Articles by Iowa Radio News

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Monday, September 7, 2015

POLK CITY, IA (IRN) – Rescue crews located the body of a 34-year-old man who fell into Saylorville Lake Sunday night.  KCCI-TV reports dive teams began searching the water Monday morning and recovered the man’s body just after 9 a.m. Authorities said the man was walking with a friend on the Latitude 41 Bar and Grill dock when he fell into the water and never resurfaced. His name hasn’t been released. DUNKERTON, IA (IRN) – Directors of the Dunkerton Cooperative Elevator are thinking big, according to Iowa Farmer Today. The co-op in Dunkerton is building what might be the largest grain storage bin in the state with a 1.3 million-bushel capacity. The structure, when complete, will be 156 feet wide and 110 feet to the fill height. FORT DODGE, IA (IRN) – A correctional officer was hospitalized after being punched and kicked by an inmate Sunday night at the Fort Dodge prison, according to the Iowa Department of Corrections. Officials said Vincent Dillworth kicked and punched the officer in the face. Other workers restrained Dillworth, while the officer was taken to the hospital with non life-threatening injuries. Dillworth is 3½ years into 10-year sentence for robbery. DES MOINES (IRN) – A line of thunderstorms made its way through Iowa Sunday night, dropping heavy rain and producing damaging winds.  KCCI-TV reports localized flooding and wind gusts up to 60 mph. Street flooding was reported in numerous cities northwest of Des Moines, including Carroll, Glidden, and Boone.  More storms are expected today and early tomorrow. Some areas should expect up to 5 inches of rain. JONES COUNTY, IA (IRN) – Three people died and one person was injured in a head-on crash in Jones County. According to the Iowa State Patrol, the crash happened Sunday around 10 p.m. on Highway 64. The driver of one vehicle crossed over the center line and hit the other vehicle. An 11-year-old, 18-year-old and 75-year-old died. A 60-year-old was injured. Names have not been released. SIOUX CITY, IA (IRN) – The body of a Sioux City woman who disappeared nearly three weeks ago was found Sunday in her car, which was submerged in a pond near where she worked. The Sioux City Journal reports Raquel Munoz-Perez was reported missing by her family after she failed to show up for work. The investigation is ongoing.  


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Sunday, September 6, 2015

FORSYTH, MO (IRN) – Four people from Iowa have suffered serious injuries after their motorboat struck the shore of the Lake of the Ozarks in southwest Missouri. KGAN-TV reports the grounding happened late Friday. Three people from Cedar Rapids and a fourth person from Des Moines were thrown from the runabout. All four were flown from the scene for medical treatment. CORALVILLE, IA (IRN) – Coralville police charged an inmate at the Iowa Medical and Classification Center with willful injury after allegedly attacking someone with a padlock wrapped inside a sock. The Iowa City Press Citizen reports Rico Osby, 24, hit the victim in the back of the head and the face three times. The attack was witnessed by a correctional officer. Osby is serving a sentence for attempted murder. CEDAR RAPIDS (IRN) – Cedar Rapids Police are investigating the death of a man found in a church parking lot, according to KWWL-TV. Investigators were on scene at the First Presbyterian Church Saturday morning for almost five hours. The man’s body was found near a dumpster at the back of the church. The cause of death is unknown. IOWA (IRN) – The first day of the college football season found both the Cyclones and Hawkeyes victorious. The Cyclones defeated UNI 31-7 while the Hawkeyes defeated Illinois State 31-14. Next week, Iowa will travel to Iowa State for the annual Iowa Cy-Hawk series game.  UNI welcomes Eastern Washington at home.


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Saturday, September 5, 2015

DES MOINES (IRN) – A man was shot and killed Friday night in east Des Moines. The Des Moines Register reports the victim is 22-year-old Trenton Washington. Residents of the block, which sits just south of Martin Luther King Jr. Park, said they heard several gunshots. Blood stains were visible on the street Saturday morning. Washington’s death is the seventh homicide in Des Moines this year. AMES, IA (IRN) – The Ames Police Department is appalled that Border Patrol Agents in Texas released a woman wanted on felony warrants in Ames. WHO-TV reports Ames Police were told by the Border Patrol that they had detained then released 23-year-old Marqita Correa. Correa had four outstanding warrants: 2 counts of sexual abuse 2nd degree and 2 counts of child endangerment. Surprisingly, Correa turned herself in to the Story County Jail Thursday. MARSHALLTOWN, IA (IRN) – A Marshalltown school board member has been charged with child endangerment and animal neglect.  KCCI-TV reports police went to the home of Kendall Derby, 50, in response to a call about the living conditions Derby’s 13-year-old child was being exposed to. Officers found 10 animals in the house including two dogs and eight cats.  Two of the cats had died, and feces was found throughout the home. Derby had no comment. WATERLOO, IA (IRN) – A couple was traveling to Des Moines for their wedding when their van caught fire in Waterloo on the way Friday morning. The Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier reports the two made it out safely, but the flames and smoke destroyed almost everything for the ceremony, including the wedding dress. Only the champagne glasses were recovered. IOWA (IRN) – It’s opening day of the college football season. The University of Iowa takes on Illinois State at Kinnick Stadium, and the Iowa State Cyclones will battle the UNI Panthers in Ames. Pundits say the Hawkeyes and Cyclones will be rebuilding this year, while the Panthers are ranked number 10 nationally in their division.  


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Friday, September 4, 2015

AMES, IA (IRN) – An Ames man has been charged with child endangerment, first-degree arson and domestic assault with injury.  KCCI-TV reports Margarito Hernandez, 39, put gasoline on a kitchen stove and lit it. The house filled with smoke and gas, while he hit his wife in the head several times. Three children were inside the home during the assault. WEVER, IA (IRN) – The Lee County Sheriff’s Office responded to a bomb threat at the Iowa Fertilizer Plant in Wever on Thursday.  KHQA-TV reports no bomb was found. The message was inscribed on the wall of a port-a-potty. DUBUQUE, IA (IRN) – Police have released the name of the woman who died after being attacked in downtown Dubuque Tuesday. The Dubuque Telegraph Herald reports Nancy Krapfl, 66, of Dubuque, was the victim of sexual assault and murder. Helmon Betwell, 19, told police that she “was in the wrong place at the wrong time” and he attacked her because “there was nothing better to do.” SIOUX CITY, IA (IRN) – A 26-year-old Sioux City man has been sentenced to 17 years in prison for breaking into his ex-girlfriend’s apartment and beating her with a hammer. The Sioux City Journal reports Russom Katem pled guilty to second-degree burglary, assault while participating in a felony and domestic abuse assault with a dangerous weapon. Katem struck her several times in the head when she refused to have sex with him. CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – A man is dead after he jumped into the Cedar River in Cedar Rapids Thursday night, according to KGAN-TV. Officers say the man crashed an SUV on 2nd Avenue before leaping into the river. Firefighters were able to pull the body out of the water, but the person died. His name has not been released. WAUKEE, IA (IRN) – The Waukee School District is on edge after receiving two bomb threats in three days, according to WHO-TV. On both Monday and Wednesday students from Waukee High School and Prairieview School were placed on lockdown.  On Thursday some parents were not willing to send their children back to school. Those behind the threats face a felony terrorism charge and a 5-year prison sentence. MASON CITY, IA (IRN) – The Mason City Police are asking for the public’s help in locating a wanted man. KIMT-TV reports 22-year-old Valentine John Flores of Mason City is wanted for first-degree robbery.  Mason City resident William Whipple reported to police that he had been robbed. When police responded, Whipple was found unresponsive, and was later pronounced dead. IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) –  (KWWL) – The University of Iowa has a new president. KWWL-TV reports Bruce Harreld, a former executive at IBM, Kraft Foods and Boston Market was named to the position Thursday afternoon. University faculty and students considered the businessman the least qualified of all finalists because of his lack of experience in University administration. Harreld’s contract is for five years, and he will make $590,000 a year.


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Thursday, September 3, 2015

HOLY CROSS, IA (IRN) – A man from the northeast Iowa town of Holy Cross convicted of killing four teenagers has been sentenced to 10 years in prison. KWWL-TV reports Joseph Connolly was driving a truck last year when it hit an ATV, killing four 14-year-old boys. Connolly took a plea deal, which dropped charges of driving drunk. PRESTON, IA (IRN) – The Easton Valley school district has settled a legal dispute with a neighboring district in eastern Iowa. The Mason City Globe Gazette reports Easton Valley must pay $450,000 to Northeast Community School District to settle the two-year legal battle over a grade sharing contract that reached the Iowa Supreme Court. JAPAN (IRN) – Japan is lifting some import bans on U.S. live poultry and poultry meat, but not in Iowa, according to WHO-TV. Eight states can resume exports on its birds, but Iowa is not on that list. Restrictions remain here and in six other midwestern states. Japan’s move follows a similar move lifting bans on U.S. poultry by Canada last week. SIOUX CITY, IA (IRN) – Five people exposed to carbon monoxide at a Sioux City extended-stay motel were taken to a hospital in critical condition Wednesday evening. The Sioux City Journal reports a 30-year-old woman, her two children and her parents were taken by ambulance to a local hospital and treated for carbon monoxide poisoning. All are expected to recover. DUBUQUE, IA (IRN) – A Dubuque man said he sexually assaulted and killed a random woman Tuesday because there “was nothing better to do,” and says he didn’t know the victim–she was just in the “wrong place at the wrong time.” KWWL-TV reports Helmon Betwell, 19, was charged with first-degree murder, first-degree sexual assault and two counts of third-degree burglary. WEST DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Valley West Mall officials evacuated the facility Wednesday in the wake of a bomb threat. KCCI-TV reports the security director at the mall said he received a call around 6 p.m. Officers completed a search and gave the all-clear shortly thereafter. The threat was a hoax. WATERLOO, IA (IRN) – A Waterloo man drew his gun when he spotted a burglar inside his home Monday afternoon, but he didn’t need to use his weapon because he found the intruder passed out in the middle of the heist. The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier reports Drake Siemens, 19, likely passed out from a medical condition or an overdose. Siemens was arrested for second-degree burglary when he was released from the hospital. MARION, IA (IRN) – Central Iowa Power Cooperative is providing a $2 million dollar loan to a Polish company building a plant in Marion. The Cedar Rapids Gazette reports ELPLAST America is constructing a new $4 million production facility. ELPLAST America supplies zippers used for flexible packaging. The company has more than 700 clients in over 50 countries. They plan to hire 10 employees.