Iowa Radio News

CEDAR FALLS, IA (IRN) – An attempted armed robbery happened Friday night in Cedar Falls. KWWL-TV reports two victims reported that they were outside smoking when they were approached by two men who demanded money. A third man then approached the two victims from behind and a physical confrontation occurred, and a handgun was displayed. Nothing of significant value was obtained in the robbery before the suspects took off. GRUNDY COUNTY, IA (IRN) – The death of a Grundy County inmate has been ruled a suicide. The Iowa Department of Public Safety reports 26-year-old Jared Martin Slinker of Wellsburg was found unresponsive in a jail cell Thursday. Slinker was taken into custody Jan. 26 on an arrest warrant for contempt of court regarding a child endangerment charge. He hung himself. DAVENPORT, IA (IRN) Multiple people were arrested after a reported fight broke out at a Davenport Chick-Fil-A on Thursday. WQAD-TV reports five people became involved in an altercation at the restaurant. There was a short foot chase and four people were arrested and charged with disorderly conduct. No one was hurt DES MOINES (IA (IRN) – Governor Branstad helped open the first diplomatic office in Iowa this week, according to WOI-TV. The consulate of the Republic of Kosovo is located in the Court Avenue Business district downtown. Kosovo officials say they chose Des Moines because of strong business ties and Iowa’s hospitality over the years. The Iowa- Kosovo relationship started in 2011 when the Iowa National Guard partnered with the Kosovo security force. IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – University of Iowa workers are looking for an escaped research goat. KCCI-TV reports the male goat escaped Friday while being transferred from a portable carrier to a vehicle. The animal was last seen near a Coralville golf course.

ROCKFORD, IA (IRN) – The president of a northern Iowa school board has quit, saying he shoved a student. KWWL-TV reports Tim Trettin said Wednesday that he lost his temper a few weeks ago and shoved the student in the school’s weight room. Trettin says he thought the student had cursed at him. The Rudd-Rockford-Marble Rock School District board accepted Trettin’s resignation. He had served eight years on the board. WATERLOO, IA (IRN) – A six-year-old Iowa boy is being hailed as a hero after saving his grandfather’s life during an ice fishing trip. WHO-TV reports Michael Dorn Jr. and his grandpa were ice fishing at George Wyth State Park. As it grew dark, it became hard to see, and they decided to head home. On their way back, Michael’s grandpa fell and became unconscious after hitting his head on the ice. The boy was able to get help. COUNCIL BLUFFS, IA (IRN) -Three arrests have been made in a robbery and kidnapping at an Iowa hotel. KETV reports police were called to the Country Inn Suites in Council Bluffs early Friday morning to investigate a robbery. A woman was getting off an elevator, pushed into a room, robbed at gunpoint, and then assaulted. Three have been arrested and charged with felony charges of first-degree robbery and second-degree kidnapping. The victim knows her assailants. KEOKUK, IA (IRN) – Authorities executed two search warrants Thursday at the Midwest Academy campus in Keokuk. The Iowa Department of Public Safety says the search warrants stem from an investigation of alleged sexual abuse involving a staff member and a former student. The academy is a therapeutic boarding school that assists students from all over the world. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Hundreds of people calling for a higher minimum wage marched through downtown Des Moines and gathered near the venue of the Republican presidential debate. KCCI-TV reports the march included workers at fast food restaurants who walked off their jobs to demand $15-an-hour wages. The strike included workers from McDonald’s, Burger King, Wendy’s and Long John Silver’s. IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – Donald Trump is continuing to make the headlines, this time bringing the Iowa Hawkeye football and wrestling teams with him. KWWL-TV reports Tuesday night during the Trump rally in Iowa City, members of the football and wrestling teams joined Trump on stage. Some are questioning if it is a violation of NCAA rules. The university says students are encouraged to participate in the political process as individuals, and their presence doesn’t reflect a university endorsement. OKOBOJI, IA (IRN) – The University of Okoboji Winter Games kicked off Thursday. Organizers say they’re expecting record numbers of participants. There will be over 100 events on the schedule, more than any other year. Events include mega snow pong, broom ball, and snow boots and swimsuit competitions. Organizers say the games cure cabin fever and the winter blues.

DUBUQUE, IA (IRN) – U.S. Marshals have arrested an Iowa man wanted on multiple state and federal firearm charges. KWWL-TV reports 30-year-old Cowan Godfrey, of Dubuque is a suspect in a shooting incident in Dubuque in April of 2015. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Iowa fast-food workers walked off the job Thursday calling for $15 per hour and union rights. KCCI-TV reports the walkout is part of a daylong series of protests that will end with a 1,000 person march on the Republican Presidential debate in Des Moines tonight. DAVENPORT, IA (IRN) – A standoff between a man inside a house and police from Davenport and Bettendorf ended Thursday morning, according to WQAD-TV. The standoff involved 30-year-old Paul Howard of Davenport who allegedly left the scene of a domestic dispute where shots were fired. Police later spotted Howard and a pursuit followed before the standoff. Howard was charged with reckless use of a firearm and two counts of assault with a weapon. He’s in jail. DUBUQUE, IA (IRN) – A lawsuit filed in federal court accuses two Dubuque police officers of pepper-spraying several children and a pregnant woman without cause. The Dubuque Telegraph Herald reports the suit alleges the officers used excessive force and unlawfully arrested two children while responding to an August incident. The suit claims they pepper-sprayed the mother, who was pregnant at the time, her 12-year-old son, and her 14-year-old daughter without cause. Both children were arrested. Officials can’t comment on a pending suit. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – State lawmakers are considering legalizing fireworks in Iowa. KCRG-TV reports the bill allows cities and counties to opt out, and continue banning the explosives if they so choose. Iowans are already buying fireworks from other states, but can’t legally use them. Firefighters and health care representatives told lawmakers Wednesday they don’t think legalizing fireworks is a good idea. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Meredith Corporation’s planned merger with Virginia-based Media General is dead after both companies decided to cancel a proposed $2.4 billion deal. The Des Moines Register reports Meredith on Wednesday announced the termination of the deal that would have resulted in the formation of a new company. Media General wants out of the deal to move on to a different one, and as a consolation prize, Meredith will receive a $60 million termination fee. IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – A man has been arrested on charges that he threw tomatoes at Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump during a campaign stop at the University of Iowa. KCCI-TV reports 28-year-old Andrew Joseph Alemao was charged Tuesday with disorderly conduct after officers say they saw him throwing two tomatoes toward Trump during a speech. It wasn’t clear whether the tomatoes hit anyone.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The head of the Iowa National Guard says nearly 1,700 positions have been opened up to women this year following a federal policy change. KCCI-TV reports Major General Timothy Orr told the Iowa General Assembly on Wednesday the spots became available after Defense Secretary Ash Carter announced in late 2015 that women in the U.S. armed forces may serve in any position, including combat roles. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – The merger agreement between Des Moines-based Meredith Corporation and Media General won’t go through. WHO-TV reports Meredith announced Wednesday the two companies had agreed to terminate the binding merger agreement. The original merger deal had been announced in September and would have created the third largest owner of local TV stations in the country. ALBIA, IA (IRN) – A man reported missing in Albia has been found dead in a car at the bottom of a deep ravine. KCCI-TV reports the 1999 Buick Lesabre was on its top at the bottom of the ravine. 50-year-old Leslie Allan Hartly of rural Albia was found dead in the car. Hartly had been missing since last week. OSKALOOSA, IA (IRN) – More information is coming in about the death of former Hawkeye safety and NFL player Tyler Sash. WHO-TV reports Sash died at the age of 27 from accidental mixed drug toxicity. He was found in his Oskaloosa home on Sept. 8, 2015. We’ve now learned that Sash had an advanced degree of chronic traumatic encephalopathy (en-SEF-uh-lah-puh-thee), a degenerative brain disease caused by repeated trauma. It has been found in dozens of former NFL players. CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – Cedar Rapids emergency crews responded to the Eastern Iowa Airport to a report of a suspicious substance Tuesday night. KWWL-TV reports the unknown substance was found in a bag. Crews secured the area and followed hazmat procedures. Tests are being done, and according to the city, there is no threat to the public. NIAGARA FALLS, NY (IRN) – Neighbors in Niagara Falls, New York say they have had enough. According to the Niagara Gazette the University of Iowa fight song has been played from about 4 p.m. to 11 p.m. – every single night – for six months, from an empty commercial building downtown. On a quiet night, it can be heard from a block away. The whole song lasts less than a minute, but it’s played on a continuous loop from the open windows of the building. No lyrics, just the music.

OTTUMWA, IA (IRN) – The Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation has announced arrests have been made in a 2006 fire that killed two people. Twenty-eight-year-old Christopher Yenger, of Ottumwa, and 27-year-old Zachary Dye, of Council Bluffs, have each been charged with two counts of murder. A fire Yenger and Dye are accused of setting killed two people. CLERMONT, IA (IRN) – An eastern Iowa man has died after crashing his car into a business with a five-year-old girl in his back seat. WHO-TV reports it happened in Clermont Sunday night. Thirty-eight-year-old James Tacket died at the scene. The girl was taken to the hospital, but is expected to survive. Investigators believe alcohol may have played a role in the incident. MASON CITY, IA (IRN) – Mason City Community Schools were on lockdown Friday. The Mason City Globe Gazette reports the lockdown happened because the North Central Iowa Narcotics Task Force planned to serve a potentially high-risk search warrant near a school. Class time was not interrupted and students were not informed the buildings were in lockdown. The operation was conducted without incident. IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – An Iowa City woman has been sentenced to 25 years in prison on child endangerment charges related to 2012 death of her son. The Iowa City Press Citizen reports 22-year-old Mireya Balderas entered an Alford plea to neglect of a dependent person and three counts of child endangerment resulting in bodily injury. Her 20-month-old son died of blunt force trauma. In an Alford plea, the defendant doesn’t admit guilt but acknowledges prosecutors have enough evidence to win a conviction. DUBUQUE COUNTY, IA (IRN) – The Dubuque County Sheriff’s Office is investigating a burglary at a home in Graf. KWWL-TV reports the homeowner was home when 22-year-old Logan Ball broke in, saw the homeowner, ran and tried to get inside a car driven by 22-year-old Andrew Hochberger. The homeowner tackled Ball before he got to the car, and wrestled him to the ground. The two men got away, but deputies apprehended them quickly. They’re in jail. BETTENDORF, IA (IRN) – Bettendorf Police are searching for a lifted pickup truck, with large tires, that is the suspect vehicle in an alleged road rage hit-and-run. According to WQAD-TV injuries were reported when a Ford Windstar van was rammed and run off the road as it was eastbound on Interstate 80. The suspect vehicle didn’t stop after the collision. Police called it an incident of road rage. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Dirty dishes probably saved a Des Moines woman’s life. KCCI-TV reports a Des Moines Transit bus crashed into her living room Monday night. Janet Brown says “I was just sitting in the living room and got up to go into the kitchen to do my dishes and the whole house just shook.” The bus crashed into the corner of the home and came to rest inside the living room. The driver may have had a medical condition. Brown’s OK, as are her six cats.