Author: Iowa Radio News

WATERLOO, IA (IRN) – Waterloo police are investigating shots fired on Christmas night. KWWL-TV reports police responded around midnight to a report of gunfire on a residential street. When they arrived, they found a bullet hole through a porch window with several shell casings nearby. No one was hurt and no arrests have been made.

FORT DODGE, IA (IRN) – A Christmas morning crash has left six people in the hospital. The Iowa State Highway Patrol reports a Jeep driven by 20-year-old Ruth Tomlinson of Fort Dodge was traveling east near Fort Dodge when it drifted across the centerline and struck an oncoming truck driven by 28-year-old Justin Henry of Webster City. A passenger of Tomlinson and Henry’s three small children were also injured.

SPENCER, IA (IRN) – Authorities have released the name of a woman whose body was found inside a trailer home that caught fire earlier this month in Spencer. KWWL-TV reports the body has been identified as 44-year-old Julie Bennett. Authorities say a space heater ignited combustible materials that caused the afternoon fire. Bennett’s body was found after the blaze was extinguished. No foul play is suspected.

IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – An Iowa City man faces multiple charges in connection with a series of burglaries, according to KCRG-TV. 20-year-old Jerome Brooks was involved in five car burglaries and one home burglary early Thursday morning. Iowa City police caught him carrying a missing TV down a sidewalk. Other stolen items were recovered, as were drugs. Brooks is in jail.

IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – A University of Iowa student is breaking gender barriers in the Iowa National Guard. WHO-TV reports 20-year-old Megan Reaska enlisted earlier this week. She’s the first female to enlist in the Iowa Guard as a combat engineer. Earlier this month the Secretary of Defense announced all military positions will be open to women without exception. About 10 percent of positions were previously closed to women. The change becomes official the first of January.

DES MOINES (IRN) – A Des Moines police officer accidentally fired his gun inside an office at the Des Moines International Airport while he was practicing his “quick draw.” The Des Moines Register reports 23-year-old officer Brady Pratt was inside an office at the airport Wednesday when he drew his gun from his holster to practice “his quick draw skills” and it discharged. Another officer witnessed the incident. No one was hurt.

SHELL ROCK, IA (IRN) – More layoffs have been announced at a northeast Iowa farm equipment plant. The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier reports officials at the Unverferth Manufacturing plant in Shell Rock won’t say how many workers will be laid off. The Ohio-based company makes grain wagons and pull-type crop sprayers. The company says the sagging agriculture economy is behind the layoffs.

MAHASKA COUNTY, IA (IRN) – A man found dead by a hunter near Oskaloosa has been identified. The Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation reports testing identified the man as 34-year-old Jeffrey Allen Versteegh of Oskaloosa. Versteegh was reported missing in July of 2015. The cause and manner of death have not been determined.

MITCHELLVILLE, IA (IRN) – A Des Moines man who was brutally beaten during a carjacking is back home in Iowa, according to KCCI-TV. Mike Wasike was left for dead by three teenagers in the middle of a Des Moines street in 2013. Wasike’s wife has been traveling to Oklahoma for more than two years to visit her husband in a Tulsa rehabilitation facility. Wasike, a former credit analyst at Wells Fargo who earned an MBA as a student in Kenya, still can’t talk, walk, or eat on his own. His attackers are in prison.

MONTEZUMA, IA (IRN) – A former sheriff has been charged in connection to a state investigation that accused him of mismanaging money. The Des Moines Register reports former Poweshiek County Sheriff Tom Sheets was arrested for second-degree theft. The Department lost about $312,000 during the time Sheets was sheriff. He’s accused of improper disbursements, including repeated use of a county gas card for personal use.

DES MOINES (IRN) – Someone dropped a gold coin into a Salvation Army red kettle outside a Des Moines grocery store, according to WHO-TV. A one-ounce South African Krugerrand was discovered Tuesday inside a kettle at the Hy-Vee on Valley West Drive while collecting Monday’s donations. The coin is worth roughly $1,000.

WATERLOO, IA (IRN) – A man was arrested and an assault rifle was found following a report of gunfire in Waterloo. KWWL-TV reports police arrested 22-year-old Vincent Harrington in relation to the incident. Several people in the area ran away as police arrived. The assault rifle recovered at the scene was stolen in a burglary earlier this week.

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – Four people were rescued from a swiftly flowing creek in Cedar Rapids after their amphibious vehicle capsized Wednesday morning. The Cedar Rapids Gazette reports the four occupants managed to get to a sandbar in the creek. Fire crews deployed inflatable rescue boats to rescue the four people. While there were no reported injuries, conditions on the creek made things potentially perilous.

DES MOINES (IRN) – Firefighters worked to put out a fire at an auto parts store in Des Moines Wednesday morning. KCCI-TV reports they were called to Auto Parts On Maury on the southside. The building was fully engulfed and flames were come out of the front three garage doors when they arrived.

BRITT, IA (IRN) – The non-profit group “The BRITT Group” has been working with the city of Britt for the past 2 years to purchase the near-century old First-State Bank building in the downtown. They recently purchased the property for just $35. The group is going to reconstruct the building into a bed and breakfast, and get the building back on the tax rolls for the city.

AFGHANISTAN (IRN) – One of the six soldiers killed in a suicide bombing in Afghanistan Monday is from Iowa. WHO-TV reports 45-year-old Joseph Lemm was killed Monday near Bagram Air Base when a suicide bomber on a motorbike carried out an attack on a joint patrol of Afghan and coalition forces. Lemm grew up in Bernard and his father still lives in New Vienna. Lemm was a 15-year veteran of the New York City Police Department. He leaves behind a wife and two children.

POWESHIEK COUNTY, IA (IRN) – One person died in a crash on Highway 146 north of Grinnell on Tuesday afternoon. The Iowa State Patrol reports a pickup truck traveling north crossed the centerline and hit an oncoming semi. The driver of the pickup, 45-year-old James Joseph Harris of Tama, died at the scene. The driver of the semi wasn’t injured.

DES MOINES (IRN) – A Des Moines man has been denied a $100,000 lottery win because he’s underage, according to KCCI-TV. 20-year-old Jobie Boals-Watters admitted that he buys hundreds of dollars of lottery tickets every week. Lottery officials say that’s illegal, and since the prize wasn’t purchased legally, the ticket won’t be honored.

IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – Iowa City officials flew the Michigan State Spartan flag at city hall Monday to make good on a lost wager. KCRG-TV reports the city flew the Spartan flag for 24-hours to honor a bet made between East Lansing Mayor Mark Meadows and Iowa City Mayor Matt Hayek. The friendly wager was made before the Hawkeyes took on the Spartans for the Big Ten Championship, which the Hawkeyes lost. Iowa will play Stanford in the Rose Bowl on January 1. It’s not clear if Hayek has placed any wagers on that game.

CERRO GORDO COUNTY, IA (IRN) – A man was hurt after a two-vehicle accident on the off ramp of Highway 18 in Cerro Gordo County Tuesday. KIMT-TV reports a red 1996 Jeep Cherokee struck the rear of a parked 2007 Freightliner on the shoulder of the off-ramp. The Jeep driver, 50-year-old Sean Cashen of Forest City, was extricated by the Mason City Fire Department after being trapped inside. He was transported to a local hospital. The driver of the semi wasn’t injured.

DES MOINES (IRN) – Police were called to investigate a suspicious package Monday along a busy Des Moines street. KCCI-TV reports a man reported finding a milk jug along the roadway.
Arriving officers said the jug was filled with a clear liquid and a wire around the cap. Officers were unable to determine exactly what the object was, and called the bomb squad to investigate. The bomb squad determined that the milk jug was filled with water.

POLK COUNTY, IA (IRN) – Polk County officials have forced a metro bar out of business, according to KCCI-TV. There was heavy scrutiny for the Evolution Nightclub after a deadly shooting last month. Police are still searching for the shooter in the incident that killed 20-year-old DaShawn Smith of Des Moines. Deputies responded to incidents at Evolution Nightclub 70 times in the past seven months, averaging more than twice every weekend.

DES MOINES (IRN) – A Des Moines bank robber who was caught by customers as he tried to flee his second robbery will spend 15 years in prison after sentencing Monday. The Des Moines Register reports 49-year-old Laymon English robbed a Bankers Trust and a U.S. Bank. A customer tackled English, who came into the bank wearing a mask, during the second robbery and held him for police. English was unconscious when police arrived at the scene.

DES MOINES (IRN) – A Fairfield man has been sentenced to three years probation for the unlawful transport and receipt of a bear. 35-year-old Brenton Clark killed the grizzly bear in Alaska without a license and displayed it at his hunting lodge in Jefferson County. Clark also admitted after he became aware he was under investigation, he engaged in multiple conversations with potential witnesses and encouraged them not to disclose information to law enforcement.

DUBUQUE, IA (IRN) – An Indiana woman was injured Monday when her car went into a ditch and rolled in Dubuque. KWWL-TV reports 42-year-old Stacy Thill of Fort Wayne, Indiana lost control of the Dodge pickup she was driving when her shoe fell off. She tried to get it back on, but the shoe was stuck under the gas pedal. Thill then went off the road and the truck rolled over. She was treated for minor injuries and cited for failure to maintain control of the truck.

ANKENY, IA (IRN) – A hazing investigation involving 11 students is underway at Ankeny Centennial High School, according to KCCI-TV. The district says they don’t comment on specifics of student discipline and would only release that the incident was related to a student activity. Ankeny police say they have had no report on the matter.

DES MOINES (IRN) – A new study shows Iowans rank among the most giving in the nation.
A report by the Corporation for National and Community Service found that Iowa ranks in tenth place among states with the most volunteers. The report says that more than one-third of Iowans volunteered in 2014. The report also found that more than half of Iowans donated $25 or more to charitable organizations.

IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – An Iowa City man is accused of threatening a woman with a machete Sunday morning. The Cedar Rapids Gazette reports Iowa City police were called to a residence for a domestic incident. Officers learned that the suspect, 24-year-old Jorge Maldonado, was inside with a knife and a one-year-old child. The female victim was outside the residence. Maldonado allegedly forced the woman against a bed, held the machete against her throat and said he was going to kill her.

IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – An Iowa City McDonald’s was robbed Monday morning. KWWL-TV reports an employee was approached by a male suspect as they prepared to open for business. The suspect asked the employee to give him money, and then fled the scene. No one was injured.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Iowa Workforce Development announced Iowa’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate continued to drop in November, falling to 3.4 percent from 3.5 percent in October. The state’s jobless rate was nearly one full percentage point below one year ago, with an additional 8,400 nonfarm jobs added. The U.S. unemployment rate remained at 5.0 percent.

HASTINGS, IA (IRN) – A father and son were rescued from icy water Sunday while deer hunting in Mills County. 49-year-old Terry Garvey and his 13-year-old son Montana Garvey of Macedonia were wading across a creek while deer hunting, breaking through thin ice as they walked. The water became progressively deeper until it was about waist deep, causing the two to experience cramping and to call for help. They were pulled to shore with ropes.

SPENCER, IA (IRN) – A Spencer High School wrestler has died after collapsing at a weekend wrestling tournament. KCCI-TV reports Austin Roberts died Saturday night. Roberts wrestled at the 220-pound weight class, and he was ranked sixth in the state in Class 3A. The 6-foot-4 Roberts also played on the offensive and defensive line for the Spencer High football team. The cause of death is unknown.

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – Cedar Rapids firefighters found a woman dead at the scene of a mobile home fire Sunday evening. KCRG-TV reports when firefighters arrived they found the back half of the home in flames. During a search-and-rescue operation, crews found a woman, who was pronounced dead at the scene. Authorities are investigating the cause of the fire.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Police in Des Moines continue to look for the person they say shot a private investigator this weekend. WHO-TV reports Michael Narin of Ankeny says he was following an individual into Prospect Park late Friday night. He says as he got out of his car to break up a fight someone shot him in the stomach. He says the shooter then took off in a vehicle.

ANKENY, IA (IRN) – Perfection is possible, especially for Ankeny senior Matthew Brucker, who scored perfect scores on both the ACT and SAT according to KCCI-TV. Fewer than 1 percent of test takers score a perfect score on either test. He hasn’t picked a college yet, but he plans to study computer engineering. Brucker said he never expected perfect scores and that he’s “just another student.”