Des Moines, Iowa – Officials with the Iowa Insurance Division (IID) said Wednesday, David Mark Ellis and Debra Jo Ellis of Spring Hill, Iowa, and Justin Dwayne Gilbert of Des Moines, Iowa, face multiple charges following an investigation by the Iowa Insurance Division’s Fraud Bureau.

Charges against David Ellis, the owner of Always Affordable Bail Bonds in Des Moines, include four counts of Fraudulent Sales Practices (class D felony), 4 counts of Prostitution (aggravated misdemeanor), and two counts of Credit Card Fraud (aggravated misdemeanor). David Ellis was also charged with one count of Fraudulent Submissions to an Insurance Company (class D felony) after the investigation discovered he allegedly misrepresented the facts of loss on an insurance claim in order to receive funds he was not entitled to. Gilbert, an employee of Always Affordable Bail Bonds, was charged with six counts of Fraudulent Sales Practices (class D felony).

Authorities have alleged that David Ellis and Gilbert knowingly employed an unlicensed person to conduct bond sales on behalf of Always Affordable Bail Bonds and that David Ellis received sexual acts and an EBT benefits card in exchange for bond payment and inmate compensation. Debra Ellis was charged with five counts of Credit Card Fraud related to EBT transactions (aggravated misdemeanor).

On December 7, Debra Ellis was arrested and taken to the Polk County Jail where she was released on bond. The same day, David Ellis and Gilbert turned themselves in to the Polk County Jail on outstanding warrants and were later released on bond.

The Iowa Insurance Division’s Fraud Bureau was assisted by the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, the Wapello County Sheriff’s Department, and the Warren County Sheriff’s Department. Iowans with information about insurance fraud are encouraged to contact the Iowa Insurance Division’s Fraud Bureau at 515-654-6556 or visit our website at www.IID.Iowa.gov.

Cass County Republicans recently made $100 donations to the Anita Food Pantry and The Lord’s Cupboard in Griswold.

The Anita Food Pantry was established over 25 years ago and is open the 1st and 3rd Saturdays each month.  The nine board members are also volunteers at the pantry, which helps over 600 families each year.  They currently need paper products, soup, cereal and canned goods.  Delivering the donation is Cathy Zimmerman, Cass County Republican Central Committee Treasurer (center) to board members Cathie Alff (left) and Jodi Irlmeier (right).

The Lord’s Cupboard in Griswold was established over 20 years ago and is currently housed in the Methodist Church.  It is open the 2nd and 4th Tuesday each month from 11:00 am to 2:00 pm.  Seven to ten volunteers help distribute food on those days and serve about 700 families annually.  To keep the pantry stocked, canned meat, cereal, canned goods and toilet paper are needed.  Accepting the donation from CCRCC Treasurer Cathy Zimmerman (far right) are (left to right) Daryl Dorscheimer (volunteer), Barb Schroeder (church secretary) and Tim Amos (volunteer).

(IOWA FALLS, Iowa) – Officials with the Iowa Dept. of Public Safety report that a little after 7-a.m. today (12/8), the Iowa Falls Police Department, the Hardin County Sheriff’s Office, and the Iowa State Patrol responded to a request for assistance from a female regarding a male that was stalking her by following her in his vehicle on this morning.  The two have had a previous relationship.

Officers responded to the area of Siloam Ave and River Street in Iowa Falls and witnessed the male strike the female’s vehicle with his vehicle.  Officers ordered the male out of the vehicle when he refused and displayed a shotgun.  Officers were able to get the female to safety.   The suspect refused commands and attempted to flee the scene when he was shot by officers.  The suspect died of his injuries.

The incident remains under investigation by the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation. Names of the subjects involved will be released pending notification of family members. Upon completion of the investigation, the results will be forwarded to the Hardin County Attorney’s Office for review.

(Des Moines, Iowa) – In it’s latest report issued today (Wednesday), the Iowa Department of Public Health said there were 105 additional COVID-19 related deaths in the state. That brings the pandemic total to 7,550 since the beginning of the virus in Iowa. IDPH says the additional deaths were reported to the health department between Oct. 1st and Dec. 1st. The number of positive tests over the past seven-days declined, however, from 12,254 on Monday, to 11,207 in today’s report. The 14-day positivity rate in Iowa grew from 11.9 to 12%.

The number of patients hospitalized with COVID-19 in Iowa increased from 721 to 777. Of those hospitalized with the virus, 73.8% have not been vaccinated, while 84.3% of those listed in intensive care units with COVID-19 have not been vaccinated. The number of long-term care facilities reporting a virus outbreak remains at 17.

There have been 4,322,252 vaccine doses administered in Iowa, with 69.4% of those 18 and older fully vaccinated and 72.8% of those 12 and older with at least one dose.

(Radio Iowa) – The Ankeny-based Casey’s convenience stores reports continued recovery from the pandemic slowdown despite some continuing challenges. Company president, Darren Rebelez gave an update today (Wednesday) on second-quarter results during a conference call with investors. “Diluted earnings per share were two dollars and 59 cents per share. And will down from the prior year — were still impressive in the wake of the extremely challenging retail environment we are still facing. Total gross profit dollars of 718 million dollars was an all-time high for the second quarter,” Rebelez says.

Rebelez says they were still able to keep moving in a positive direction during the quarter. “We experienced increased guest counts and positive same-store fuel volumes. We maintained or grew our margins inside our stores while dealing with a myriad of product or inflationary challenges,” he says. Rebelez supply chain issues were one of the biggest challenges. “While our self-distribution model help mitigate some supply chain challenges, we most acutely felt product availability challenges in the prepared food category,” according to Rebelez. “At various times during the quarter — and sometimes for nearly the entire quarter — we were out of key items such as donuts, fountain beverage cups, and chicken.”

Rebelez says increases were offset by higher operating expenses, higher wage rates, and credit card fees, along with the addition of 161 additional stores. He says the company implemented selective price increases to offset inflationary pressures throughout the business.

(Radio Iowa) – Governor Kim Reynolds is using 100 million dollars in federal pandemic relief for water quality infinitives. Twenty-five million is going into a state fund that provides grants to farmers implementing conservation practices, as part of the voluntary Iowa Nutrient Reduction Strategy. Reynolds has announced the remaining 75 million dollars will go into a Water Infrastructure Fund. Grants from the fund will help finance projects that do things like reduce agricultural run-off, reduce flood risks and reuse wastewater.

According to a news release from the governor’s office, carbon sequestration projects would also be eligible, meaning some of the 75 million dollars could finance construction of carbon pipelines through the state. In a written statement, Governor Reynolds called the investments historic and said the money will help protect, preserve and restore Iowa’s water resources.

(Greenfield, Iowa) – The Adair County Board of Supervisors, today (Wednesday) approved by a vote of 4-to 1, a Resolution accepting Reprecincting Ordinance #28. Districts are established after each census. Each District is required to be equal in population. The plan was presented by Ryan Frederick with the Adair County Reprecincting Committee.

Frederick said the committee discussed a few different versions before they settled on the plan presented. He said most of their time was spent discussing how the City of Greenfield would fit into the latest precinct map in a way that makes sense.

He said in previous maps, the city was split with the residents in the southeast part of Adair County. Frederick said where possible, the committee tried to use township boundaries as the means to make the numbers fit. During a vote on the Resolution accepting the reprecincting plan, Jodie Hoadley was the lone no votes.

She asked Frederick prior to the vote, if they had not redistricted the City of Greenfield, would they had to have adjusted the other districts as much as the committee did. Fredericks said “Greenfield is where all the people live,” and the first draft they drew up, ended up with a tiny district, and voters from Bridgewater traveling all the way to Orient to vote, among other changes. He said essentially, “The Greenfield District had to shrink, because it had too many people.” The committee, he said actually came up with somewhere from eight to 10 maps before settling on the version that was sent to the Supervisors.

The Board set their meeting on Dec. 22^nd at 9:15-a.m., as the date and time for a public hearing on the Resolution before making the Ordinance official.

(Radio Iowa) – A University of Iowa researcher whose two-year-old son died from influenza in early 2020 has helped develop an online game to teach children about about the flu and the importance of vaccines. U-I biology professor Maurine Neiman is co-creator of the game, “Flu’s Clues,” where players try to determine which countries around the world are seeing flu outbreaks. “You travel virtually to these different places with potential outbreaks,” Neiman says, “and you get to interview local scientists or doctors to find out what they’re observing, what they’re seeing, and figure out for yourself, based on information that you’ve learned in the game, is what you’re seeing consistent with influenza.”

Once outbreaks are identified, players return to their virtual lab to work on creating a serum for the vaccine. “The overall objective is to help teach really anyone but the overt focus of the game is on kids about what influenza is and what it isn’t, why it’s something to take seriously,” Neiman says, “and how to protect yourself and your family and your community from the flu and, in particular, by vaccinating.” Neiman and the Iowa City Science Boosters Club teamed up with the Virginia-based non-profit organization Families Fighting Flu to create the game. “This is really exciting for us because a virtual setting, while it has its constraints, it also has its opportunities,” Neiman says. “In particular, you can reach many more people potentially across the country and even around the world.”

Maurine Neiman. (U-I photo)

The game also contains important lessons about viruses in general, such as how to identify symptoms, determine differences between the flu and other viruses, and learn how vaccines are made. In large part due to masking and social distancing, the state health department says only six flu deaths were confirmed in Iowa during the 2020-21 flu season, versus 103 the previous season and 270 deaths during the 2017-18 season.