DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Gov. Terry Branstad has signed the legislation into law that sets new funding levels for K-12 education in the next state budget. KCCI-TV reports Branstad signed legislation Wednesday that will increase K-12 education spending by 2.25 percent for the fiscal year that begins in July. The state currently pays about $6,445 per student in most school programs. The new legislation will increase that by $145.
DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Des Moines police are investigating a robbery at a Git n’ Go convenience store Tuesday night. WHO-TV reports the suspect was armed with a knife and got away with money from the register and the store safe. Police say the suspect was a white male wearing a grey hooded sweatshirt and had scarf covering his face. He fled the area on foot. No one was injured in the robbery.
WATERLOO, IA (IRN) – A former purchasing supervisor for John Deere in Waterloo is accused of a scheme that cost the company at least $250,000. KWWL-TV reports Harvey Ulfers faces federal charges of wire fraud and money laundering. Ulfers was responsible for coordinating the shipments of scrap metal to scrap yards. He’s accused of creating of false shipping orders that would understate how much the metal was worth. He then worked with others to sell it for what it was really worth and pocketed the difference.
HARTFORD, IA (IRN) – The Warren County Sheriff is investigating an attempted abduction last week in Hartford, according to KCCI-TV. The 11-year-old girl said she was walking home when a white man in a red car pulled up behind her and got out. She said he grabbed her wrist and hip and told her to get into his car. The girl kicked the man in the shins and ran away. He chased her on foot until another car driving past scared him off. She says she’s seen him before in a white SUV.
WATERLOO, IA (IRN) – Waterloo police say a bullet hit a female victim in the head Tuesday evening. KCRG-TV reports police are searching for vehicles they think the suspects are driving. The bullet grazed the woman’s head, and her injuries are considered non-life-threatening. Police found shell casings at the scene.
SIOUX CITY, IA (IRN) – For the second time this year, a credit card skimming device has been found on a Sioux City gas pump. KCAU-TV reports the device was attached to a pump at a Cenex station. Police say the skimmer was found after a routine inspection of the pumps. While the first skimming device in Sioux City was easily discovered from its suspicious appearance, this one was an internal skimmer that would have been almost undetectable without a trained eye.
DUBUQUE, IA (IRN) – A rare white stag, on the loose in Dubuque since late January, is back home with his owners, according to KWWL-TV. A white stag is a deer with a condition known as leucism (LOO-kihz-ihm) that causes its hair and skin to lose its natural colour. There were numerous sightings of the missing stag, including reports of him chasing brown does, meaning he could have impregnated them. So look out for more white stags near Dubuque – there’s a 50/50 chance that a white deer will be born when they breed.