SIOUX CENTER, IA (IRN) – Students in Sioux Center are being praised for coming forward with sexual abuse claims against a 5th grade teacher. KCCI-TV reports 36-year-old Curtis Van Dam is facing 84 counts of sexual abuse. Other media report 140 charges. Police say the incidents between Van Dam and several children took place between August 2013 and last month. Van Dam was immediately fired from his job at Sioux Center Christian School when the allegations surfaced.

IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – An Iowa City Man has been charged in a stabbing. KCRG-TV reports the victim and his wife were walking past 66-year-old Ronal Rarey in May 2017 when Rarey called the victim’s wife a name and in response, the victim walked towards Rarey. Rarey pulled out a knife and stabbed the victim twice in the abdomen. Rarey admitted to stabbing the victim.

NEWTON, IA (IRN) – Two alleged heroin dealers are off the streets after the Mid-Iowa Narcotics Enforcement Task Force found heroin, meth, cocaine and other drugs in a Newton home. Authorities said a large number of heroin overdoses in the Newton area in recent weeks led investigators to Tyler Gilbert and Crystal Mendenhall. They, along with four others, were arrested following Tuesday’s drug bust.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Des Moines police are looking for the gunman responsible for firing at two people, wounding one. WHO-TV reports two men were working on a vehicle, when shots were fired at them from behind a house. One of the victims has a permit to carry and returned fire. The other man was hit by a bullet, but is expected to survive. Police believe this to be an isolated situation.

BURLINGTON, IA (IRN) – A man walked into a Burlington gas station with a knife and demanded money from a clerk on Wednesday, according to WQAD-TV. After receiving the money, he fled. Police are examining security video.

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – A new report shows Iowa companies received high marks for practices that protect LGBTQ employees. The Human Rights Campaign Foundation released its Corporate Equality Index report Thursday. It rates major companies on non-discrimination policies, employment benefits, and public commitment to equality. Among the highest ranking companies are Rockwell Collins and Transamerica in Cedar Rapids, as well as Principal Financial Group and Wellmark in Des Moines.

SIOUX CENTER, IA (IRN) – A former northwest Iowa fifth grade teacher is facing 140 criminal charges for allegedly sexually abusing students. WHO-TV reports 35-year-old Curtis Van Dam faces 14 counts of sexual exploitation by a teacher, 72 counts of 2nd degree sexual abuse, 12 counts of 3rd degree sexual abuse, three counts of lascivious acts with a child, 34 counts of lascivious conduct with a minor, and five counts of indecent exposure. More charges are expected. The alleged abuse happened while Van Dam taught at Sioux Center Christian School.

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – A man was arrested after forcing someone to withdraw cash from an ATM in Cedar Rapids Tuesday. KGAN-TV reports a man was sitting in his pickup in a Target parking lot when 31-year-old Quincy Franklin approached. He then allegedly showed the victim what appeared to be a handgun and told him to withdraw cash. Police say Franklin followed the victim into the store where he withdrew cash. Franklin was identified in video surveillance and was arrested at a nearby hotel.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A man charged with first-degree murder and arson in the death of his stepson is back in Iowa, according to KCCI-TV. 41-year-old Randy Miles Jr. of Des Moines, had been in a North Dakota jail on unrelated charges. Miles is accused of intentionally setting his stepson on fire. Prosecutors say Miles set a car on fire in August while his stepson was inside.

PALO, IA (IRN) – A Palo man is recovering from an accident while hunting. KCRG-TV reports Jeff Pavek was bow hunting by himself when he fell 20 feet backwards off a tree stand. When he didn’t come home that night, Pavek’s girlfriend and friend Ron Grimm went looking for him. Ron said that he knew where to find him, because they had hunted in the same place for 30 years. The pair found Pavek facedown, hidden in the brush, with a collapsed lung, broken ribs, vertebrae, a broken sternum, and a skull fracture.

VAN BUREN COUNTY, IA (IRN) – The Van Buren and Harmony School Districts in southeastern Iowa are one step closer to merging, according to KTVO-TV. The merger will go up for a vote in February to residents in both school districts. If a majority of voters from both districts approve the reorganization, the new school district will be called Van Buren Community School District. The completed merger is expected in July 2018.

AMES, IA (IRN) – An Ames High School Chemistry Teacher has been named the Iowa 2018 Teacher of the Year by the Iowa Department of Education. Aileen Sullivan and the entire High School were called to a secret assembly for the announcement. Sullivan said she knew she wanted to be a teacher in the third grade, when she drew a picture of herself at a desk in front of a classroom.

MASON CITY, IA (IRN) – 25-year-old Codie Matz has been booked into the Cerro Gordo County Jail on two counts of 1st degree murder. KIMT-TV reports police went to a Mason City home for a welfare check and found two bodies. Matz was taken into custody near Bondurant.

MISSOURI VALLEY, IA (IRN) – Harrison County Supervisor Russ Kurth died Tuesday morning in a grain bin accident in Missouri Valley, according to KETV. Kurth was 63. Kurth and another man were checking a door on a recently-filled grain bin where corn was spilling out. The door burst open, burying Kurth in corn. The other man escaped. It took more than an hour to rescue Kurth from under the pile of corn. He was elected to the Harrison County Board of Supervisors in 2014.

DUBUQUE, IA (IRN) – A 24-year-old man was shot three times in a Dubuque alley Tuesday, according to KCRG-TV. Police say the victim told them three males wearing masks tried to rob him and then shot him. The suspects remain at large.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Des Moines Police are investigating after a woman was shot in the shoulder overnight. KCCI-TV reports the woman walked into a QuikTrip convenience store with a gunshot wound and was transported to a hospital.

IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – An eastern Iowa man is facing charges after allegedly threatening doctors and police officers at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics. WHO-TV reports 49-year-old Scott Colebank walked into the hospital drunk and began arguing with staff Monday. When an ER physician tried to talk to him, he allegedly threatened to start killing people. A bystander started suffering chest pains during the altercation. When police arrived, Colebank fought with officers. He’s in jail.

JOHNSTON, IA (IRN) – What’s the smartest city in Iowa? The career website Zippia says the answer is Johnston. Johnston beat out number two Iowa City and number three West Des Moines for the “smartest city” honor. Don’t feel bad–experts say there’s more than one way to measure intelligence.

MASON CITY, IA (IRN) – Two bodies were found this morning in Mason City and a person is wanted as a material witness. KIMT-TV reports police are looking for 25-year-old Codie Matz in connection to the investigation. Matz may be armed and suicidal.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Authorities say an inmate has been listed as escaped from the work release facility in Des Moines. The Iowa Corrections Department says 30-year-old Samuel Washington Jr., didn’t return to the facility as required Monday night. The department says Washington is serving time for domestic abuse assault, third or subsequent offense, in Polk County.

DAVENPORT, IA (IRN) – A gas station employee was injured during a robbery in Davenport, according to WQAD-TV. The robbery was reported at the Mt. Joy BP/Amoco gas station at around 9 p.m. There have been no arrests.

MARSHALLTOWN, IA (IRN) – One person has died of carbon monoxide poisoning at a Marshalltown church, according to WHO-TV. Fourteen others were inside the church when they too suffered carbon monoxide poisoning and were hospitalized. A gasoline generator was being used inside the confined space. The Marshalltown Fire Department deemed the building unsafe in 2011, and neighbors were surprised to hear people were congregating inside.

INWOOD, IA (IRN) – Two people are in the hospital with serious injuries following a helicopter crash in northwest Iowa. KSFY-TV reports the helicopter went down Monday afternoon in a field near West Lyon High School in Inwood. The helicopter was helping search for 300 head of cattle when it hit a power line and crashed.

INDIANOLA, IA (IRN) – Simpson College announced a new initiative Monday that will offer free tuition to incoming freshmen next fall. KCCI-TV reports “The Simpson Promise” will cover the full cost of tuition for students with families who have a 2016 adjusted gross income at or below $60,000. To qualify, students must be from Iowa and must be 2018 graduates from Iowa high schools.

DUBUQUE, IA (IRN) – Just because you don’t have sight, doesn’t mean you can’t have vision.
KWWL-TV reports Dubuque third grader Ryder Drapeau proved that recently, when his art piece, “Blue Dog Blue,” won first place in a national art competition. Ryder says art is his favorite subject at school. While his classmates might draw a scene, Ryder cuts foam and paper to make his three-dimensional works of art. His teacher says, “ he really is amazing, it’s amazing what he comes up with.”