Iowa Radio News

PERU, IA (IRN) – A man was found dead Saturday morning after his jeep flipped near Peru, in rural Madison County. WOI-TV reports when deputies arrived, they found a Jeep Wrangler on its top. Its driver, 60-year-old Paul Shafer of Des Moines was pronounced dead at the scene. WATERLOO, IA (IRN) – Waterloo Firefighters were called to a house fire at 516 Iowa Street on Saturday, according to KWWL-TV. The Waterloo Battalion Chief says a 911 caller initially said the fire was at 516 Iowa Street in Cedar Falls. Fortunately, firefighters from both Waterloo and Cedar Falls responded to the respective 516 Iowa Street addresses in their towns. The Waterloo home was extensively damaged, but no one was injured. MONROE COUNTY, IA – A routine Monroe County traffic stop turned into a high speed chase and a school lockdown Friday, according to KTVO-TV. Monroe County Sheriff Daniel Johnson attempted to pull over Kyle Edward Popson near Albia. Popson was known to have a suspended driver’s license. A pursuit ensued into Albia and a school lockdown was put into place. Popson abandoned his vehicle near the High School, and was apprehended after a short foot chase. WEST DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – West Des Moines police say they received calls that drivers were pulled over on Interstate 80 picking up loose money on Saturday.  KCCI-TV reports police responded to an exit near Jordan Creek Parkway, and found a few drivers picking up money. The officers say they didn’t see a large amount of cash whirling around, only a few dollar bills.

IOWA FALLS, IA (IRN) – A mother and her three young children were saved in the nick of time by a phone call. KCCI-TV reports Jennifer Smith called a free health care helpline around 3 a.m. Thursday after she and her three children became ill. Smith told Tammie Zeiser, a nurse who works at the hotline, their symptoms. Zeisner called back later to check on the family, received no answer, so sent paramedics. The family had passed out because of carbon monoxide poisoning. They are now doing fine. BLOOMFIELD, IA (IRN) – A man was killed Friday morning after he was struck by a semi while driving his horse and buggy. The Iowa State Patrol reports 77-year-old Norman Jessie Yutzy was driving a horse and buggy in Davis County when a semi attempted to pass the buggy in the left lane. The horse reportedly turned left while the semi was passing, causing the collision. Yutzy was pronounced dead at the scene. CLERMONT, IA (IRN) – A Jesup man was injured while deer hunting on Friday after falling from a tree stand. The DNR reports 67-year-old Timothy Lindquist fell approximately 20-feet from a homemade tree stand while bow hunting Friday morning outside of Clermont in Fayette County. Lindquist was not wearing a safety harness. He was discovered by two other men he was hunting with. FAIRFIELD, IA (IRN) – Schools in Fairfield are battling a variety of illnesses. KTVO-TV reports students and staff at Maharishi School of the Age of Enlightenment tested positive for pertussis, better known as whooping cough. At the same time, administrators at Washington Elementary are facing an outbreak of a flu-like illness. 90 students have been sent home from school. NEVADA, IA (IRN) – Dignitaries from all over the world gathered Friday to formally open the new DuPont Cellulosic Ethanol Facility in Nevada. WHO-TV reports the new plant will take corn stover, the stalks left in the field after the harvest, and turn that into ethanol. The $225 million refinery is the world’s largest cellulosic ethanol plant. The plant will have 85 full-time jobs, and employ 150 seasonal employees for stover collection.

WORTH COUNTY, IA (IRN) – 41-year-old Tyrone Washington Jr., was denied a new trial today in Worth County court and sentenced to life in prison without parole. KIMT-TV reports Washington was convicted of first-degree murder of his former girlfriend in July. He then asked for another trial claiming self-defense. CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) –  A Linn County Jail inmate didn’t return from work release for more than a day because claimed his wife was dying. KCRG-TV reports deputies called the hospital and learned his claim was false. 53-year-old Kenneth Kistner was serving a 180-day sentence for contempt of court on a revocation of probation in a drunken driving case. While still at-large Kistner called authorities to say he needed time to sober up before coming back to jail. POLK CITY, IA (IRN) – Investigators are working to find the thieves responsible for breaking into a Polk City maintenance facility and stealing about $150,000-worth of city property. WHO-TV reports two city trucks were stolen. They’re both white with the city logo on the doors, utility boxes, and official city license plates. Tools were also taken from the facility. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – MidAmerican Energy is warning its customers of a scam. More than 100 reports have come from customers saying they’ve received telephone calls from someone claiming to be with MidAmerican. The scammer claims the customer is past due on their utility bill, and it must be paid immediately via credit card or prepaid debit card. MidAmerican Energy says if anyone gets a suspicious call, hang up and report it to customer service. JOHNSTON, IA – Authorities are investigating an assault of a student on a Johnston school bus Thursday, according to KCCI-TV. The bus driver, 61-year-old Robert Scarbrough is charged with assault causing injury and child endangerment. Police say a special needs student directed an inflammatory comment toward the bus driver who grabbed the student’s coat, hit the boy in the face and pushed him to the floor. DES MOINES (IRN) – An Urbandale man has been sentenced to federal prison for bank robbery. Hassam Abusharkh (UH-bush-ark) was sentenced to 6 ½ years in prison for robbing the Farmers and Merchants State Bank in St. Charles in March of this year. MANCHESTER, IA (IRN) – Police say the driver who struck a school bus in Delaware County earlier this month was under the influence at the time of the crash. The Dubuque Telegraph Herald reports 41-year-old Monte Klink of Arlington is charged with serious injury by vehicle and second-offense operating while intoxicated. Klink failed to yield at an intersection and struck a West Delaware County Community School District bus carrying 32 students, causing it to rollover. IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – The cost of finding a new University of Iowa president has exceeded $300,000, including a $200,000 charge by the search firm involved. KCRG-TV reports Bruce Harreld, who starts his UI job on Monday, has signed a five-year contract calling for a beginning salary of $590,000 and a deferred compensation package of $1 million. Faculty and students have objected to the hire because of the way it was conducted, and because Harreld has no experience on a university faculty.  

FORT DODGE, IA (IRN) – Police were called to a home in Fort Dodge Thursday when a resident reported a person knocking at the front door had a gun.  KCCI-TV reports when officers arrived, the resident told them that two people had just left after a home invasion. One of the three residents of the home fought with the robbers before they fled. CEDAR FALLS, IA (IRN) – A woman is dead following a car crash in Cedar Falls, according to KGAN-TV. 59-year-old Terry Harp was hit at an intersection by a car driven by 48-year-old Walter Seals. The light at the intersection was green and police do not expect to file any charges against Seals. Harp was taken to Allen Hospital in Waterloo where she died. DUBUQUE, IA (IRN) – A Dubuque man was shot in the leg Wednesday, but police said it’s unclear if he fired the gun, or if someone else did. The Dubuque Telegraph Herald reports police responded to an apartment complex where they found 20-year-old Phillip Wilson sitting on the steps of the building with a gunshot wound to his leg. Wilson was transported to the hospital with non life-threatening injuries. No gun was found, and Wilson isn’t cooperating with the investigation. WATERLOO, IA (IRN) – Authorities are investigating an attack on a recreation trail in Waterloo. The Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier reports a Waterloo woman was on the running trail near Cedar Bend Park Wednesday, when a man pulled the hood on her sweatshirt over her eyes and pulled her off the trail. The man attempted to sexually assault her, but she was able to fight him off. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A Des Moines man has admitted that he lit his ex-girlfriend’s vehicle on fire Tuesday. KCCI-TV reports 33-year-old William Cook of Des Moines told police that he started his ex-girlfriend’s car on fire because they recently broke up and he heard that she was cheating on him. Cook poured rubbing alcohol on the driver’s seat of the vehicle and lit the interior on fire. He was arrested and charged with second-degree arson. CEDAR RAPIDS, IA (IRN) – A man wanted for manslaughter in Indiana was arrested in Cedar Rapids on Tuesday, according to KCRG-TV. 18-year-old Diamonty Newman was wanted in connection with a deadly assault that occurred in Indiana on Sept. 11. Authorities said a 44-year-old man was “severely assaulted” and died from his injuries. Newman is in custody in Linn County jail where he awaits extradition back to Indiana. ANKENY, IA (IRN) – If you paid with a credit card at the pump at certain Casey’s General Stores this month, watch your statement for suspicious activity. WHO-TV reports the company found credit card skimmers at a store in Davenport and at six locations in Nebraska. The devices read the data from the magnetic stripe on your credit or debit cards, and can’t be seen by customers. Authorities say to protect yourself, run transactions as credit. Never use your pin number at the pump. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – An Iowa cat lost 14 years ago has been reunited with his family, according to KCCI-TV. The cat–named Ralph– was recently picked up as a stray by an animal control officer. The cat’s microchip was scanned and the original family who adopted him in 1998 was contacted. When the family walked in to pick him up, “Ralph looked at them, kind of turned his head sideways and his eyes perked up.” Ralph is now resting comfortably at home.

DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – Gunshots were reported near East High School in Des Moines Wednesday, although police could find no suspects or evidence of any crime. The Des Moines Register reports the shots triggered a lockdown at the high school for about seven minutes. Police scanner traffic indicated that a fight had broken out in an alleyway near the school. FORT DODGE, IA (IRN) – A board that oversees the Webster County assessor has voted to fire her. The Mason City Globe Gazette reports the county Conference Board voted Tuesday evening to dismiss Jeanette Thanupakorn. Her firing comes in the wake of the state’s order for a 16 percent increase in county commercial property valuations. The state had ordered a 38 percent increase, but Thanupakorn didn’t appeal the amount, so the county board had to. DES MOINES (IRN) – Two Des Moines women have filed a lawsuit against the Iowa cosmetology board, seeking to start a hair braiding business without acquiring state licenses. The Des Moines Register reports the women filed the lawsuit against the Iowa Board of Cosmetology Arts and Sciences on Tuesday. They say they don’t want to spend up to $22,000  and 2,100 hours in cosmetology school to attain licenses to braid hair. IOWA CITY, IA (IRN) – An Iowa City man is accused of punching his 2-year-old son, sending the boy to the hospital. The Cedar Rapids Gazette reports the boy was not doing what he was told and the father, 21-year-old Tyshaun Harris, was yelling at him. When the boy started to cry, Harris punched him in the chest. The child suffered a “fist-shaped” bruise on his rib cage and was taken to the hospital via ambulance. Harris was arrested and faces up to five years in prison. CEDAR FALLS, IA (IRN) – A 22-year-old Cedar Falls woman delivered a baby unexpectedly Tuesday morning, saying she didn’t know she was pregnant. KWWL-TV reports paramedics found the newborn in his mother’s arms, wrapped in towels. The woman’s roommate is a nurse who helped the new mother and baby, while waiting for paramedics to arrive. It’s called “cryptic pregnancy” and about one in every 2,500 women don’t know they’re pregnant, until they’re in labor. DES MOINES, IA (IRN) – A Des Moines man has been charged after robbing a pizza delivery man in September. WHO-TV reports 34-year old Anzie Bester approached the Pizza Hut delivery driver as he delivered pizza to a home. Bester held the driver at gunpoint and took $60 as well as two pizzas. Bester is charged with first-degree robbery, third-degree burglary and fifth-degree theft. ANKENY, IA (IRN) – Three days after being shot in an Ankeny McDonald’s parking lot, 18-year-old Justin Phongsavanh (FONG-sav-uhn) is still in the hospital surrounded by family and friends. They say he may never walk again. KCCI-TV reports 36-year-old Gabriel Coco, a complete stranger, shot Phongsavanh (FONG-sav-uhn) and his friend Nickolas Culver after witnessing their “poor behavior” in the restaurant Saturday night. The bullet is lodged in Phongsavanh’s (FONG-sav-uhn’s) spine, and it may cause more damage if removed. CEDAR FALLS, IA (IRN) – Elementary school student Avalon Burns loves everything about Halloween, especially the costume parade at Lincoln Elementary in Cedar Falls. KWWL-TV reports she noticed last year not everyone had a Halloween costume. She also noticed the big price tags at stores, so she came up with a solution. She started a costume drive where kids can bring in costumes that have been used before so other kids can wear them. All the costumes in the drive are free.