BURLINGTON, IA (IRN) – A Burlington man who used a claw hammer to beat another man to death has been given 50 years in prison. KCRG-TV reports 32-year-old Layton Tapscott killed 32-year-old Julian Menke in Menke’s Burlington home in October 2016. Tapscott told a judge that he was angry at Menke because he thought Menke had made unwanted sexual advances to the mother of Tapscott’s child. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A federal grand jury has indicted seven Des Moines residents on charges of sex trafficking, according to the Des Moines Register. During the spring and summer of 2017, the defendants trafficked three adult victims. If convicted, each defendant may be sentenced to 15 years to life in prison. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Two women connected to a violent assault on Court Avenue in Des Moines have been arrested. KCCI-TV reports 20-year-old Riley VerSteegh and 22-year-old Sydney Stuart face assault charges. They reportedly violently assaulted another woman last week as Court Avenue bars were closing. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A vandal has struck in Des Moines. WHO-TV reports on Sunday, someone spray painted “No Respect” on an Army recruitment billboard. Frank Cordaro, founder of the group Des Moines Catholic Worker, says a Christian political artist is responsible for the vandalism. Cordaro says the anonymous vandal is protesting the Drone Command Center in Des Moines. Airmen at the center use remotely-piloted aircraft that are armed with hellfire missiles and 500-pound bombs. BUCHANAN COUNTY, IA (IRN) – The National Weather Service has confirmed a tornado touched down in Buchanan County during a wave of severe storms Saturday night. The EF-1 tornado briefly touched down southeast of Winthrop with a peak wind estimated at 95 miles per hour. The storm tore a roof off a Winthrop home. IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – A famous Iowan returned home this weekend, and worked a special stop into his schedule. University of Iowa Hospitals tweeted photos on Monday thanking actor Ashton Kutcher for visiting. Kutcher met with several kids recovering at the Stead Family Children’s Hospital.

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – A man injured in an altercation at a Cedar Rapids park has died. KWWL-TV reports 38-year-old Scott Dexter died at a hospital of injuries he suffered Tuesday. The case is being investigated as a homicide, and no arrests have been reported. IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – A judge says fired Iowa Finance Authority Director Dave Jamison is disqualified from collecting unemployment benefits due to credible allegations of sexual harassment. KCCI-TV reports Administrative Law Judge Nicole Merrill ruled that the allegations against Jamison by female subordinates haven’t been fully detailed but are credible and amount to “disqualifying misconduct.” COUNCIL BLUFFS, IA (IRN) – Council Bluffs police are investigating how a man’s body ended up in the Missouri River. KETV reports the body was discovered Saturday near the Ameristar Casino. It was the second body pulled from the river in two days. The remains of a woman were found near Plattsmouth Friday. Her husband told officers he killed his wife and dumped her body off a bridge. LINN COUNTY, IA (IRN) – Two teens are in the hospital after they were thrown from the bumper of a vehicle in Central City. KCRG-TV reports Linn County deputies responded to the crash in the Paris Bridge Natural Area Sunday. The 16-year-old driver went around a curve too fast, lost control and went into a ditch. The two teens on the bumper, a 16-year-old and a 15-year-old, were thrown clear. They’re in the hospital with non-life threatening injuries. OELWEIN, IA (IRN) – There were two water rescues overnight near Oelwein following Saturday’s storm and flooding in northern Iowa. KWWL-TV reports two cars were swept off roadways, and both drivers were rescued by area fire departments. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Second-round leader Tom Lehman has been declared the winner of the PGA Tour Champions event in Des Moines after weather washed out Sunday’s final round. Principal Charity Classic officials had delayed the start of the third round by nearly five hours because of bands of light but persistent rain in central Iowa before calling the event. Lehman shot a 7-under 65 on Saturday to take a two-shot lead over four other golfers.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A text message sent from a teenager to a family member that read, “He’s been pimping me out,” has led to a Des Moines man being charged with human trafficking. The Des Moines Register reports Richard Lynn Wisecup, 56, was also charged with possession of drug paraphernalia and possession of methamphetamine. The girl, who is under the age of 17, also texted a family member: “He was trying to bring me out of state, to Missouri.” The victim also made a phone call from Wisecup’s phone and left a voicemail saying “help me.” DAVENPORT, IA (IRN) – Police in eastern Iowa are investigating the death of a man in an overnight shooting. The Quad-City Times reports that Davenport police were called shortly after 2 a.m. Saturday for a report of shots fired. Arriving officers found a man suffering from gunshot wounds. The 46-year-old man was taken to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead. ALTOONA, IA (IRN) – Des Moines hazmat crews were called to an Altoona trucking company on Friday afternoon, worried chemicals could explode. WHO-TV reports the incident happened at approximately 2 p.m. at Majestic Trucking. A worker says a 55-gallon drum of paint and gun solvent started to expand. The area was briefly evacuated. MUSCATINE, (IRN) – A pink fire truck made a stop in Muscatine last week, according to KWWL-TV. The organization, Pink Heals, Inc., is behind the visit. Pink Heals works to help raise cancer awareness and provide encouragement to anyone who has been affected by it.

ESTHERVILLE, IA (IRN) – Police in Estherville are looking into the death of an 11-month-old girl, according to WHO-TV. Investigators say the girl was taken to the hospital where she later died. Police have not yet said how the baby died. IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – A University of Iowa campus police officer claims that he was unfairly fired days before leaving for a lengthy military deployment overseas. KCRG-TV reports Jeffrey Williams was placed on leave April 19 during his final shift before he was leaving for a one-year deployment with the Air National Guard. Williams says his termination came after an internal affairs investigation related to his search for drugs. The 30-year-old Williams says he had no prior discipline and was terminated without a hearing required by law. He’s seeking reinstatement. DAVENPORT, IA (IRN) – A Davenport woman is warning other women to be on the lookout while shopping. WQAD-TV reports the woman noticed a man following her around Walmart with a shopping basket. A Walmart employee later informed her that the man was known for going around and filming up women’s skirts with his phone in the basket. BETTENDORF, IA (IRN) – A construction crew working on a bridge over the Mississippi River in Bettendorf saved four lives when a boat full of rowers capsized in the Mississippi River. WQAD-TV reports the crew saw the boat capsize, and launched two rescue boats. Three of the rowers were hanging onto the overturned boat, and a fourth rower, a female, had let go and was drifting down river with the current. All four were rescued.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Des Moines police launched a suspicious death investigation today after discovering a body on the sidewalk of a metro neighborhood. KCCI-TV reports the body of a deceased male was found around 6:30 a.m. PUTNAM COUNTY, MO (IRN) – A southeast Iowa woman received injuries from multiple dog bites serious enough for her to be airlifted to the hospital. KTVO-TV reports dispatchers received a 911 call regarding a woman who was having problems breathing after being bitten by a dog. When emergency personal arrived, they found that a 59-year-old woman from Exline, Iowa, had been trying to separate two male dogs that had been fighting. According to the dogs’ owners, the dogs were family owned animals and had not displayed aggressive behavior before. MEXICO (IRN) – A young man brought to Iowa illegally from Mexico by his parents when he was three has been killed weeks after being sent to Mexico by ICE agents. The Des Moines Register reports DREAMER Manuel Antonio Cano Pacheco was scheduled to have graduated from East High School in Des Moines last month. Arrested on misdemeanor charges, Pacheco was escorted across the border. His throat was slit. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Suicide rates are on the rise in every state except Nevada, according to a report released Thursday from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The CDC says there has been a 36 percent increase in suicides from 1999 to 2016 in Iowa. The two groups with the highest suicide rates are teenage girls and farmers. HARDIN COUNTY, IA (IRN) – Rick Dunn from Eldora won the Republican primary for Hardin County Attorney on Tuesday but his name won’t appear on the general election ballot, according to WHO-TV. Dunn passed away a month ago after a battle with cancer, and it was too late to take his name off the ballot. Dunn served as Hardin County Attorney for 16 years. County Auditor Jessica Lara says, “he was Mr. Eldora for many of us because he was involved in so many things in the community.” IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – The Iowa City Airport is celebrating a century of service this weekend, according to KWWL-TV. The celebration will start today and it features an historic Ford Tri-Motor plane. Built in 1928, the plane is small in comparison to today’s commercial planes, but back then it was ahead of its time and a luxury. Henry Ford had the plane commissioned with three engines as a safety innovation.