Category: Overland Park

Besler named to U.S. Men’s National Team

Matt Besler
Matt Besler

Sporting Kansas City captain Matt Besler was named to the U.S. Men’s National Team’s 26-player roster for a pair of upcoming 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Guatemala.

The U.S. will travel to face Guatemala on Friday at Estadio Metropolitano Roberto Melendez in Guatemala City (9 p.m. CT, beIN Sports, NBC Universo) before hosting the return fixture on March 29 at MAPFRE Stadium in Columbus, Ohio (6 p.m. CT, ESPN2, UniMas, UDN).

“I’m excited and honored to join the U.S. Men’s National Team for two very important World Cup qualifiers,” Besler said. “With Copa America also on the horizon, it will be important for us to improve as a team and win these games. We are looking forward to a successful year in 2016.”

Besler, 29, played 90 minutes in the first two of Sporting Kansas City’s victories to open the 2016 MLS season, anchoring a defense that has yet to allow a goal from the run of play. The Overland Park, Kan., native ranks seventh in Sporting KC history with 221 games played across all competitions since being selected in the first round of the 2009 MLS SuperDraft out of Notre Dame. The four-time MLS All-Star has twice been named to the MLS Best XI (2012, 2013) and earned 2012 MLS Defender of the Year honors.

Internationally, Besler has made 31 career appearances for the U.S. MNT since debuting in January 2013. He helped lead the U.S. to the 2013 CONCACAF Gold Cup title and started all four matches for the Yanks at the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil. Besler earned six more caps in 2015 and most recently played 90 minutes in a pair of friendly wins over Iceland (Jan. 31) and Canada (Feb. 5).

Led by head coach Jurgen Klinsmann, the United States sits atop Group C in CONCACAF’s semifinal round of World Cup qualifying, which consists of 12 countries divided into three groups. Teams square off in a home-and-away round robin format, with the top two finishers from each group advancing to the final qualifying round – commonly referred to as “The Hexagonal.”

The U.S. will conclude the semifinal round of qualifying in September with games against Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (Sept. 2) and Trinidad and Tobago (Sept. 6). Before then, Klinsmann’s side will compete in Copa America Centenario, the U.S. MNT’s marquee competition of 2016. The 16-team tournament will be held in the United States from June 3-26, featuring the likes of Argentina, Brazil and Mexico.

Besler joins Roger Espinoza (Honduras) and Soni Mustivar (Haiti) as Sporting KC players who will join their national teams next week for World Cup qualifying in the CONCACAF region. Sporting Kansas City has next weekend off during the FIFA international window. Besler, Espinoza and Mustivar will rejoin their club ahead of its next MLS match against Real Salt Lake on April 2 at Children’s Mercy Park.

Johnson County man sentenced to prison for embezzlement from firm

A Johnson County man was sentenced Monday to 5.25 years in federal prison for embezzling more than $6 million from an Overland Park company, U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom said.

Kenneth Voboril, 46, Overland Park, Kan., pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud and one count of filing a false tax return. In his plea, he admitted he was hired in 2005 by Commodity Specialists Co. to run its subsidiary, TransMaxx. TransMaxx brokered trucking deliveries for customers and occasionally provided services to CSC.

Voboril devised a scheme to defraud CSC by creating fake companies and billing CSC for deliveries that never occurred. He caused false truck load information to be entered into TransMaxx’s computer system, resulting in invoices being created by TransMaxx’s account software program.

Over the course of time, he embezzled more than $6 million from CSC, according to the U.S. attorney’s office. In addition, he failed to report the income on his federal tax returns.

Grissom commended the Internal Revenue Service, U.S. Secret Service and Assistant U.S. Attorney Chris Oakley for their work on the case.

KDHE expands investigation into norovirus illnesses at Overland Park dinner theater

The Kansas Department of Health and Environment is working with the Kansas Department of Agriculture and the Johnson County Department of Health and Environment to investigate an outbreak of norovirus infection among individuals who became ill after attending the New Theatre Restaurant in Overland Park, Kan.

Based on reports of illness from attendees, KDHE is now expanding the investigation. KDHE would like all persons, those that became ill and those that did not become ill, who attended performances since Friday, Jan. 15 to fill out our secure, confidential online survey available at http://tinyurl.com/newtheatre2016. KDHE is still investigating the source of the illness.

So far during KDHE’s investigation, more than 390 individuals have reported illness and attended the New Theatre Restaurant from Friday, Jan. 15 to present. Four people who became ill have laboratory specimens that confirmed norovirus.

Norovirus is different from influenza and is very contagious. Norovirus symptoms include diarrhea, vomiting, nausea and stomach pain. A person develops symptoms 12 to 48 hours after being exposed and most people get better within one to three days, the KDHE said. Norovirus is spread person to person (having contact with someone who is infected with norovirus), through contaminated food or water, or by touching contaminated surfaces.

Norovirus is not spread through the air through coughing, sneezing or talking, according to the KDHE. The best way to prevent norovirus is proper handwashing. Norovirus causes an estimated 19 to 21 million persons to become ill each year, and is more common in the winter months.

Individuals who may have attempted to fill out the survey before KDHE expanded its investigation to include these additional dates are asked to go online again to fill out the current survey which includes additional attendance dates.

Personal information provided to KDHE will be held confidential, and this information is protected by state law. Persons who have already participated in a telephone interview do NOT need to complete an online survey. Persons with questions or concerns regarding the outbreak may call the KDHE Epidemiology Hotline at 877-427-7317.