From Staff Reports

Tecumseh Police Chief Troy Stern said that investigation continues in two robberies in Tecumseh that took place last week and that there could be a connection with the robbery of a Saline Dominos Pizza business on Monday afternoon.

“We’re still investigating the option that the individual in custody in Saline is our person,” said Stern. “It’s going to be a while until we can put all our investigation together to see if this individual is him, but he’s a solid suspect at this point.”

Fabricare on Herrick Park Drive was held up at 9 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 19, and the perpetrator threatened a clerk with a knife, taking an undisclosed amount of cash. On Saturday, Jan. 21, Modish Hair Salon in downtown Tecumseh was robbed at knifepoint. Following the Tecumseh robberies, the robber was able to get away in what was described as a dark colored pickup truck. He was apprehended in a dark blue pickup.

Robert Neibler, of Tecumseh, is being held in Washtenaw County on a charge of armed robbery at Dominoes and was being held on a $100,000 bond. He was charged with one count each of armed robbery, larceny of money and threatening an individual at the store, according to annarbor.com. Neibler has previous convictions of breaking and entering with intent to commit a crime in Mason County in 2002 and Kalkaska County in 2004 and has served probation for those crimes.

Neibler was also arraigned Thursday, Jan. 26, on charges of attempting to disarm a peace officer, attempted escape and assaulting a police officer. During a visit to St. Joseph Mercy Hospital early Wednesday for undisclosed self-inflicted injuries, the suspect assaulted an officer who was escorting him to a restroom and attempted to remove the officer’s gun from its holster before being restrained with the help of a second officer. Following that arraignment his bond was raised to $125,000.

Tecumseh’s 2012 Weight Loss Challenge will gear up on Sunday, Jan. 29, with a “Kick Off the Weight” event featuring TV’s Biggest Loser celebrities Marci and Courtney Crozier. The mother-daughter team was featured on the 11th season of the program.

The event will take place at the Tecumseh Center for the Arts, beginning at 1 p.m. Tickets are $5 for the program, which will include a light lunch featuring Subway sandwiches and an opportunity to meet the Croziers.

Marci Crozier is a motivational speaker and, along with her daughter, Courtney, was the first woman in the television show’s history to reach her goal weight while still at the Biggest Loser ranch. Courtney was turned down twice for the show after trying out. After the second turn-down, she devised her own weight loss plan, worked hard and succeeded in losing 122 pounds on her own. She tried out for the show again, and was finally accepted. Courtney lost more than 220 pounds, and currently weighs 212 pounds. The family is from Valparaiso, Indiana.

“They’re going to get us all fired up and energized at the kick-off,” said Shelley Lim, Cultural and Leisure Services Director.

Participants should dress comfortably, as there will be chances to take part in demonstrations of Jazzercize, Zumba and Kickboxing. Tecumseh Weight Challenge fitness partners from the community will be on hand to answer questions regarding special incentives and activities throughout the challenge. Kelli Roberts, owner of Jazzercise Tecumseh Fitness Center will share her own weight journey as well.

The Tecumseh Weight Loss Challenge will begin on Jan. 30 and run through April 23. Registration for the challenge is $20 and the deadline is Jan. 30. Mayor Richard Johnson and Tecumseh’s First Lady, Susan Whitney Johnson, are scheduled to take part in the challenge.

Hospice of Lenawee will hold a Community Open House for its new Hospice Home on Friday, Feb. 10. The new facility is located at 1903 Wolf Creek Highway, and the open house will take place there from 2-7 p.m.

Guests will have an opportunity to meet Lenawee Hospice Home staff and take tours of the Hospice Home, Administrative, Bereavement and Home Care Staff building. Hospice has been conducting a fundraising campaign to meet a $5 million goal for constructing the new facility.

The event is sponsored by United Bank and Trust. Light refreshments will be served.

It is estimated that approximately 144 patients per year would be served by the hospice residence, with Lenawee’s more than 100,000 people having the option of 24-hour care within close proximity.

Hospice of Lenawee, a non-profit community based Hospice, was founded in 1981. The mission is to provide compassionate, patient and family centered care to the people of the community during and after the last season of life. Hospice of Lenawee offers, as a community service and at no charge, its expertise in trauma and loss support for youth, and bereavement and grief support for children and adults alike.

By JIM LINCOLN

A suspect in the robberies of two Tecumseh businesses this past week has been caught. The suspect is a 27-year-old Caseville, Mich., man who was nabbed in Saline after robbing Domino’s Pizza on Michigan Ave. Monday afternoon, according to press reports.

“He is a very good suspect,” said Tecumseh Police Chief Troy Stern, who cautioned that evidence is still being evaluated. The department is continuing its investigation and encourages anyone with information to call 423.7494.

The Caseville man held up the Saline business Monday at 3:30 p.m. when he took an undisclosed amount of cash. He assaulted an employee, who suffered abrasions and bruising, during the robbery, and was pulled over by police while attempting to leave Saline in a older blue pickup truck.

Police are comparing similarities to the robberies of Fabricare in Tecumseh on Thursday, Jan. 19, and on Saturday, Jan. 21, at Modish Hair Salon in downtown. In both robberies, an undisclosed amount of cash was taken at knifepoint, although no one was injured.

Fabricare was held up at 9 p.m. where one employee was working and able to give police a description of the suspect, but not of the suspect’s vehicle. The second Tecumseh robbery occurred in daylight around 5 p.m. during the downtown Ice Festival, where three employees of Modish Hair Salon and two pedestrians outside the business witnessed the suspect and his vehicle. He entered the hair salon by the front entrance and left through a back door where he had parked a dark colored pickup truck. He left the scene southbound on Ottawa Street.

Saline police reported that a Tecumseh woman and a child were riding with the Caseville man in a blue truck when it was stopped on Maple Road. The woman, whose identity was not disclosed, was repeatedly yelling “what did you do” to the suspect, according to reports.

The suspect is currently being held at the Washtenaw County Jail.

Crime Stoppers of Lenawee is asking for the public’s help with information about two armed robberies that occurred in the City of Tecumseh. The first incident occurred on Jan. 19 around 9 p.m. at the Fabricare Laundromat located at 115 Herrick Park Dr., and the second incident occurred on Saturday, Jan. 21, shortly after 5 p.m. at Modish Hair Salon, 208 E. Chicago Blvd. In both incidents a lone white male entered the businesses and brandished a knife demanding money from the employees. An undetermined amount of cash was taken in both incidents.

The suspect’s description is a white male 5’9”-5’10” tall, slim build, between 30-40 years of age. In the first incident the suspect wore a stocking cap, a dark hooded sweatshirt, blue jeans and dark colored gloves. In the second incident the subject was seen wearing a dark stocking cap, a dark colored jacket over a grey hooded sweatshirt and blue jeans.

The suspect was seen leaving the area of the Jan. 21 incident in a newer dark colored full size extended cab Chevy pick-up.

Crime Stoppers is asking for your help. If you have any information about this case, call
(517) 266-6161 or (877) 276-8477 or on-line at Lenawee’s Most Wanted. You can leave your tip anonymously. Crime Stoppers is an organization made up of police, media and community members.

Any tips that lead to the arrest of the responsible person or persons will earn the caller a cash reward. We will protect your identity! Help us stop crime in Lenawee County! For more Crime Stopper Press Releases or to view Lenawee’s Most Wanted go to www.lenawee.mi.us.com and go to the Sheriff Department link.

By DEB WUETHRICH

Tecumseh Mayor Richard Johnson visited Lansing on Wednesday, Jan. 18, to hear Gov. Rick Snyder’s State of the State Address from the Michigan House floor. Johnson was the guest of Michigan Rep. Nancy Jenkins for the occasion.

“It was really an honor to be asked to be up there for this, and I really appreciated it,” said Johnson. “Nancy has a really choice aisle seat where I sat with her, and we got to shake hands with everybody as they came in and out.” The mayor said he also received “the nickel tour” of the capitol building and attended a couple of receptions with Jenkins, including one hosted by Speaker of the House Jase Bolger, and one with Charles Moss, chair of the House Appropriations Committee, which Jenkins sits on.

“I’m a big Rick Snyder fan anyway, so some of the things he was talking about struck me,” said Johnson, recalling some highlights. “He talked about jobs and how good it is for the state of Michigan to be leading the way in recovering from its previous jobless rate, but that we still have a ways to go and there will be more work.”

Johnson also heard the governor talk about Michigan having four of the top 10 crime cities. “He said he will spend the second half of this year focusing on that, and trying to get more police on the streets and make more law enforcement jobs available to help alleviate that situation.” He also said Gov. Snyder “threw down the gauntlet,” encouraging the lawmakers to make good progress this year on setting the state’s budget as they had done last year.

“He also spoke about the farm community, which is often neglected,” said Johnson. “Coming from a rural community like Lenawee, it was good to hear him talk about agriculture.”