with a bat but that he didn't think it would kill him.

Jasper County Woman Survives Throat Being Slit:

Josh Gail Johnson (mug shot JCSO)

A twenty eight year-old Jasper County man has been arrested on charges of first-degree domestic assault after allegedly slitting his girlfriends throat early this morning.

Jasper County Sheriff's Captain Derek Walrod says Josh G. Johnson sliced the throat of his twenty-one year old girlfriend in a friends car during an argument.

The woman was taken to McCune Hospital in Jasper where she received five stitches to close the wound and was released.  Walrod says investigators had to track the woman down to get a statement and she is in fear for her life.

Johnson is being held on a 24 hour hold pending the filing of formal charges of domestic assault and armed criminal action.

Jasper County Woman Charged With Child Trafficking For Attempting To Trade Newborn For Car:

Lana Y. Banks (mug shot JCSO)

A woman from Oronogo who tried to trade her newborn grandchild for a used car is facing charges of trafficking in children.

Authorities in Jasper County  have been investigating Lana Yvonne Farris Banks, 44, since mid January after receiving information from officials with The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children who received a hot line call from an unnamed couple alerting them to the scheme.

According to court documents, on January 13th Banks allegedly told the couple they would be allowed to adopt the baby that her daughter was carrying in exchange for a used car that was worth between $3,000 to $3,5000.

The couple reportedly told investigators they told Banks that was illegal and they wanted their attorney involved in future negotiations.  After a few days Banks contacted the couple and asked if they would meet a "mediator" with her.  When they insisted on bringing their attorney, Banks told them "never mind," she had found another couple interested in the same deal.

When the baby was born on March 10th, Banks, who was at a Joplin hospital with a couple from Florida who wanted to adopt the baby, was taken into custody but released after 24 hours pending the filing of formal charges.

Captain Derek Walrod says, "This isn't the woman's first child.  We can't account for one that should be in the home. We are looking into allegations that she may have given another baby up for adoption. If that's true, we want to make sure it was done legally."

A judge issued a warrant for Banks' arrest on March 22nd and when she surrendered herself to authorities yesterday (04-01-11) she was accompanied by bondsman who immediately posted a $2,500 surety bond and a $1,000 cash bond.

Walrod, who has an adopted child says, "The child born on March 10th has been placed in protective custody."

Online court records do not indicate when Banks will next appear in court.

Jasper County Authorities Conducting Death Investigation:

Burned vehicle with body inside found near here

Authorities in Jasper County are conducting a death investigation after a body was found inside a burnt vehicle yesterday morning near the Stones Corner boat access at Highway 43 and County Lane 251.

Sheriff's Captain Derek Walrod says they received a call about a car on fire about 9 a.m. and by the time they got to the scene the car was fully engulfed in flames.  It took firefighters about 10 minutes to extinguish the blaze. 
-
"They're were no visible wounds to the body.  It appears an accelerant was used, but since we don't know what happened were treating the investigation the same way we would a homicide investigation," said Walrod. 
-
All physical evidence was destroyed in the blaze and investigators are trying to piece together what happened from the time the vehicle was seen entering the conservation area about 8 a.m. until they received the phone call about the fire.
-
Walrod says the car was a 90's model Chevy Caprice, "We think we know who it is and who the car belongs to but we're waiting on confirmation from the findings from the autopsy in Columbia tomorrow."

UPDATE 03-04-11:

Andy Mason (left) was a life coach (courtesy Carthage Press)

-
Sheriff Archie Dunn says investigators believe the body found in a burning car earlier this week is Andrew Donald Mason, 41, 221 S. Pearl Ave., Joplin.

Dunn said investigators have found no evidence of foul play and no evidence of the involvement of anyone else in Mason's death and an autopsy performed in Columbia found no wounds to the body.  "It appears that he was having some personal problems," says Dunn.

Mason's mother, who lives in England, and other family and friends have not heard from Mason since the discovery of the body. 

Dunn says a forensic odontologist will help in the identification.

Webb City Youth Pastor Fleeing From Police On Child Molestation Allegation Kills Himself:

Authorties in Jasper County are investigating the death of Webb City man who fled from them as they attempted to arrest him on alleged child molestation charges.

Captain Derek Walrod says that deputies were assisting investigators with the Webb City Police Department in the arrest of 33 year-old Jason R. Piepenbrink and were sent to a church camp to arrest the man.


On the way to the camp officers were told that youth pastor had fled to a friends house at 12173 County Road 140 in Carthage. Walrod says when officers arrived at that home, they discovered the back door had been forced open. When the officers entered the home, they found Piepenbrink on the bathroom floor with a knife in his chest.

Walrod says investigators believe the fatal wound was self inflicted. "We are helping Webb City with the death investigation, at this point we don't believe there is any foul play involved in Mr. Piepenbrink's death." A passenger van parked in the driveway of the home where Piepenbrink was found dead belongs to Calvary Baptist Church in Joplin.

Sgt. Joe Beckett with the Webb City Police Department declined to comment on the child molestation investigation, "We're not done with our investigation and have no comment."