Jen Austin

It’s a story that has made national news. Earlier this week, accused serial killer Israel Keyes was found dead in his jail cell in Alaska after an apparent suicide.

He’s accused of abducting, assualting, killing, and dismembering the body of an 18-year old barista who was kidnapped from a coffee stand last February.

In March, Keyes was arrested at the parking lot of a Cotton Patch Cafe in Lufkin after trying to use Samantha Koenig’s stolen debit card.

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The Heisman Trophy is the most prestigious honor that a single college football player can receive, and this Saturday we'll find out if Tyler native Johnny Manziel wins it.

Even Texas Longhorn fans might admit that Manziel has had a pretty great season with the Texas A&M Aggies.

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America has a fascination with boys’ names that end in the letter N.

And with girls’ it’s all the rage to end the name with an A.

Babycenter has revealed their Top 100 Baby Names of 2012, and judging by the list, kindergarten classes in five years will be well-populated with Aidens and Sophias.

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It's the Christmas shopping season, the weather will be warm and gorgeous, and flea markets are just plain fun. All of those things are expected to factor into huge crowds this weekend at First Monday Trade Days in Canton. It might be worth the drive.

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It was a little more than a year ago that the most destructive wildfire in Texas history destroyed much of the vegetation in Bastrop County near Austin. It was a major setback for the renowned Lost Pines ecosystem. The fire covered 32,400-acres, destroyed 1,660 homes and killed 1.5 million trees.

Now, Lufkin is coming to the rescue. Eleven-hundred pounds of tree seeds that were stored in Lufkin and almost thrown into the land fill at one point, will help rebuild the Bastrop ecosystem.

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A small plane crashed happened about 9:30 last night in Cherokee County.

Drivers noticed debris on Texas Highway 7, near the Cherokee-Angelina County line, and authorities traveled from Houston overnight to comb over the scene.

The wreckage was discovered in a wooded area, in 4700 block of Cheeseland Road in Pollok.

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The winning numbers in Saturday night’s Powerball drawing were 22-32-37-44-50 with Powerball 34, according to the Powerball lottery’s website.

Saturday night’s jackpot amount was the fourth largest in the game’s history, but no one matched all of the numbers. There was no winner. So…how high will the jackpot climb now?

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American Express posted this Youtube Video about ways to support small, independent retailers, and it's been viewed more than 5 million times.

Black Friday may be winding down, but the shopping continues this weekend. Tomorrow, shoppers will head out to support independent retailers in East Texas on Small Business Saturday.

Small Business Saturday is the day we celebrate the Shop Small movement to drive shoppers to local merchants across the U.S.

What Lufkin, Nacogdoches, and other area business will you support?

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Texas doesn’t have bragging rights in terms of the biggest turkey-producing states, but it does produce its share.

Nine to ten million Texas turkeys are produced each year, and most of those come from Central and East-Central Texas, according to a map from Smithsonian Magazine.

Which state is the biggest turkey producer? I’ll give you the answer so you can impress your friends and family at the Thanksgiving feast today.

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Are you planning to shop in the store, or online this weekend? Actually going to Lufkin Mall, grabbing the item you want, and paying for it there without having to wait for UPS to bring it to you seems sort of nostalgic now. Die hard shoppers might argue it's the most fun way to obtain new things, but there is something quick and convenient about electronically adding to cart.

If you shop online, where in the house are you sitting? The toilet? I kid you not. Millions of Americans are participating in online shopping while sitting on the porcelain throne.

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