(Radio Iowa) — A 24-year-old Fort Dodge man is charged with kidnapping and assaulting a woman, but he says he has proof he’s not guilty. Court documents say Levi Alan Goodell entered a woman’s home in Humboldt in March of last year, he then choked and dragged her out to his car. He’s accused of driving the woman around, pointing a gun at her and stating than one of them had to die. Authorities say he pointed the gun and pulled the trigger but it did not go off, as there were no shells in the gun. Goddell told the victim he just wanted to scare her. Goodell has pleaded not guilty and claims to have an alibi. He says his parole officer and GPS data from the Iowa Department of Corrections can prove he was not there at the time of the alleged incident. Goodell’s trial is scheduled to begin in March.

More State and area news from KJAN News Director Ric Hanson.

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GRIMES, Iowa (AP) — The Polk County Sheriff’s Office says it’s investigating the death of a woman whose body was found inside a house near Grimes over the weekend. The sheriff’s office says in a news release that deputies, firefighters and medics were called to the house Sunday morning for a report of a death. Officials say arriving deputies and medics found a 35-year-old woman unresponsive in the home, along with her 46-year-old fiance.

Authorities have not released the name of the woman or given details on how she died. The Polk County Sheriff’s Office and the Iowa Division of Criminal of Investigation are investigating the death and interviewing possible witnesses.

Two people were arrested at around 4:25-a.m. today (Monday), in Red Oak, following a reported physical altercation in the 400 block of E. Market Street, in Red Oak. Authorities say upon further investigation, 30-year old Sara Ann Billie, of Red Oak, was arrested for Possession of Drug Paraphernalia and Domestic Assault causing bodily injury. 27-year old Cody Dean Johnson, also of Red Oak, was arrested for Domestic Assault by impeding the flow of air/and-or blood.

Both subjects were booked into the Montgomery County Jail, and held without bond.

The area’s latest and/or top news stories at 7:05-a.m. From KJAN News Director Ric Hanson.

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DIXON, Ill. (AP) — The Illinois Department of Transportation will hold a virtual public meeting Wednesday on plans for replacing a more than 50-year-old Mississippi River bridge in the Quad Cities area. The meeting is being held online because of social distancing restrictions amid the coronavirus pandemic. The public can participate via an online link. IDOT officials will discuss a study of Interstate 80 over the Mississippi River.

The plan is to replace the I-80 bridge in the Quad Cities, which opened in 1966. The meeting is at 2 p.m. Register to participate in the webinar at www.I80MississippiBridge.com.

CRESTON – First National Bank in Creston has completed its merger of Century Bank in Shenandoah, Iowa, and with all the necessary regulatory approvals met, the bank will now be known as First National Bank and will continue to serve Shenandoah and the surrounding communities. Randy Huewe, president of First National Bank, reminds customers and the community that the same staff that has always given great customer service in Shenandoah in the past have all been retained during this merger.

Randy Huewe, FNB President

“We’re beyond excited about completing this merger,” Huewe said. “The staff there, which we’ve gotten to know personally now, share our core values of commitment to you, our customers, and to exceeding your expectations. To our new customers, we want you to know we’re committed to making this continued transition as smooth as possible for you in the coming months. We feel privileged to have you as our customers and in expanding our presence to Shenandoah. We look forward to being a strong supporter in Shenandoah and the surrounding community.” With this merger completed, the bank’s longtime president in Shenandoah, Greg Ritchey, will retire after 17 years with Century Bank. Greg will join the Board of Directors at First National Bank. Mike Bauer, the bank’s longtime senior vice president, will fill the role as president of the Shenandoah location.

First National Bank in Creston was chartered in 1871 and is a family-owned, full service community bank that specializes in commercial, ag and personal banking. First National Bank is part of Northwest Financial Corporation, a two bank, privately-owned financial services holding company.   The banks include Northwest Bank of Spencer, Iowa and First National Bank in Creston. The two banks collectively hold close to $2.0 billion in assets and have 23 offices throughout western Iowa and eastern Nebraska.  Other entities within Northwest Financial Corp. include Northwest Wealth Management, LLC and Northwest Insurance Services. Member FDIC. Equal Housing Lender.

A KJAN listener in Griswold wants to warn area residents about a re-occurring phone scam. The woman said she received a call Friday afternoon on her land-line, from “Publishers Clearing House” (PCH), saying she was the “2nd  Place Winner of $155 million dollars,” along with a “Set for Life” payment of $5,500 each month for rest of her life, as well as a new pickup truck with 18 months of free insurance, free gasoline and service and a tire card, all for 18 months.

The caller – who identified himself as “James Miller,” from Afton, TX. – gave the woman Price Code and Check Cash numbers. Fortunately, the woman was suspicious. She asked him why the people with the balloons weren’t the ones to tell me. He told her they were in the area they were planning on coming in one hour and 35 minutes. He then asked her to purchase a gift card at Wal-Mart.  The woman, knowing by then the call was a scam, hung-up the phone.

PCH and other legitimate businesses, will never ask you to purchase a gift card, submit any personal information, or account information, over the phone, by text or e-mail. If you get unsolicited calls that seem too good to be true, hang-up and notify your local authorities. If the person contacting you shows a caller-ID, take that number down and provide to law enforcement. The number was probably spoofed, but it couldn’t hurt to have police check it out.

(Radio Iowa) — Many Iowans are joining the recent trend of posting their high school senior pictures on social media, but it might not be such a good idea. While it’s billed as being in support of the graduating class of 2020 during the pandemic, Bao Vang with the Better Busines Bureau says by posting those old photos, you may be inadvertently sharing valuable personal information with scammers. “Your high school name, graduation year, the city that you grew up in,” Vang says, “and if they sound familiar, the problem is, that same information is commonly used as passwords or the answers to online security questions.”

Once scammers have that information, Vang says it’s very easy for them to rip you off.  “Their ultimate goal is to steal your identity, your banking information and to part you with your hard-earned money,” Vang says. “Don’t allow them any chance.”

She says it’s a good idea to check your security settings on all social media platforms to see what you are sharing and with whom you are sharing it.