Author: Iowa Radio News

MASON CITY, IA (IRN) – An Iowa parolee accused of embezzlement has taken a plea deal. The Mason City Globe Gazette reports that 45-year-old Julie Fingalsen pled guilty to theft as a habitual offender. Prosecutors dropped a forgery charge in exchange for Fingalsen’s plea. She forged and deposited or cashed more than a dozen checks while working for a law office, $41,000 while working for a chiropractor, and $50,000 while working for an optometrist.

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – A Cedar Rapids woman was taken to the hospital with severe burns this morning after an explosion. Fire crews believe it may have been caused by a gas leak. The woman was the only person home at the time, and the fire was contained to the home.

BOONE, IA (IRN) – The Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation is investigating an officer-involved shooting in Boone. Witnesses say a man was threatening people with a gun about 11 PM Monday. When the man was confronted by police, he drew a gun. Officers ordered him to drop the gun numerous times, but he refused. He raised his arm and took aim at the officers. Officers fired their weapons, hitting the man. He died later from his injuries.

MASON CITY, IA (IRN) – Mason City police say someone stole a rifle and shotgun from an unmarked police vehicle over the weekend. KCRG-TV reports an officer had placed the weapons on the back seat while dealing with a maintenance issue related to the trunk, and one of the doors may have been unlocked. The weapons stolen were a Colt M-16 A1 rifle and a Remington 12-gauge shotgun. Rounds of ammunition also were stolen.

NEWTON, IA (IRN) – An inmate who escaped from the Newton Correctional Release Center Monday is back in custody. WHO-TV reports 31-year-old Timothy Formaro Jr. was discovered missing during a routine count Monday night. Following a search of the facility, it was determined Formaro had escaped. He is serving a 25 year sentence for prohibited acts and domestic abuse assault. Formaro was located around 2:30 a.m. and taken into custody.

NORTH LIBERTY, IA (IRN) – An Iowa man is accused of trying to hire an undercover state agent to murder a business associate and his family. KWWL-TV reports police have arrested 36-year-old Justin DeWitt, of North Liberty. DeWitt offered payment to the agent to complete the murders. He faces four counts of attempted murder and solicitation to commit murder. If convicted of all charges, he faces up to 140 years in prison.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad says he has no intention of becoming Donald Trump’s running mate. KCRG-TV reports when asked at his weekly news conference whether he’d consider joining a Trump ticket he declined to answer with an emphatic no, but said he didn’t want to get into that type of speculation. He says he’s honored to serve the people of Iowa. Branstad’s 40-year-old son, Eric, is Trump’s state director in Iowa.

CHICAGO, IA (IRN) – Authorities have arrested a fourth suspect in connection with a deadly shooting in Dubuque County, according to KWWL-TV. Chicago police arrested 19-year-old Adrianna Chica, of Dubuque, during a traffic stop Friday night. She faces charges related to the death of 21-year-old Collin Brown. Investigators say she and others tried to rob Brown in April. He was shot as he was running away from his home.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A young black bear was struck and killed by a truck Friday evening in Allamakee County. The bear is believed to be the same one that had been pictured on social media last week in a corn field near the Yellow River Forest. It was a young bear weighing about 200 pounds. The last bear reported to be killed in a traffic collision in Iowa was just over a year ago near Jesup.

DAVENPORT, IA (IRN) – A 15-year-old Davenport girl is dead after an overnight shooting, according to WQAD-TV. Ayana Culbreath was shot shortly after midnight on Sunday. An ambulance transported her to the hospital, where she was pronounced dead. Shell casings were found at the scene.

DUNLAP, IA (IRN) – A western Iowa baseball coach has been suspended following an allegation that he was drunk at a game. Coon Rapids Police Chief Joel Roetman told The Des Moines Register that the incident occurred during a Boyer Valley game in Coon Rapids Friday night. Roetman says he performed a field sobriety test on Boyer Valley coach Jay Petersen and says Petersen’s blood alcohol content tested out at more than twice the legal limit if he were driving. Petersen is on suspension.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A 14-year-old Des Moines girl was shot in the face Saturday night, according to KCCI-TV. A 14-year-old boy has been charged with reckless use of a firearm causing injury, a Class C felony. The shooting appears to be accidental. She’s in critical condition.

OTTUMWA, IA (IRN) – A man was hospitalized and multiple police officers are on paid leave after an officer – involved shooting in Ottumwa. WHO-TV reports emergency crews were called to a house fire Saturday. When crews arrived, the house was fully engulfed and a man was outside shooting at it with a rifle. He approached police in a threatening manner, and multiple officers fired their weapons. The man’s condition is unknown. Investigators suspect arson.

WEST LIBERTY, IA (IRN) – A bicyclist participating in the third annual “pEDaling for Pancreatic Cancer” fundraiser was killed after being hit by a car. The Muscatine Journal reports the crash happened Saturday in West Liberty. The victim is 40-year-old Lisa Kuhn, of Muscatine. A 28-year-old West Liberty man was driving a car southbound when he hit the bicyclist from behind.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Two women challenging Iowa’s regulation on African-style hair braiding plan to drop a lawsuit they filed last year because of a change in state law. WQAD-TV reports the women will drop their lawsuit once new legislation takes effect Friday. The pending law will allow the women and others in Iowa to do natural hair braiding without a cosmetology license, which requires 2,100 hours of training that is mostly unrelated to braiding.

BURLINGTON, IA (IRN) – Burlington investigators say they need to drain a lake to search for more clues after a human foot was found earlier this month, according to WQAD-TV. Search crews used a boat and a cadaver dog on Lake West this week, hoping to find more evidence. Police say they will partially drain the lake because the bottom is the consistency of quicksand. The foot was found June 8 near the spot where a missing man’s bike was found last summer.

VINTON, IA (IRN) – Vinton Police are looking for the driver who hit a 6-year-old boy and drove away on Friday. KGAN-TV reports the boy was hit by the side of the pickup or a trailer attached to it. The child was taken to the hospital and is expected to recover. Police are looking for a silver Chevy pickup with dual rear wheels that was pulling a white enclosed trailer.

ANKENY, IA (IRN) – More than 400 bike riders set out from Ankeny Saturday to do their part to help end multiple sclerosis, according to KCCI-TV. MS is an unpredictable, often disabling disease of the central nervous system that interrupts the flow of information within the brain, and between the brain and body. The ride raised $100,000.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) The Des Moines Arts Festival continues today in downtown Des Moines. Over 250,000 are expected to visit. This year’s festival features over 180 artists from 40 states and Canada. The festival also features multiple stages with dance, music, acrobats and comedy acts.

DELAWARE COUNTY, IA (IRN) – A 13-year-old is dead after an ATV accident in Delaware County, according to KWWL-TV. Anna Marie Nefzger of Manchester was crossing Highway 20 when she lost control of her ATV and went into a ditch. The ATV rolled on top of her and pinned her. She was taken to an area hospital where she was pronounced dead.

DAVENPORT, IA (IRN) – A Davenport teen has been charged with murder and burglary in a pot deal gone wrong. WQAD-TV reports 17-year-old Jonathan Behan Jr. was arrested in the death of 19-year-old Aaron Cotton Thursday. Cotton was clinging to the side of a truck while it was driving recklessly and fell and died of his injuries. Behan stole about 1 gram of marijuana from Cotton and tried to get away. Cotton grabbed a hold of the truck but fell when Behan continued to swerve to intentionally knock him off it.

URBANDALE, IA (IRN) – Urbandale residents experienced a number of burglaries Friday morning, according to KCCI-TV. The Urbandale Police Department said there were four confirmed burglaries and over a dozen attempted residential burglaries. Detectives are investigating, and police have stepped up patrols.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Police made an arrest early Friday morning in connection with a shots fired call in downtown Des Moines. WHO-TV reports 20-year-old Deontya McMillian is in the Polk County Jail charged with intimidation with a dangerous weapon, carrying weapons, and possession of stolen property. The gun was stolen.

NORTH LIBERTY, IA (IRN) – After 43-years in the European Union, the United Kingdom decided to cut ties. KGAN-TV reports the move could hurt Iowans. Iowa Farm Bureau researchers say the drop in the the value of the British Pound will make our exports into Britain more expensive. Iowa exports billions of dollars in crops, farm equipment and other products every year. If prices for our commodities are higher, researchers say, we may export less.

DAVENPORT, IA (IRN) – One man from Davenport is dead after an accident in the city on Thursday, according to WQAD-TV. The man was clinging to the side of a truck as it was driving recklessly. He fell from the truck, suffering fatal injuries. Police are not saying why he was clinging to the side of the truck.

KINGSTON, JAMAICA (IRN) – Authorities in Jamaica say one man has been charged and another is being sought for questioning in the killing of two U.S. missionaries. KHQA-TV reports that 25-year-old Andre Thomas has been charged with murder and illegal possession of a firearm and ammunition. Officials have not disclosed a motive in the killing of the missionaries, Randy Hentzel of Donnellson, Iowa and Harold Nichols of Randolph, New York.

DENISON, IA (IRN) – A western Iowa police chief who’d been disciplined for lewd and offensive computer images has lost his job. KCCI-TV reports Denison Mayor Dan Leinen asked for Chief John Emswiler’s resignation, which Emswiler has submitted. Leinen says he’d sought Emswiler’s exit for personnel reasons he wouldn’t describe.

OMAHA, NE (IRN) Authorities have named eight suspects in an ATM theft ring, according to KETV. Authorities say three men connected to a ring of ATM thefts are in custody after a police chase this weekend. The Omaha Police Department thinks the crew is involved in more than 50 ATM burglaries in seven states, including Iowa.

BEVINGTON, IA (IRN) – A St. Charles man died in a crash on I-35 south of Des Moines around 6:15 Thursday night. KCCI-TV reports the crash occurred in a construction zone that had only one usable northbound lane and one southbound lane. Two cars traveling southbound crossed over into the northbound lane and one of the cars hit a semi head-on. 51-year-old Shawn Ballard was killed. The other driver, 27-year-old Benjamin Vidales of Osceola was injured. The driver of the semi was not hurt.

WEST BRANCH, IA (IRN) – New details have been released following a bus accident with a semi in eastern Iowa where 19 students were on board. KWWL-TV reports alcohol was involved. The driver of the West Branch bus, Amber Stubbs, hit the back of a semi. Authorities say Stubbs had alcohol in her system, but not enough to be cited. Only minor injuries were reported.

WASHINGTON, DC (IRN) – Iowa Representative Steve King was fed up with the Capitol Hill sit-in by House Democrats this week. King tweeted “I’ve had it with the gun grabbing Democrats and their sit in anti 2nd amendment jihad. I’m going to go home and buy a new gun.” Critics say King makes their point. They say there are too many lone males, angry at things not going their way, who impulsively react and think they can solve a problem by buying a gun.

AMES, IA (IRN) – Iowa State Cyclones Georges Niang and Abdel Nader are headed to the NBA.
The two players were called up in the second round of the NBA draft late Thursday night. Niang was the 50th pick, selected by the Indiana Pacers. Nader was the 58th pick, selected by the Boston Celtics.