crime

Drug dealer charged with giving drinks to woman convicted of killing teens in wrong-way accident

A Spring man has been charged with providing drinks for a 22-year-old woman on the evening she drove the wrong direction on I-45, killing two teenagers and permanently injuring a third.

Hours before a jury sentenced Nicole Baukus to 34 years in prison on Friday, authorities issued an arrest warrant for Kambiz Michael Duran, who was caught on surveillance camera that tragic night in 2012 as he was giving drinks to the defendant during her four-hour bender at a Woodlands bar.

According to public records, Duran currently is serving a 180-day stint in a Harris County jail for possession of marijuana and criminal forgery. Officials with Montgomery County are permitted to detain the accused upon his release in December.

Duran has been no stranger to the court system in the last decade.

Witnesses identified 29-year-old Duran as attorneys played a video of Baukus consuming a total of 21 drinks at the then-named On the Rox sports bar, which agreed to a $1-million settlement in April.

Prosecutors tell the Houston Chronicle that laws blocking bartenders from selling drinks to intoxicated patrons also applies to customers who give alcohol to someone who has had too much.

The incriminating sports bar footage led the defendant to change her plea to guilty at Friday's trial, during which KHOU Channel 11 reports that she took the stand to reveal her own thoughts of suicide.

“I don't deserve to be here. I should have died in that crash also,” she told jurors. “They did not deserve to die. I did. They were innocent."

A busy criminal past

Duran has been no stranger to the court system in the last decade. In 2002, he was arrested and later convicted for producing LSD as well as for transporting a sizable amount of marijuana and possessing an illegal firearm.

County records show that he also pled guilty to another drug and weapons possession incident in 2010.

The charges behind Duran's current jail time date to December, when he set his Spring home ablaze while making "earwax" — a liquid pot derivative known for its dangerous Breaking Bad-style manufacturing process.

Watch the KHOU Channel 11 report:

Two teenagers were killed in the crash along with another teen who suffered permanent injuries.

Montgomery County Police Reporter

Two teenagers were killed in the crash along with another teen who suffered permanent injuries.

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Supermarket News

Walmart plans to remodel 67 stores in Texas, including 13 across Houston

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Walmart is in renovation mode: The retail giant is remodeling 67 stores across Texas — part of a bigger plan to remodel more than 650 stores across the U.S.

Texas gets 10 percent of those remodels. Go Texas.

A release says that the remodels will re-imagine the in-store shopping experience with updates that include:

New look: Big, bold signage and new displays to better showcase merchandise
More selection: Expanded departments, new items
Expanding online pickup & delivery: To fulfill the growing number of online customer orders
Rethinking their pharmacy: Wider aisles, a new private screening room, and privacy checkout areas

"Our stores often serve as the heartbeat of the communities we operate in, and these remodels are a testament to our dedication to enhancing that role," says Southwest Business Unit Operations senior VP Paul Lewellen in a statement. “By investing in our stores and associates, we are not only improving the shopping experience but also reinforcing our commitment to being a vital part of the community’s fabric, helping to build a brighter future for all."

Walmart invested over $2.6 billion to upgrade stores throughout Texas in the past five years. The company is also building three new Supercenters set to open in 2025 in Cypress, Frisco, and Melissa, with a new Supercenter coming to Celina in spring 2026. Cypress is scheduled to open on April 30, and Frisco and Melissa are scheduled to open in the fall.

Stores due for a remodel include:

Greater Houston

2700 S. Kirkwood Rd.
10411 N. Freeway 45
111 Yale St.
13484 Northwest Fwy.
10001 Woodlands Pkwy. (The Woodlands)
6626 FM 1960 Rd. E (Humble/Atascocita)
25800 Kuykendahl Rd. (Tomball)
26824 FM 1093 Rd. (Richmond)
21150 Kuykendahl Rd. (Spring)
155 Louetta Xing (Spring)
1025 Sawdust Rd. (Spring)
6410 Interstate 45 (La Marque)
9025 Spencer Hwy (La Porte)

Austin

9300 S. I-35 #B

Dallas-Fort Worth

9101 N. Tarrant Pkwy., North Richland Hills
1035 Hickory Creek Blvd., Denton/Hickory Creek

San Antonio

5555 de Zavala Rd.
4226 de Zavala Rd.
5025 NW Loop 410
1200 SE Military Dr.
3302 SE Military Pkwy.
9526 W. Military Dr.
1603 Vance Jackson Rd.

Other cities with Walmart re-dos include: Alamo, Atlanta, Baytown, Beaumont, Borger, Brady, Breckenridge, Brownsville, Carthage, Childress, Corpus Christi, Del Rio, Eagle Pass, Edinburg, El Paso, Elsa, Ennis, Fort Stockton, Gatesville, Gilmer, Harlingen, Hereford, Hillsboro, Hondo, Laredo, Longview, McAllen, New Braunfels, New Boston, Rio Grande City, Rockport, San Angelo, Schertz, Stamford, Sweetwater, Texarkana, and Waco.

Walmart currently has 596 retail units and 25 supply chain facilities across Texas, and was recently named as one of the Fortune 100 Best Companies to Work For. In Texas, more than 93,900 hourly, frontline associates received a bonus in March, and many promotions were bestowed: 11,500 associates were promoted to jobs with more responsibility and higher pay in 2024, and more than 17,300 part-time associates were promoted to full-time positions.

The company plays an active role in the community through local giving, company-paid associate volunteering, emergency relief efforts, and donations that include more than 91 million pounds of food to local food banks in Texas in fiscal year 2025.

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