Local briefs 9/1/06

CrimeStoppers item leads to dealer's arrest

A man wanted for two Cape Girardeau cocaine sales was arrested Thursday morning. More than a month after a warrant was issued for Lorenza W. Goza, 33, of 803 Themis St., he was arrested at 122 S. West End Blvd. Goza was charged July 26 with two counts of felony distribution of a controlled substance, according to police spokesman Jason Selzer. Police were tipped off to Goza's whereabouts after he was featured on CrimeStoppers, Selzer said. Goza is accused of selling 2 grams of crack cocaine on two separate occasions to an undercover officer and confidential informant in May, according to a probable-cause statement. Bond was set at $35,000.

Chaffee apartment fire started by child

CHAFFEE, Mo. -- A child playing with matches started a small house fire in a Chaffee public housing complex this week. Firefighters responded to the call at a Chaffee Housing Authority duplex around 10 p.m. Wednesday, Chaffee fire chief Mike Lee said. The blaze was contained to a single bedroom, which was heavily damaged by flames. Within 15 minutes, the fire was brought under control and extinguished, Lee said. No one was injured. Investigators determined the fire was started by a young child playing with matches, which ignited a mattress.

Brothers set for Sept. 21 trial after Aug. 8 shooting

Two brothers will stand trial later this month on charges stemming from Jackson's first shooting in half a decade. Following an altercation Aug. 8 in the 4800 block of Old Cape Road, Cody A. Reid, 17, is accused firing a rifle into a crowd and striking a window of a passing vehicle, according to a probable cause statement. No one was injured. Reid was charged with misdemeanor discharging a firearm across a public highway. Both he and his brother, Lonnie D. Reid, were also charged with misdemeanor tampering with evidence, accused of hiding the .22-caliber rifle after the shooting. During a court appearance Thursday, Associate Circuit Judge Gary A. Kamp scheduled the pair for a bench trial Sept. 21 at 1 p.m., according to a court clerk.

Judge orders single trial for accused serial killer

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- A Missouri man prosecutors have called the state's most prolific serial killer will be tried for 13 homicides at the same time, a judge ruled Thursday. Lorenzo J. Gilyard, 56, was charged in April 2004 with strangling a dozen women -- all but one a prostitute -- after a federal grant allowed the police crime lab to begin testing evidence from old, unsolved cases. A 13th murder charge was added in June.

-- From staff reports