Chilling Details Released in Montana Murder Case

Authorities say a 36-year-old woman from the Cut Bank area was shot in the head, with her accused killer trying to hide her body in a freezer.

The Glacier County Sheriff's Office released those details yesterday into the homicide that rocked the community over the weekend and led to a cross-country manhunt, with state officials assisting in the investigation. 

Sheriff Tom Seifert identified the victim as Cerenity Marie Shawl, who lived in the Cut Bank area. Cut Bank Police found her body in the basement of the apartment belonging to Alfred Joseph Smith on Saturday afternoon.

     Authorities issued an alert, which led to an anonymous tip, and Smith's apprehension in Fort Benton on Monday. He's being held on a $1 million bail.

Big drug bust in Billings

A joint operation by the Eastern Montana drug task force resulted in the arrest of a Billings man, with the seizure of 45 pounds of meth, $31,000 in cash, and a large quantity of weapons.

U-S Attorney for Montana, Art Alme says 45-year old Lane Demarais is being charged with attempting to distribute meth, which carried a mandatory minimum term of life in prison if he's convicted.

     Billings Police says the arrest happened after the task force executed several search warrants last week.

More drug enforcement in Missoula

Missoula Police are saying the activity people saw yesterday was tied to the arrest of three suspects, tied to a larger, ongoing drug trafficking investigation.

Havre could see rail improvements

There could be big rail improvements coming to Havre in the near future.

The Big Sky Passenger Rail Authority says an application is being filed with the Federal Railroad Administration for $40 million to help pay for the "Havre MT Terminal Passenger and Freight Efficiency Project.

The feds are being asked to kick in $40-million for the $51-million project, which is aimed at clearing the bottleneck that can happen with rail traffic in Havre. Plans call for building 6 new miles of mainline, allowing for the separation of passenger and rail traffic.

Wild recovery story from Lookout

A wild recovery on Lookout Pass this week. Idaho-based Jim's Towing and Repair says it was called to the summit when the snow hit Monday, dealing with the rollover of a truck and trailer.

However, when the company got back, the driver came looking for his load, which the tow operators knew nothing about. Turns out the load of concrete "urn holders", weighing 5 tons each, had rolled 50 to 100 feet down the side of the mountain, without leaving any mark above. The tow crews worked all the way into the night to complete the recovery. Fortunately, no one was hurt.