Iowa Radio News

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Police say the bones found in a Des Moines lake are human, according to KCCI-TV. A police spokesman said Thursday that experts think the bones are from an education cadaver, but that’s not been confirmed. A kayaker spotted what he thought was a human jawbone as he left the water in November at Gray’s Lake. OELWEIN, IA (IRN) – The State Fire Marshal’s Office is investigating a deadly fire in Oelwein. KWWL-TV reports investigators believe the victim is a 62-year-old woman. Authorities say she died after her camper caught fire. The 911 call was made by her husband, who said she was stuck inside. When firefighters arrived, the camper was engulfed in flames. PERRY, IA (IRN) – A child died in a house fire near Rippey yesterday, according to Raccoon Valley Radio. A four year-old boy was upstairs in his room, his mother and a baby were on the first floor, and an adult male was on the front porch when the fire started. The mother, baby and adult male made it to safety, but the four year-old didn’t. The mother attempted to get to the boy, but the home was filled with too much smoke and flames. SIOUX CITY, IA (IRN) – A Sioux City police officer shot and killed a South Dakota man during a traffic stop Wednesday. KCCI-TV reports an officer pulled over a car carrying two people. One was Daniel Riedmann, who had an outstanding warrant and was considered to be armed and dangerous. The officer reported seeing movement from inside the stopped car and fired his gun, killing Riedmann. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – President-elect Donald Trump returned to downtown Des Moines Thursday as part of his “Thank You Tour.” WHO-TV reports Trump praised the people of Iowa, and commended them for helping deliver his victory over Hillary Clinton. He also called Governor Terry Branstad a “great governor.” If confirmed, Branstad will serve as the U.S. Ambassador to China under Trump. IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – The Iowa Hawkeyes stunned 25th-ranked Iowa State in basketball 78-64 on Thursday, snapping a three-game losing streak against its instate rival. The Hawkeyes are now 5-5 on the season, and the Cyclones fall to 6-3.

PERRY, IA (IRN) – A child died in a house fire northwest of Perry this morning, according to Raccoon Valley Radio. The name of the child hasn’t been released. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A missing mother and her twin children from Des Moines have been found safe and healthy. KCCI-TV reports Jennifer Abbott-Brickles and her 10-month-old twins, Akire and Erika, were found Wednesday afternoon. Police didn’t say where the women and her children were found. They had been missing since December 1. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A former Des Moines tax preparer has been charged with tax fraud. Lony Tap Gatwas faces 18 counts of preparing and presenting false tax returns, wire fraud and aggravated identity theft. Officials with the Department of Justice say Gatwas devised a scheme which claimed dependents on taxpayers’ returns when he knew the dependents did not meet IRS requirements. NEW YORK, NY (IRN) – President-elect Donald Trump nominated Gov. Terry Branstad Wednesday to serve as the next U.S. Ambassador to China, and Branstad has agreed to serve. If Branstad is confirmed by the U.S. Senate, Lt. Gov. Kim Reynolds will become Iowa’s first female governor. Trump is in Des Moines today for a rally. DUBUQUE, IA (IRN) – A judge has determined that a Dubuque woman is now mentally fit to stand trial for the beating death of her ex-husband. The Dubuque Telegraph Herald reports the Iowa District Court ordered Wednesday that 62-year-old Dolores Flynn stand trial on a charge of second-degree murder in the January death of 72-year-old Gary Breckenridge. Police say Flynn beat Breckenridge to death with a baseball bat. POLK COUNTY, IA (IRN) – A man is behind bars following a short high-speed chase in rural Polk County Tuesday night. A State Trooper tried to stop the vehicle, but instead of pulling over the driver fled the scene, leading officers on a chase reaching speeds of nearly 100 mph. Deputies played it safe and called off the chase, but the vehicle eventually crashed. 26-year-old Alexander Brunker faces multiple charges. WEST DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – West Des Moines police are warning the public that pick-pockets are targeting victims while they eat. KCCI-TV reports there are multiple reports of wallets being stolen. One victim said she was sitting down at a restaurant when her chair was bumped, and she didn’t notice her wallet was gone until after she left the restaurant.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Governor Terry Branstad has accepted the post of U.S. Ambassador to China. Branstad says he will serve America by ensuring the countries with the two largest economies and two largest militaries in the world maintain a collaborative and cooperative relationship. Lt. Governor Kim Reynolds will become the first female governor in Iowa History. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The Des Moines Police Department is trying to locate a missing mother and her twin children. Police say 33-year-old Jennifer Abbott-Brickles was last seen December 1 in Des Moines. She and her 10-month-old twins have not been seen since. LONE TREE, IA (IRN) – One person has died and two were injured in a crash this morning in eastern Iowa. According to the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office, the two-vehicle crash happened near Lone Tree. An SUV and a semi were involved. CLARKE COUNTY, IA (IRN) – Three teens missing from Osceola were found dead in rural Clarke County Tuesday, according to KCCI-TV. 16-year-old Elaina Critz, 16-year-old Lauren Barker and 19-year-old Jesse Robinson were found dead after a car they were in went off the road and into a creek. A road worker spotted the car upside down in the water. Authorities aren’t sure if they drowned or were killed in the crash. CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – A Cedar Rapids police officer who shot a man in the neck during a traffic stop, paralyzing him, will not face charges. KWWL-TV reports a grand jury decided not to indict Officer Lucas Jones. Jones pulled Jerime Mitchell over last month for not having working lights, and smelled marijuana. Mitchell tried to flee, and after a brief struggle, Officer Jones says he felt he was in danger, and shot Mitchell. BRITT, IA (IRN) – An Iowa fourth-grader is now a reporter for an international magazine. KIMT-TV reports over 300 kids from around the world submitted their work to Scholastic to possibly become a kid reporter, and only 39 students were picked, which includes Brandon Peterson of Britt. His first article is on Britt’s Hobo Days, and he’s now working on one about NASA satellites. Brandon hopes to come to Des Moines tomorrow to interview President-elect Donald Trump while he’s in town.

WARREN COUNTY, IA (IRN) – One person is dead following a two-vehicle crash in Carlisle. WHO-TV reports a silver SUV pulled out in front of a maroon SUV. The driver of the silver SUV, 71-year-old Fran Richards Ross of Carlisle was ejected from her vehicle and was killed in the crash. She wasn’t wearing a seatbelt. The other driver, 28-year-old Stacia Taylor of Indianola was transported to a Des Moines hospital and her condition is unknown. COUNCIL BLUFFS, IA (IRN) – A southwest Iowa woman has been imprisoned for using a veteran’s name and military service information to falsely obtain a Department of Veterans Affairs home loan. 34-year-old Mandy Whipple was sentenced Friday to 18 months in federal prison. She’d pled guilty in June to mortgage fraud for falsifying loan papers to buy a house in Fremont County. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Des Moines firefighters fought a two-alarm fire at the Logan Park Apartments on the city’s east side early this morning, according to KCCI-TV. Firefighters reported some residents were trapped when they arrived, but no injuries have been reported. Three residents were displaced following the fire. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Two Des Moines Police officers who are part of an internal investigation resigned from the force Monday, according to WHO-TV. Senior police officers Joshua Judge and Tyson Teut are accused of planting evidence in connection with a narcotics case. Both officers began working for the Des Moines Police Department in August of 2013. SIOUX CITY, IA (IRN) – Two groups are suing a Sioux City cooperative they say is falsely advertising its honey as pure, despite tests that show it contains traces of glyphosate (GLY-phuh-sate), used in Roundup, a widely used farm herbicide. The Organic Consumers Association and Beyond Pesticides claim that the Sioux Honey Association, the 95-year-old cooperative that makes Sue Bee Honey, is misleading consumers by labeling its honey as pure and natural. CEDAR FALLS, IA (IRN) – Thousands of undergraduates at Iowa’s three public universities will pay at least 2 percent more in tuition next year. KWWL-TV reports the Iowa Board of Regents voted Monday to raise tuition for resident undergraduate students for the 2017-2018 academic year. The vote means that tuition will increase to $7,270 at the University of Iowa and $7,240 at Iowa State University and UNI.

CLEAR LAKE, IA (IRN) – A woman shot early Friday morning in Mason City has died. KIMT-TV reports 19-year-old Samantha Teeter passed away Sunday at the Mayo Clinic of cardiac failure. The charge against 60-year-old Larry Whaley has been upgraded to 1st degree murder. The shooting happened at Whaley’s home. He and the victim knew each other. IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – Two Columbus Junction men are in the Johnson County Jail on multiple charges including kidnapping and robbery. KCII-radio reports on Sunday, 22-year-old Antonio Aguilar and 19-year-old Angel Rodriguez offered an adult female a ride in Iowa City, then robbed her at gunpoint. She fled by jumping out of the moving vehicle. She suffered minor injuries. BUCHANAN COUNTY, IA (IRN) – A trooper with the Iowa State Patrol was injured in a crash Sunday morning. KWWL-TV reports it happened in Buchanan County on I-380 during winter driving conditions. The trooper was on the inside shoulder assisting a driver who went into the median. 22-year-old Brittany Anderson, of Charles City, lost control and hit the rear of the trooper’s vehicle. The trooper’s name has not been released. COUNCIL BLUFFS, IA (IRN) – A Texas man has died and a police officer was injured in a western Iowa crash. KTIV-TV reports the crash happened Saturday on Interstate 29 in Council Bluffs, when a vehicle slammed into the back of a Council Bluffs police cruiser parked on the side of the interstate. 72-year-old Bertram Ellis, of Houston, was killed. 39-year-old Officer Josh Horner was sitting in his patrol car helping with traffic control when Ellis’ vehicle rear-ended the cruiser. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Four men are in custody and three face attempted-murder charges after a road rage induced drive-by shooting Saturday in Des Moines. KCCI-TV reports the incident was the result of a fender bender. No injuries were reported in the shooting. IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – The Iowa Hawkeyes have been selected to play in the Outback Bowl in Tampa against the Florida Gators on January 2nd. This will be their 5th appearance. The Hawkeyes finished with an 8-4 record, winning their last 3 games against Michigan, Illinois and Nebraska. Florida lost in the SEC title game to #1 Alabama 54-16.