Category: State News

MONTEZUMA, IA (IRN) – Federal investigators have set up an online ‘tip line’ where Montezuma residents can share any digital video they have that could provide new information in the search for Xavior Harrelson. The 11-year-old was last seen on May 27th near his family home in Montezuma.

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – A single-vehicle crash in rural Linn County on Friday night sent four people to the hospital. The driver apparently lost control on the gravel road.

IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – On Saturday, downtown Iowa City Bars and Restaurants hosted an all-day mini-golf course for teams to compete and play. Proceeds from Puttin’ Around Downtown will help support Raise the Bar training for downtown bars and restaurants.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Tim Herron shot a 9-under 63 on Saturday to take a four-stroke lead in the PGA Tour Champions’ Principal Charity Classic. The 51-year-old from Minnesota, a four-time winner on the PGA Tour, birdied three of the first five holes, then birdied No’s. 10-12, 15, 16 and 18 to pull away.

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA – A judge has denied a motion for mistrial by the man convicted of killing Mollie Tibbetts. A jury found Cristhian Bahena Rivera guilty of first degree murder in the death of the 20-year-old University of Iowa student last week. He faces a mandatory sentence of life in prison without parole.

APPANOOSE COUNTY, IA (IRN) – A fisherman died Friday afternoon while on Rathbun lake. When law enforcement arrived, they found boaters performing CPR on a 79-year-old man. Emergency crews attempted life-saving measures, but the man was pronounced dead at the scene. The man was witnessed fishing on a boat, when a few minutes later, he was seen floating in the water, unresponsive.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Thongchai Jaidee closed with a birdie on the par-3 ninth for a 7-under 65 and a one-stroke lead Friday in the PGA Tour Champions’ Principal Charity Classic in Des Moines. Thongchai, the 51-year-old from Thailand making his fifth senior start, eagled the par-5 15th and had seven birdies and two bogeys at Wakonda Club. He says the course is “tricky,” and he “loves it.”

IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – A piglet was saved by law enforcement Thursday night near the intersection of North Dodge and Interstate 80 in Iowa City. The piglet was loose near the intersection. It’s now safe and being cared for at the Iowa City Animal Care & Adoption Center.

WINNESHIEK COUNTY, IA (IRN) – A 33-year-old northeast Iowa man is facing felony charges for sexual exploitation of a minor and dissemination and exhibition of obscene material to a minor. Reed Upton, of Calmar, is being held in the Winneshiek County Jail. Authorities said he turned himself in after a warrant for his arrest was issued.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A Des Moines firefighter is recovering at home on Thursday after being injured on Wednesday by a collapsing ceiling in a burning home. He was taken to the hospital and released. No one was at home at the time of the fire.

ANKENY, IA (IRN) – There are cybersecurity concerns at Des Moines Area Community College.
DMACC discovered a security problem Wednesday which forced them to take some of their computer systems offline. Online classes were canceled Thursday, and cybersecurity teams are investigating.

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – Cedar Rapids Police arrested a 16-year-old on Thursday accused of throwing an e-scooter into the Cedar River. VEO is the company that rents e-scooters and bikes in downtown Cedar Rapids. They say approximately six e-scooters a week wind up in the river.

IOWA (IRN) – As states like Maryland, Ohio, and California make national headlines for creating vaccine lotteries to increase the number of people vaccinated against COVID-19, Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds says it won’t happen in the Hawkeye State. She says Iowa is already doing enough to get people vaccinated.

PLEASANT HILL, IA (IRN) – A man accused of starving his son with special needs has pleaded not guilty. Jennifer Marie Ryan, 48, and Richard Joe Ryan, 47, are charged with first-degree kidnapping and neglecting a dependent person. Jennifer Ryan brought her son to work with her in Pleasant Hill on Feb. 22, where she zip-tied him to a chair by his left ankle and pants belt loop by her desk during her eight-hour shift. She is set to be arraigned today. The teen weighed 78 pounds when he arrived at the hospital.

MONTEZUMA, IA (IRN) – Neighbors say there were weekly “screaming matches” between missing 11-year-old Xavior Harrelson and his mother, Sarah, in their home. The home was searched with K9 units along with the entire trailer park on Tuesday. Xavior was reported missing six days ago. Neighbors and family members said Xavior acted as a caretaker for his mother, who is an amputee.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A man accused of a hatchet attack has been booked in the Polk County Jail. An employee of the apartment complex said a man attacked them with a hatchet. The suspect tried to go after an officer with a stun gun before running into an apartment. A standoff then ensued. Officers used pepper spray to get the man in custody.

WASHINGTON, D.C. (IRN) – President Joe Biden will talk with Russia’s president Putin about the cyberattack at the meat processing company JBS. The FBI released a statement naming the Russian-linked group known as both REvil and Sodinokibi as being behind the attack. Facilities in Marshalltown and Ottumwa canceled some work shifts Wednesday. Shifts will be back to normal at the JBS pork plant in Marshalltown today.

MOUNT VERNON, IA (IRN) – Dozens of goats are doing their part to help get rid of invasive plants and overgrown weeds at Cornell College in Mount Vernon. The goats were out grazing Wednesday evening, providing an eco-friendly solution to the problem. Campus officials say Goats on the Go Cedar Valley is providing the service.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The former CEO of Make-A-Wish Iowa has pleaded guilty to charges of embezzling tens of thousands of dollars from the charity that supports sick children and their families. 40-year-old Jennifer Woodley admitted in a written guilty plea last week that she made unauthorized charges on a foundation credit card, gave herself unapproved bonus and salary increases and made false entries in foundation records. Under a plea agreement, prosecutors will recommend a sentence of five years of probation, along with fines and restitution.

MONTEZUMA, IA (IRN) – Federal authorities are offering assistance in the search for an 11-year-old Montezuma boy. The FBI field office in Omaha is offering resources for use by the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation and Poweshiek County Sheriff’s Office in the attempt to locate Xavior Harrelson. Harrelson has been missing since Thursday, May 27.

LUTON, IA (IRN) – A man died and a woman was injured in a Memorial Day shooting in Luton in northwestern Iowa. A 20-year-old man was arrested in the case. Authorities haven’t released what led up to the shooting.

NEVADA (IRN) – Lawmakers in Nevada are working to jump to the front of the presidential nominating calendar, passing a bill this week that seeks to place the state’s contest ahead of both Iowa’s caucuses and New Hampshire’s primaries. Nevada Assembly Speaker Jason Frierson, a Democrat who sponsored the legislation, says, “It’s time for Nevada to take its rightful place, not just first in the West but in the nation, as a diverse state, a state with diverse issues.”

NEW YORK, NY (IRN) – Amazon says it will no longer test jobseekers for marijuana use. The e-commerce giant, which is the second-largest private employer in the U.S. behind Walmart, is making the change as several states legalize cannabis. Amazon has six operations in Iowa, all opening in the last 14 months.