Officials with the Stuart Police Department posted a note on their social media page Friday afternoon warning residents of the community about a utility payment scam. Authorities there have been reports of someone going door to door claiming to be a Stuart City Worker collecting late utility payments. The city of Stuart does not send workers to your door to collect payments.

Officials say if you find yourself in that type of situation to immediately contact the Stuart P-D at 515-523-1896 or the Stuart City Hall at 515-523-1280. They need you to try and get the description of the person and any vehicles he/she may be in/with.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Republican David Young has canceled some television airtime reserved for advertisements in his bid for Iowa’s 3rd congressional district, according to documents filed with the Federal Communications Commission this week.

Young, a former chief of staff for Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley, is running against Democrat Staci Appel in one of the nation’s closest congressional races. The seat is open because Republican U.S. Rep. Tom Latham is retiring in the district, which stretches from Des Moines to Council Bluffs.

Young’s campaign cancelled airtime scheduled from Sept. 16 through Sept. 22 on WHO-TV and KCCI-TV, according to contracts the stations provided to the FCC. Young spokesman Tim Albrecht declined comment.

The National Republican Congressional Committee is spending heavily on advertising in the race. Spokesman Tyler Houlton said he didn’t know why the ads were cancelled but expressed confidence about the race. “It definitely does not raise any questions about his abilities,” Houlton said. Isaac Baker, with the Democratic firm AKPD Message and Media, called the move a “very troubling sign for a candidate locked in a tight race this close to the election.”

Young had nearly $90,000 in his campaign account at the end of June. Appel, who didn’t face a competitive primary, had more than $725,000. Young finished fifth in a six-person primary, but won the nomination at a June 21 convention after five rounds of voting.

ROCKWELL CITY, Iowa (AP) — A union representing correctional officers said Friday the discovery of hundreds of pills inside a prison was a “major security breach.” AFSCME Iowa Council 61 President Danny Homan called on the Iowa Department of Corrections to release more information about the breach, accusing administrators of keeping key details from the public. State officials announced Thursday that 300 to 400 capsules containing an unknown substance were discovered inside the North Central Correctional Facility in Rockwell City.

Homan said that cell phones and chargers were also discovered — a fact that department spokesman Fred Scaletta refused to confirm or deny. Homan said that phones were the “worst kind of contraband” because they allow inmates to communicate with people outside the prison.

Homan also asserted that several inmates there have tested positive for marijuana since the discovery, but that no marijuana had been found. Scaletta declined comment on that claim. Scaletta confirmed Friday that some testing has been done on the pills, but refused to say what it found. He said additional testing is being done by the Division of Narcotics Enforcement, and that more information would be released next week.

Homan said he believes one or more members of the public were able to smuggle in the contraband “because of the lack of staffing and appropriate staff training.” Scaletta said that prison officials “do the best they can with the resources they have” to manage the facility. He said that steps will be taken to prevent a similar breach from happening.

Sheriff’s officials in Cass County say deputies arrested a Griswold woman on drug charges this (Friday) morning. 19-year old Tara Lynn Waters, of Griswold, faces charges that include OWI 1st Offense, Possession of a Controlled Substance, and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. Waters was taken to the Cass County Jail and later released.

On Thursday, Cass County deputies arrested 29-year old Amanda Fay Petrzilka, of Council Bluffs, on a charge of Driving While Revoked. Petrzilka was taken to the Cass County Jail where she was released the following day on her own recognizance.

And there were two arrests Wednesday in Cass County. 45-year old Carl Daniel Wiechmann, of Griswold, was arrested on a charge of Domestic Abuse 2nd Offense. Wiechmann was taken to the Cass County Jail where he was released later that day on $2,000 bond. Also, 33-year old Jessica Ranell Jamison, of Winterset, was arrested Wednesday, on a district court warrant for Probation Violation. Jamison was taken to the Cass County Jail where she is being held on $25,000 bond.

(12-p.m. News)