Iowa Radio News

URBANDALE, IA (IRN) – An Urbandale couple facing felony charges are back in Iowa after a disabled woman in their care was found with severe burns in May. KCCI-TV reports 50-year-old Katrina Eubanks and her husband, 54-year-old Garry Eubanks, allegedly bathed 19-year-old Airionna Bent in a bathtub full of chemicals, causing second- and third-degree burns from the waist down and inducing incredible pain. Instead of getting Bent medical care, the Eubanks drove her to Tampa, Florida, without telling her family. SIOUX CITY, IA (IRN) – A vehicle and three victims were pulled from the Missouri River near Sioux City Saturday. KTIV-TV reports it is believed that the three victims found inside the car were family members. They were reported missing earlier in the week shortly after a car was seen by witnesses plunging into the river. STATE CENTER, IA (IRN) – A State Center man allegedly tried to kill his father with a knife yesterday. WHO-TV reports deputies found 70-year-old Randy Wengert in his yard with stab wounds. 44-year-old Brian Wengert was detained after a brief struggle. Brian was charged with attempted murder, obstruction of emergency communications, domestic assault with a weapon, and possession of methamphetamine. WEST LIBERTY, IA (IRN) – A man is in critical condition after a collision involving his car and a train near West Liberty. KCRG-TV reports the car was pushed by the train for two blocks Sunday, and first responders had to use mechanical means to extract the driver. The crash happened at an intersection with flashing red crossing lights that were working. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Iowa Senate Democrats ousted Minority Leader Rob Hogg in a party caucus meeting Sunday, electing in his place Des Moines Sen. Janet Petersen. The Des Moines Register reports the move represents a dramatic leadership change in the middle of a legislative term, and comes as the party looks to rebuild after devastating losses in 2016. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The Iowa State football team at 5 and 2 are number 25 in the AP football poll. It’s their first appearance in the AP poll since September 2005. Iowa State pulled off a stunner earlier this month, beating Oklahoma in Norman, and have not lost since. The Cyclones third straight victory came Saturday at Texas Tech, where they beat the Red Raiders 31-13.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Two people have died and two people were taken to the hospital in critical condition after a crash in southwest Des Moines yesterday. KCCI-TV reports it was a head-on collision. One car had entered oncoming traffic in an attempt to pass other vehicles. LINN COUNTY, IA (IRN) – The driver of a Harley-Davidson motorcycle was killed following a crash with a van near Springville, in Linn County yesterday. KCRG-TV reports the driver of the van was wearing his seatbelt and walked away uninjured. The deceased motorcyclist wasn’t wearing a helmet. CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – Cedar Rapids police worked an active shooting scene in downtown Cedar Rapids overnight. KGAN-TV reports one person showed up at a local hospital with a gunshot wound. Police are still interviewing witnesses, and as of Sunday morning, have no one in custody. WEST DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Truckers from across the state took to the road Saturday in the longest convoy in the country, and it’s all for a good cause. WHO-TV reports over 100 rigs took off from West Des Moines and made their way to the Iowa State Fairgrounds to raise money and awareness for Special Olympics Iowa. With athletes in the cab and a police escort, the truckers made it to their destination with their horns blasting. Each trucker donated at least $100 to take part in the convoy.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Officials are concerned about more deaths on the road after the U.S. Department of Transportation released its statistics on deadly motor vehicle crashes. In Iowa, there was a 26 percent increase in fatal crashes this past year, the fourth-highest in the country. Many officers agree the increase in fatalities is because of drivers being distracted. In 2016, there were more than 37,000 motor vehicle-involved deaths nationwide. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Police in central Iowa have arrested a man charged in the death of a woman whose body was found under a bridge in Kentucky. KCRG-TV reports 35-year-old Valenti Ware was arrested Friday at a Des Moines home on a Kentucky warrant charging him with murder and evidence tampering. Ware was being held Friday in the Polk County Jail awaiting extradition to Kentucky. WEST DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – West Des Moines police are searching for a man who tried to lure an elementary school-age girl into his car Thursday afternoon. KCCI-TV reports the girl, who attends Crossroads Park Elementary, was on her way home from school when she noticed a man in an SUV driving slowly next to her. Police say he tried to entice her into his vehicle. She ran to a nearby apartment building, where she got help. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Hackers potentially accessed protected health information for 820 people following an email scam at an Iowa agency. The Iowa Department of Human Services says hackers sent so-called phishing emails to agency employees on Aug. 23. Nine DHS workers inadvertently provided passwords that gave hackers access to their email accounts. The department says all individuals potentially affected are being notified by mail and will be offered up to a year of credit monitoring at no charge. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A photo op turned into a rescue operation along the Raccoon River Friday night. WHO-TV reports a couple were taking photos on the river bank, when the woman fell on the rocks and injured her leg. Des Moines Water Rescue was called in to try and reach her, but rough terrain and steep river banks made accessibility difficult. Efforts were eventually successful.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Projections for Iowa’s budget are down again, and could force spending cuts when lawmakers return in January. The $7.2 billion budget in effect since July is down by about $130 million. Iowa’s economy is growing more slowly than expected. Democrats and Republicans blamed each other for poor budget priorities. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The Iowa Attorney General’s Office is taking the US Secretary of Education to court and accusing her of breaking the law and putting American students at risk for fraud. Attorney General Tom Miller announced Iowa is joining other states in a lawsuit against the US Department of Education and Secretary DeVos. Miller says the DOE is illegally ignoring the “gainful employment rule” that is meant to stop for-profit schools from defrauding students. The rule requires a college to prove that it is actually training students. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Des Moines Police are investigating a drive-by shooting in which witnesses say they heard 10-15 shots fired. KCCI-TV reports a bullet pierced the front window of a home, and witnesses say the gunfire was rapid fire. The gunman is still at large, and it’s unclear if anyone was injured. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Three Des Moines police officers will not face charges for fatally shooting an armed woman earlier this year. WHO-TV reports a grand jury decided Tuesday that the officers were justified in shooting Tiffany Potter. Potter stopped her car when the three officers started to follow her. She then ran and fired a gunshot before an officer fired back. DUBUQUE, IA (IRN) – A Dubuque man has admitted to participating in a scheme to defraud people throughout the U.S., primarily the elderly. KCRG-TV reports 33-year-old Tobey Hines pled guilty Thursday to wire fraud. Hines would call a person on the phone, falsely telling that person a relative was in jail. The caller then asked the person to wire money for bail to get the relative released. The scheme netted over $225,000 for the group, and jail time. DUBUQUE, IA (IRN) – Halloween parade-goers in Dubuque may notice something is missing this year – the candy. WQAD-TV reports city leaders, police, and YMCA organizers made the decision that throwing or handing out candy would not be allowed this year due to safety concerns. Police say they’ve seen kids run out in the street to gather candy, almost being hit by floats or cars.

BURLINGTON, IA (IRN) – Police have charged a Burlington man with killing his mother by striking her in the head with an electric guitar. The Hawk Eye newspaper reports 29-year-old Garret Selters was charged with first-degree murder Wednesday in the death of 56-year-old Linda Selters. Police say Selters confessed to killing his mother by striking her in the back of her head with a Les Paul guitar. CERRO GORDO COUNTY, IA (IRN) – A Clear Lake man died after a motorcycle wreck Tuesday. KIMT-TV reports 49-year-old Bernard Dewitt was riding his cycle when he left the road and went into the Winnebago River. Dewitt was traveling with two other friends on separate motorcycles. MASONVILLE, IA (IRN) – One person is dead after crashing through a barn and hitting a tree near the northeastern Iowa town of Masonville. Troopers say the driver left the road for an unknown reason, went through the barn, and struck a tree. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Des Moines police are investigating a stabbing that sent one man to the hospital yesterday. KCCI-TV reports the incident happened near a downtown Dart Bus station. Police say a bleeding man ran into the DART station and asked for help from an on-duty officer. The victim was taken to a nearby hospital with nonlife-threatening stab wounds. CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – Iowa may soon punish bars who routinely put drunk drivers on the road. The Traffic and Safety Board of Iowa wants to implement a “place of last drink” database. Police may start tracking bars to find out which ones have histories of over-serving. Those bars could possibly lose their licences. ANKENY, IA (IRN) – Two Ankeny brothers are riding their motorcycles to South America to make the world a better place. The Naylor brothers will leave November 15 on a six-month ride traveling 20,000 miles down the Pan-American highway to the southern tip of Argentina. They hope to raise $20,000 dollars to build a school in Uganda. Brother Ross says, “we`d like to think that we’re setting an example that it’s okay to dream big…the world, even though it looks big and scary, is really just filled with people that are the same as you and me.”