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.  

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.

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.  

WATERLOO, IA (IRN) – Fire destroyed a semi-trailer full of sawdust at Bertch Cabinet in Waterloo overnight, according to KXEL-radio. Firefighters say the fire broke out at the Crestwood Drive manufacturing plant shortly after midnight and spread to a conveyor system before it could be extinguished. The cause is being investigated. No one was hurt. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The Iowa Democratic Party announced plans Wednesday for satellite caucuses for the Feb. 1, 2016, Iowa presidential caucuses with the goal of expanding participation for people who normally are unable to attend. The Des Moines Register reports this will be the first time satellite caucuses have been allowed for the first-in-the-nation event. Republican caucuses will be conducted as usual. DAVENPORT, IA (IRN) – Davenport police are investigating an overnight shooting that left one person dead. The Quad City Times reports Lewis K. Woodson Jr., 19, of Quincy, Ill. was transported by private vehicle to a local hospital where he died. The investigation is ongoing. HULL, IA (IRN) – Authorities say an 88-year-old has died after a pickup crashed through a wall into a nursing home in northwest Iowa. KCCI-TV reports Anna Dykstra was pronounced dead Monday afternoon at Pleasant Acres Care Center in Hull. The pickup driver, 77-year-old Lawrence Sohl, was taken to a Sioux Center hospital for treatment. DUBUQUE, IA (IRN) – A Dubuque man has been arrested and charged in the sexual assault and death of a Dubuque woman. KWWL-TV reports 19-year-old Helmon Betwell of Dubuque was charged with first-degree murder and sexual assault as well as third-degree burglary. The woman, whose name has not been released, was found lying on the ground with facial injuries. ALTOONA, IA (IRN) – An Altoona man is behind bars after making threats against a school employee. KCCI-TV reports Aaron Bucklin, 42, made violent threats against a Southeast Polk school employee Tuesday. Police did not give additional details about the threat. Bucklin is in the Polk County Jail as of Tuesday evening on a first-degree harassment charge. LECLAIRE, IA (IRN) – The Scott County Freedom Rock Memorial was damaged when it was apparently run over by a vehicle in LeClaire. WQAD-TV reports the damage was reported Monday evening, but it is unclear when the damage actually occurred. The memorial is located along the Mississippi River, and the boulder is painted with images to honor those who currently and previously served in the U.S. military. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Firefighters from Iowa are traveling west to help battle wildfires that have scorched millions of acres this summer. WHO-TV reports twenty-two Iowans are heading to five western states – Washington, Oregon, California, Montana and Idaho. The firefighters are paid by the U.S Forest Service for their work.  

BOSTON, MA (IRN) – Two Iowa men charged with making online threats of violence at a Pokemon competition in Boston have been held without the right to bail for at least four months.  KCCI-TV reports a judge on Tuesday ruled that 18-year-old Kevin Norton, of Ames, and 27-year-old James Stumbo, of Boone, pose a danger to society. Police said they found a 12-gauge shotgun, an AR-15 rifle and hundreds of rounds of ammunition in their car. DES MOINES (IRN) – The Navy’s newest Virginia Class attack submarine will be named the USS Iowa, honoring a military custom of having American warships with ties to Iowa, its communities and its military heroes. The Des Moines Register reports Navy Secretary Ray Mabus plans to visit Ames Wednesday to make the announcement official at a news briefing at Iowa State University. NEWTON, IA (IRN) – A man from the northern Iowa town of Belmond was arrested after allegedly stabbing a man at Sugar Grove Vineyards in Newton on Saturday night. The Newton Daily News reports Sloan Ziller, 23, was charged with willful injury and assault with a dangerous weapon. Upon arriving on scene, officers found the victim who had been stabbed in the arm. Ziller had fled on foot prior to officers arriving, but was apprehended. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The emerald ash borer, a highly destructive insect of ash trees, has been confirmed in Dubuque. The Iowa Department of Agriculture reports twenty-eight of Iowa’s counties have now been confirmed positive with the pest. Since its initial discovery in Michigan in 2002, this exotic pest has spread to 25 states killing tens of millions of ash trees. MOUNT PLEASANT, IA (IRN) – Two people have died after being struck by a train in southeast Iowa, according to KTVO-TV. A Burlington Northern Rail train struck 31-year-old Thomas Riley and 39-year-old Lelania Gillon at a crossing Sunday morning. Riley, of Mount Pleasant, was pronounced dead at the scene. Gillon, also of Mount Pleasant, was taken to the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics in Iowa City, where she later died. DUBUQUE, IA (IRN) – There have been 22 confirmed incidents of gunshots fired this year in Dubuque. KWWL-TV reports that is already more than last year’s total and the totals for previous years. Dubuque police have been increasing patrols in problem areas to help control the violence. AMES, IA (IRN) – A 10-story Ames apartment building was evacuated Monday afternoon after an explosion shook the building. WHO-TV reports one construction worker injured his leg, and no residents were injured. Ames Fire Department Shift Commander Doug Allen said there was no fire, and no danger to the public. The cause is being investigated. IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – A year-long effort to curtail illegal activities at the Hawkeye Wildlife Management Area in Johnson County has resulted in multiple charges being filed over the weekend by the Iowa DNR. Some of the charges include driving off the roadway, possession of drug paraphernalia, littering, OWI, and prohibited destructive acts. In addition, three men were charged and arrested on Sunday for indecent exposure.