Iowa Radio News

IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – A Williamsburg man has been charged with breaking out windows at a parking garage with his head Tuesday, according to KCRG-TV. Ryan P. Mulligan, 24, was arrested and charged after witnesses reported the crime to University of Iowa police.  He is charged with fourth-degree criminal mischief and public intoxication. Mulligan admitted to breaking the windows, saying he thought it was his house in Williamsburg. AMES, IA (IRN) – Iowa State University is proposing a three-year, $1,500 tuition surcharge that would affect thousands of international students. KGAN-TV reports the Board of Regents wants to add an extra $500 annually for three years to the nonresident rates international students already pay. The new tuition charge would generate millions in revenues. OSKALOOSA, IA (IRN) – The Iowa Office of the State Medical Examiner has released information as a result of their investigation into the death of former University of Iowa football player Tyler Sash, age 27, of Oskaloosa. After receipt of laboratory test results, the cause and manner of death was determined to be due to an accidental mixed drug toxicity involving methadone and hydrocodone. A recent shoulder dislocation and a history of chronic shoulder pain were also significant contributing conditions.   IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – An inmate serving a forgery sentence in Iowa has died. KGAN-TV reports 46-year-old Todd Hamann died Saturday at a hospital in Iowa City from pancreatitis. Hamann was convicted of two counts of forgery in Woodbury County and began serving his sentence in 2013. DECORAH, IA (IRN) – It was a dangerous weekend in Winneshiek County with 10 separate auto accidents, including a fatal crash. KIMT-TV reports there were three accidents on Friday, five on Saturday, and two more on Sunday, including one where 26-year-old Alexandra Moran Loden of Decorah was ejected from her vehicle and died. Three of the accidents on Saturday were in the same half-hour. CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – A six-year-old child from Cedar Rapids is recovering at an area hospital after he was hit by a truck on Thursday, according to KCRG-TV. Max Tuetken was walking home from Erskine Elementary School with his older brother, when Max saw his parents and took off running toward them into the street. Unfortunately, the driver of a truck didn’t see him. Max is expected to recover from two broken feet and burns. CEDAR FALLS, IA (IRN) – Cedar Falls doesn’t have enough firefighters, according to KWWL-TV. Cedar Falls Firefighters Association President Jim Cook says the initial number of firefighters who responded to a recent house fire “[wasn’t] enough to save our citizens personal property, their homes, or potentially their lives.” Only six people initially responded to the fire. Cook says the national standard is 15 to 17 people. WESTERN IOWA (IRN) – 11-year-old Katie Bozen prevented an almost certain crash from occurring in Western Iowa over the weekend, according to WHO-TV. Katie jumped into the driver’s seat when her mother suffered a seizure along Interstate 29. Katie says “When I saw her shaking, I unbuckled my seatbelt and I had to crawl over and sit on her lap.” She managed to steer the Chevy Suburban onto the shoulder, before waving down help. Her mother is expected to recover.  

MASON CITY, IA – A north Iowa woman is facing multiple drug charges, according to KIMT-TV. 23-year-old Casondra Kay Carolina Wilmarth of Mason City was arrested Friday and is charged with possession of methamphetamine, possession of contraband in a correctional institution and a controlled substance violation. When Wilmarth was arrested she had in her possession a bag containing meth, five baggies of marijuana, and empty baggies. When she was booked into the jail, authorities discovered another bag of meth hidden in her mouth. WATERLOO, IA (IRN) – A woman jumped to safety from a second-floor window and a man was rescued by firefighters during a blaze at a Waterloo apartment building on Sunday. KCRG-TV reports the woman limped away after landing on a satellite dish and later was taken by private vehicle to a hospital. The fire appears to have started in a laundry room. MUSCATINE, IA (IRN) – An Illinois man was injured late Saturday after a fall from a cliff at Wildcat Den State Park near Muscatine. Aaron Plumb, 26, of Geneseo, Ill., fell approximately 35 feet from an area known as “the Devil’s Punch Bowl” shortly before midnight. Plumb was transported by helicopter to University of Iowa Hospitals in Iowa City. He was treated for back trauma as well as injuries to a hand and fingers. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A 17-year-old boy has been charged with murder after killing his grandmother, according to WHO-TV. Des Moines police responded to an east side address on Saturday to investigate a reported assault.  Authorities found the victim, 79-year-old Rachel Pray, dead. Her grandson, Noah Laprei of Des Moines, is charged with first-degree murder. Neighbors say he was acting out of character, and appeared to be on drugs. CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – A man who was seriously burned after an explosion rocked a Cedar Falls motel Saturday afternoon has died. KCRG-TV reports Matthew David Ferleman, 43, died late Saturday night after the motel room he was in exploded, blowing out the front and back walls of the unit. Officials suspect it was a natural gas explosion. WINNESHIEK COUNTY, IA (IRN) – One person is dead after being ejected from a car in Winneshiek County. The Iowa State Patrol reports the 2005 Pontiac Grand Prix was traveling northbound on a rural road when it drifted across the center line into the other lane. It then entered a ditch and rolled, causing the driver to be thrown from the car. The name of the victim hasn’t been released. WASHINGTON, D.C. (IRN)  An Iowa State University program will receive some of the $17 million in grants the federal government is handing out to help new farmers and ranchers. The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced ISU will receive nearly $700,000 to help aging farmers plan for succession at their operations.

IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – A Michigan man is dead following an Iowa City crash on Interstate 80 on Saturday. According to the Iowa State Patrol the pickup driver collided with an overpass bridge. Terry Agal, 69-years-old, of Muskegon died in the crash, and Kay Lynn Agal, 68, was injured. DES MOINES (IRN) – Des Moines Police are investigating a drive-by shooting that happened overnight Saturday, according to WOI-TV. A woman woke up to sounds of gunshots at her home. She told police she thought they sounded like a machine gun. The bullets went through her home and hit a stereo and picture. They also broke multiple windows. The homeowner says she doesn’t have any enemies or know anyone who would want to shoot her house. DES MOINES (IRN) – Des Moines police confirm an ATM stolen early this week was recovered by Omaha police Friday. WHO-TV reports the ATM was stolen from a Casey’s General Store. Security footage shows the thieves broke in with a sledge hammer, attached a chain to the ATM and pulled it out with a truck. They then lifted the ATM into the back of the truck and drove off. DES MOINES (IRN) – Drake University super fan Paul Morrison attended his 700th Drake football game Saturday. WOI-TV reports Morrison is known as “Mr. Drake.” He attended the university as a freshman in 1935 and got a full-time job working for the school soon after. At 98 years old, he has a goal of attending 750 games in his lifetime.

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – A fire forced some residents of an apartment building in Cedar Rapids out of their homes Friday night. KCRG-TV reports firefighters found a fire in a ground floor apartment, with smoke throughout the building. Firefighters say at least one person climbed out a second-floor window onto a car to escape the fire. No one was injured. DES MOINES (IRN) – The Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation has new charges in an ongoing lottery investigation. Eddie Tipton, previously convicted of rigging the Iowa Lottery in an attempt to win $14.3 million, is now charged with ongoing criminal conduct, a class B felony. The new charges are related to lottery sales in Colorado and Wisconsin. Tipton was charged Friday with tampering with the lottery so his brother and his friend could win prizes too. NEWTON, IA (IRN) – An explosion happened inside a building operated by Hunt Cleaners in Newton Friday night. WHO-TV reports firefighters with the Baxter and Newton Fire Departments were on hand to assist with the fire. Four people were inside the building, but no one was hurt. LE MARS, IA (IRN) – A former Remsen-Union Community School teacher accused of having a sexual relationship with a student has pled not guilty. KGAN-TV reports 24-year-old Samantha Kohls, of Cedar Falls, entered a written plea Thursday in Plymouth County District Court to two counts of sexual exploitation by a school employee. Authorities say Kohls had sex with a 17-year-old male student while she was a teacher at the school. DAVENPORT, IA (IRN) – A Trumpeter swan wounded last weekend at Princeton Wildlife Area has been captured and will soon be on its way to a wildlife rehabilitation facility. The swan was captured Friday by DNR conservation officers and biologists with assistance from employees of the Clinton County Conservation Board. Levi Young, 25, of Davenport, and Kyle Munson, 25, of Eldridge, allegedly shot two swans while waterfowl hunting, killing one and injuring the other. Both face multiple charges.

CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – A Cedar Rapids man has pled guilty to injecting an unconscious woman with heroin, causing her to overdose. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Iowa says 37-year-old Richard Roberts pled guilty on Wednesday in federal court to distribution of heroin. Roberts faces up to 20 years in prison and a $1 million fine. NORTH LIBERTY, IA (IRN) – A North Liberty man who police say told them about a meth lab in his camper was arrested this week on felony drug charges. The Iowa City Press Citizen reports police were looking for Michael Joseph Vogel, 22, regarding a credit card theft case while he was camping near Coralville.  As Vogel was being taken into custody he told police there was a methamphetamine lab inside the camper. He faces numerous charges. IDA GROVE, IA (IRN) – An Ida County District Court jury has found a Sioux City man guilty of robbing a Holstein bank last year. The Sioux City Journal reports jurors found Michael Dutcher, 22, guilty of first-degree robbery. In 2014, Dutcher walked into United Bank of Iowa in Holstein with a loaded revolver and demanded money from a teller. He left the bank with an undisclosed amount of cash. DES MOINES (IRN) – A judge says he’ll decide within 30 days whether Gov. Terry Branstad violated the law by using a line-item veto to close two state mental health hospitals. The Des Moines Register reports a bipartisan plan that Branstad vetoed this summer would have reversed his closing of one mental health institution and temporarily kept open another. Both sides of the case were argued in court Thursday. BOONE, IA (IRN) – A 7-year-old Boone child was killed Wednesday in a car vs. pedestrian crash, according to KCCI-TV. Connor Joseph Ribgy, 20, of Madrid, was driving his car when he hit Taron Coty, 7, of Boone. Coty died from injuries sustained in the crash. The crash remains under investigation. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A disgraced former Des Moines police officer is now facing criminal charges — accused of stealing from other cops. WHO-TV reports that Tarry Pote resigned in January after he was caught peeping on a female officer showering in the police gym. Now investigators say Pote was stealing from the gym, which is run by police officers, for some time. It’s estimated that Pote stole tens of thousands of dollars from other officers. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – At least twelve flights scheduled to arrive in Des Moines last night were canceled, delayed or diverted because the lights went out on the airport runway. Multiple news sources report the problem was traced to a lightning strike last week that likely weakened a wire that failed. The lights went out around 8:00 pm. Flights resumed about midnight. JOHNSTON, IA (IRN) – It was a special surprise for a big Taylor Swift fan at ChildServe in Johnston, according to WOI-TV. Thanks to an anonymous donor, a young lady named Katie got free tickets to the concert, and she was thrilled. Katie has Williams Syndrome and has had to overcome many health obstacles. She also loves music, and was overjoyed to be going to the hottest show in town. Childserve serves local children with health care needs.