Defendants to appear for arraignments

    Three defendants arrested in the Annika Swanson murder case were expected in Chase County Court Wednesday this week for arraignment hearings.
    As co-defendant Keonna Carter did at a Dec. 3 hearing, Kevin German waived extradition in Colorado last Friday, and was being returned to Chase County on Wednesday with Carter for the hearings.
    Since there is a need to keep the pair separate, three deputies in the Chase County Sheriff’s Office and a female dispatcher brought them back to Imperial in two vehicles for the Wednesday hearings, said Sheriff Kevin Mueller.
    German and Carter were jailed in Fort Collins, Colorado, where they were held without bond.
    German and Carter are charged with first degree murder and a host of other charges related to the death of Swanson, 22, whose body was found Nov. 24, south of Imperial.
    Russell Mann also remains in the Chase County Jail on two counts of accessory to kidnapping related to the case. He is being held on a $200,000 bond.
    Mann was also scheduled for arraignment on Wednesday.
    At the Wednesday hearings before Judge Edward Steenburg, all three defendants were to be read the charges against them and informed of their rights.
    Sheriff Mueller said after Wednesday’s hearings, arrangements had been made to transport German and Carter to the Lincoln County Jail in North Platte for housing.