Iowa Radio News

WEST DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A West Des Moines man was sentenced Friday to 60 years in prison for exploiting minors from across the country via social media sites like Snapchat and TikTok. Jonathan Francis Speidel, 31, persuaded them to take explicit photos and videos for him. He told them that he was looking for models, and paid some of them. DUBUQUE, IA (IRN) – Dubuque Police have charged a man they say attacked someone with a baseball bat while being high on crystal meth. Police say 36-year-old Michael Blackburn of Dubuque got into an argument with another man and he pulled a 17-inch bat from his waistband and hit the victim in the head and arms. IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – The Hawkeye men’s basketball team defeated Michigan State 112-106 on Saturday, after a remarkable rally. Iowa trailed 91-78 with 1:34 remaining before catching fire from 3-point distance. The Hawkeyes made 6-of-9 3-pointers in the final minute and a half, including the last four in a row in the final 32 seconds to tie the game before winning in overtime. IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – Caitlin Clark had 34 points, including a game-winning three at the buzzer to lift No. 6 Iowa past No. 2 Indiana 86-85 on Sunday. With the win, Iowa finishes the regular season with a 23-6 overall record and 15-3 in the Big Ten conference. The Hawkeyes will be the number two seed in the conference tournament which will begin on March 1.

POLK COUNTY, IA (IRN) – An Iowa man will spend the rest of his life in prison for kidnapping and sexually abusing a 12-year-old girl. A Polk County jury convicted 65-year-old Michael D. Dunbar, of Saylor Township, of first-degree kidnapping and second-degree sexual abuse. He was sentenced to life in prison Friday. Dunbar offered the girl a ride while she was in a store and then waiting for a bus in Des Moines. He then drove her to a different location than her destination and assaulted her in the vehicle before she escaped. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A Dallas Center woman was sentenced to prison last week for stealing over $270,000 from the Federal Employees’ Group Life Insurance program. The woman used the money for large purchases and posted videos about the purchases on TikTok. Jordyn Darion Culp, 28, stole over $273,000 from the program. She purchased a motorcycle, a motorhome, and a cargo trailer with the stolen funds. CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – Cedar Rapids Police say there are increasing reports of vehicles being broken into and items being stolen. They say lock your vehicles, don’t leave valuables in them, and pay attention to your surroundings. Thieves often target locations like gyms, store parking lots and places where cars sit for extended periods of time, but it’s also a problem at convenience stores. AMES, IA (IRN) – ISU has some fuzzy new animals at the university’s insect zoo. It just received a donation of 170 baby tarantulas. The spiders were confiscated by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Officials suspect they were being trafficked by illegal pet traders.

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – The man convicted of shooting a Linn County Sheriff’s Deputy while robbing a gas station could receive a harsher prison sentence for his comments in court. A jury convicted Stanley Donahue on 10 charges including attempted murder for shooting Deputy Will Halverson. While Donahue was leaving the court, he swore at the Deputy and the Deputy’s family. Donahue shot Deputy Halverson seven times while responding to an armed robbery at the Casey’s in Coggon in June of 2021. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The Des Moines Police Department is investigating the death of a four-month-old boy. The child’s name has not been released by police. INDEPENDENCE, IA (IRN) – A Vinton man has been charged with kidnapping and domestic assault. On Wednesday, Independence Police responded to a report of a domestic disturbance at a Comfort Inn and Suites. Hotel staff reported that a female occupant approached the counter, appearing injured and in distress. Staff then say a male occupant, later identified as 42-year-old Matthew David Milligan, took the female back to their hotel room against her will. Law enforcement arrived and could hear the female inside the room in distress. Police breached the door and detained Milligan. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A record number of Des Moines Public School students don’t necessarily know where they are going after school. More than 1,070 are homeless, but the district says that number may only be scratching the surface of the real number of students who struggle to find a place to stay. CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – The second of three spring snowmelt flood outlooks from the National Weather Service has been released, and it includes some significant changes. The outlook showed that the probability of flooding occurring on the Mississippi River has notably increased, pushing it into a much above-normal category. Some tributary rivers to the Mississippi showed a very slight increase in risk for flooding but maintained near-normal spring flood risk.

WEST DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A woman was booked into the Polk County Jail Tuesday on a charge of dependant adult abuse for allegedly taking money from her mother’s checking account and not paying her nursing home bills. 64-year-old Pamela Young of West Des Moines allegedly withdrew over $7,300 from ATMs including those at Prairie Meadows Racetrack & Casino in Altoona. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – In a case that could provide context to Iowa’s Open Records Law, reporters and advocates for journalists argued before the Iowa Supreme Court that ignored requests by the Governor’s Office in the years following the COVID-19 Pandemic is the same as refusing to comply with Iowa law. Some of those requests went ignored by the Governor for 18 months. When they filed suit the Governor’s office began to comply. CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – The city of Cedar Rapids has received over $24 million of Linn County Housing Awards for Multi and Single-Family Housing Programs. The Iowa Economic Development Authority provided 80 percent of its statewide funding to Linn County due to the level of derecho damage sustained in 2020. IOWA (IRN) – A Blizzard Warning, a Winter Storm Warning, or a Winter Weather Advisory cover approximately two-thirds of Iowa diagonally from the Southwestern corner of Iowa to Cedar Rapids. Southern Iowa through Southeastern Iowa are under no advisories as of this morning.

POLK COUNTY, IA (IRN) – A teenage suspect charged in a 2022 deadly shooting outside East High School in Des Moines is now sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole. Romeo Perdomo is one of 10 teens accused in the shooting that killed 15-year-old Jose David Lopez. Perdomo apologized for what he called his “dumb mistake.” Deborha Perez, the dead boy’s mother said, “You say you’re sorry…it’s too late because I don’t get anything out of it. That’s not bringing my son back.” WASHINGTON, D.C. (IRN) – Third District Iowa congressman Republican Zach Nunn is demanding action after someone used stolen personal information to gain access to his military service records. Nunn said the U.S. Air Force informed him that a Democratic-linked research firm called ‘Due Diligence’ is responsible for the leak. Nunn says the firm claimed to be doing background checks for job or military evaluation, and the Air Force handed over personal information for eleven veterans including Nunn. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – House Democrats on Tuesday unveiled their proposal to legalize recreational marijuana in Iowa. The bill would also expunge non-violent, low-level marijuana convictions. The proposal calls for a 10% tax on marijuana, and the money would go to schools, mental health services, and public safety. IOWA (IRN) – Severe weather warnings cover the northern two-thirds of Iowa. Warnings include Blizzard, Ice Storm, Winter Storm, and a Winter Weather Advisory. The most southwestern and southeastern counties face a Hazardous Weather Outlook. Southcentral Iowa has no warnings. For now.