(Radio Iowa) – A private memorial service was held Saturday afternoon at the Mason City T-V station where Jodi Huisentruit worked 25 years ago. Investigators believe she was kidnapped from the parking lot of her apartment complex as she left for work early on the morning of June 27th, 1995. Her body has never been found and the case remains unsolved. Kelly Boyle was a friend of Jodi’s who read a prepared statement from the Huisentruit family.

Jodi Huisentruit (file photo)

“She frequently made the statement: ‘Oh, I love life,'” Boyle read on the family’s behalf. “We often think of that and it gives us strength to move forward. Jodi loved meeting people. She treated everyone with respect regardless of where they were from and she would always take the time to listen and talk with them.” Huisentruit’s family is urging anyone who may have information about the case to call law enforcement.

“Even if you think your information seems insignificant, it may tbe the issing piece we are waiting for and it may help crack the case,” Boyle said on the family’s behalf. Huisentruit’s family cited the case of a missing college student in Washington state. The young woman’s body was found a few days after she was reported missing, but that case wasn’t solved for 30 years.

“The evil man who abducted her lived just down the road from her mother’s house,” Boyle read. “Two gals from this small town had always been suspicious of him and didn’t get good vibes from him. If only they had pursued their suspicions more aggressively the case could have possibly been solved sooner please. Please don’t let us wait 30 years to solve our case.”

Doug Merbach was the news director at K-I-M-T at the time of Jodi’s disappearance. He says there’s never been a time in the last 25 years that he thought the case wouldn’t be solved.  “I think in this day and age we see a lot of people that aren’t getting justice and people that should be held accountable aren’t being held accountable and some of that started with Jodi 25 years ago. She needs justice,” he said. “We still have hope. We still have our prayers. We know organizations like www.findjodi.com are doing so much to keep her story alive and keep her story out there.”

A state D-C-I agent and a Mason City police officer are still assigned to the case and regularly review leads.  “If you’re familiar with the case, you know there wasn’t a lot of evidence left at the scene on the day Jodi disappeared, and there wasn’t much to work with, and they’ve been fighting that uphill battle ever since,” Merbach said, “but we still have hope, we still have our prayers, and maybe someday Jodi can have justice too.”

Huisentruit was 27 at the time of her disappearance. Her clothes, shoes and a hair dryer were found dropped in the parking lot outside her apartment. Her red car was left there as well.

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 2:50 a.m. CDT

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Authorities say a 29-year-old man died after a shooting outside a Des Moines area bar. The Polk County Sheriff’s office said the shooting happened as officers worked to disperse a crowd of roughly 500 people outside the Karma Bar around 1:45 a.m. Sunday. Deputies found Sir William Beckish with a gunshot wound to his head. The Des Moines man was taken to a hospital where he died. Two women, ages 33 and 40, went to a hospital with minor gunshot wounds from the shooting. They were both treated and released from the hospital. Authorities say no arrests had been made as of Sunday morning.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Police are investigating after a man’s body was found in an industrial area of Des Moines southeast of downtown. Des Moines police say officers found the body around 9 p.m. Saturday in an area near Dean Lake and the Titan Tire manufacturing plant. Authorities say a 27-year-old Des Moines man has been arrested on suspicion of first-degree murder and robbery in connection with the man’s death. The victim’s name wasn’t immediately released on Sunday.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Health officials report the number of coronavirus cases in Iowa grew by 543 to 28,478 on Sunday. The Iowa Department of Public Health said that as of 10 a.m. Sunday the number of deaths linked to the virus remained at 704, which was unchanged from Saturday. The state said 17,573 of the people who tested positive for the virus in Iowa have recovered. A total of 295,920 people have been tested. For most people, the coronavirus causes mild or moderate symptoms that clear up in two to three weeks. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Some Iowa bars and other businesses are voluntarily closing their doors amid an increase in confirmed coronavirus cases. Among them was the Artifacts antiques shop in Iowa City. Owner Todd Thelen told the Gazette that the store has seen three of its mostly older customers die because of the virus. Confirmed cases in the state increased by an additional 380 on Saturday, bringing the total to 27,935. The state also reported three more deaths to bring the total to 704. Businesses that closed or limited operations at the beginning of the pandemic had started expanding operations as Gov. Kim Reynolds began easing restrictions.

A collision between a semi and a van occurred Sunday afternoon, in Marne. According to scanner and other reports, the accident happened at Highway 83 (Marne Road) and Washington Street, at around 2:35-p.m.  Cass County Sheriff’s Deputy Corey Larsen told KJAN News both drivers were transported to the hospital by Walnut Rescue and Medivac. A report on their injuries was not immediately available.

Photos courtesy Cass County Emergency Management Director Mike Kennon.

The van sustained substantial damage, while damage to the semi appeared to be on the right front. The van ended-up in the southwest ditch at the intersection, following the crash.

Deputy Larsen said additional details would likely be released on Monday.

Red Oak Police, Sunday morning, arrested 33-year old Curtis Lin Harrod, of Council Bluffs.  Harrod was taken into custody during a traffic stop, and charged with Driving While Suspended, with 24 suspensions on file. He was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on $566 bond.

The Iowa Department of Public Health, Sunday, reported 495 new cases of COVID-19 were confirmed over the past 24-hours. As of 10:30 a.m. Sunday, a total of 28,430 Iowans have tested positive for COVID-19 since the coronavirus began in Iowa.

Of those, 17,556 Iowans have recovered, and no additional COVID-19 related deaths have been reported since Friday. A total of 295,914 Iowans have been tested for the coronavirus. Polk County continues to be the most impacted with 5,930 positive COVID-19 cases.

Currently, there are 25 COVID-19 outbreaks in long-term care facilities in Iowa. In those care facilities, 735 people have tested positive, 446 have recovered and 363 have died.

In southwest/western Iowa RMCC Region 4, there was a slight drop in the number of hospitalized COVID-19 patients (at 6, 1 less than Saturday), and no change in the number of patients held in an ICU. There were no new virus-related hospitalizations, and one person remains on a ventilator.

The State’s COVID-19 database shows the following numbers for positive cases and recoveries ( ), with any 24-hour changes marked with an *.

• Cass: 17 (16)
• Adair: 14 (11)
• Adams: 8 (5)
• Audubon: 17* (11) (1 less case reported)
• Guthrie: 64 (50)
• Montgomery: 10 (8)
• Pottawattamie: 674* (508)* (10 new cases, 24 more recovered)
• Shelby: 103* (64)* ( 1 new case, 3 more recovered)

One person is in custody while two others were being sought, following a burglary this (Sunday) morning, at the Motel 6 at 3032 S. Expressway, in Council Bluffs. Police say just before 5-a.m., a woman reported that two females, one of which had a hatchet, and one male, had entered her motel room and took some items. The victim said also, that she and her boyfriend chased down the women and managed to retrieve some of their belongings.

The female offenders were able to flee the scene before officers arrived. The male suspect was located by Police in the grass on the East side of the S. Expressway, and taken into custody. No names have been released at this time. The case remains under investigation.

(Update: Suspect arrested) Police in Des Moines have made an arrest in connection with a suspicious death that took place Saturday night. Authorities tell KCCI that 27-year old Andrew James Hall, of Des Moines, faces a charge of first-degree murder and first-degree robbery. He’s being held in the Polk County Jail. This is Des Moines’ 14th homicide in 2020.

The incident was reported a little after 9-p.m., Saturday, when a man leaving his job at the train yard near SE 24th Street and East Market Street in Des Moines, said he saw a body near the road. He honked his horn, but the person did not respond. As the subject got close enough to the body, he realized the person was possibly deceased, and called authorities.

Additional details are currently not available.

(Updated) – A shooting early this (Sunday) morning in Polk County has left one person dead and two others injured. The Polk County Sheriff’s Office told KCCI the incident took place just before 2-a.m., at the Karma Bar on Merle Hay Road. Gunshots were heard by deputies on the scene.

The victims were identified as 29-year old Sir William Beckish, of Des Moines, who died after being shot in the head. 33-year-old Telisha Young, and 40-year-old Tamekia Crow, both of Des Moines, were injured. They were treated for their wounds and released from the hospital.

A traffic stop early this (Sunday) morning in Red Oak, resulted in the arrest of a man from Minnesota. Red Oak Police report 26-year old Tam Thanh Hong, of Rosement, MN., was pulled over on Highway 34 near Highway 48, at around 3:50-a.m.  Upon further investigation, officers arrested Hong for Possession of a Controlled Substance and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. He was transported to the Montgomery County Jail and held on $1,000 bond.