Indian Scammer Defrauded Veteran

An Indian Citizen residing in the United States on a student visa was sentenced Thursday after a jury convicted him of conspiring to defraud a Northeastern Oklahoma Vietnam Veteran in April 2026, announced U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Nassar after court proceedings.

U.S. District Judge John D. Russell sentenced Venkateswara Chagamreddy,37, living in San Antonio, Texas, to 30 months’ imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release. Chagamreddy was also ordered to pay $99,496 in restitution and is expected to face removal proceedings following his sentence.

“Elder fraud schemes are despicable, calculated attacks that prey on some of the most vulnerable and trusting members of our community. In this case, an Indian national in the United States on a student visa used fear to deceive and extort a Vietnam veteran who served our country,” said U.S. Attorney Nassar.

Veterans honored and celebrated in Tulsa Veterans Parade
Continue reading

Schools Teach. Health Providers Treat.

Analysis: School-based healthcare is no longer limited to services traditionally connected to special education. Oklahoma already permits certain health-related and rehabilitative services through schools, while federal policy is encouraging states to expand school-based Medicaid and behavioral-health services. At the same time, school-based health centers can introduce a broader healthcare-delivery operation into a public school.

The question is not whether children need healthcare. They do. The question is whether public schools should become a larger part of healthcare delivery systems, and if so, where the boundaries should be drawn.

Continue reading

National Voter Registration Day

The Rogers County Election Board Secretary Julie Dermody has announced the office will celebrate National Voter Registration Day on Tuesday, September 15, by keeping its doors open until midnight and inviting residents to stop by for a community-focused celebration of voting and civic participation.

Continue reading

OU Explores Fall Risk for Elders

A University of Oklahoma (OU) researcher at the OU Health Campus in Tulsa is undertaking a study of one of the most common health risks facing older adults: falls that occur in the home.

An estimated 14 million Americans, or one in every four age 65 and older, falls every year, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). While that risk of falls increases as we age, it is estimated to be two to three times higher for those 70,500 Oklahomans among 7.4 million Americans living with Alzheimer’s disease.

Continue reading

Kansas Resident Voting Illegally Arrested

The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released the following statement after U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Special Agents arrested Mariana Alexandra Dewey, a citizen of Peru, for illegally misrepresenting herself as a legal U.S. citizen to vote in the November 5, 2024, General Election in Sedgwick County, Kansas.

Special Agents located Dewey at a residence in Wichita, Kansas.
Continue reading