(Radio Iowa) – Iowans are being warned to start their holiday shopping early due to shortages and long wait times for products, but now they’re also being warned to be careful how they’re going about finding gifts. Bao Vang, spokeswoman for the Better Business Bureau, says scammers are ready to take advantage, especially if you’re ordering something online.

“Thirty-five percent of scams reported to BBB Scam Tracker in 2021 so far are online purchase scams,” Vang says, “and they have been the riskiest scams for the last two or three years.” Vang says the bureau’s Scam Tracker shows each person who fell victim to an online scam lost more than a hundred dollars on average.

“Seventy-five percent of those who report scams related to online shopping lose money,” she says. “The largest demographic being targeted are people ages 18 to 24-years-old.” Vang says consumers should protect themselves by doing their research, watching out for deals that appear too good to be true, and anytime you’re paying with a credit card.

On the web at: BBB.org/scamtracker

(Anita, Iowa) – A Special Meeting of the CAM School District’s Board of Education will take place in Anita at 5-p.m. Thursday, in the CAM High School Superintendent’s Office. The Board will discuss and take action on admitting or denying “enrollment or educational placement of a student that is an individual who is required to register as a sex offender, under [Iowa Code] Chapter 692A.” That will be followed by an open forum.

No other information was presented on the agenda for this meeting.

(Atlantic, Iowa) – The Atlantic Police Department reports five arrests over the past two weeks.

• On Oct. 14th, 41-year-old Michael Parrott, of Atlantic, was arrested after he turned himself in on a warrant for Violation of Probation.
• On Oct. 12th: 33-year-old James Erickson, of Atlantic, was arrested on a Cass County warrant; and, 46-year-old Samantha Clark, of Atlantic, along with 57-year-old Cynthia Buboltz, of Lewis, were cited for Theft in the 5th Degree (Shoplifting). Both were cited and released from the scene.
• On Oct. 8th, 41-year-old Jeremy Waltz, of Atlantic, was arrested by Atlantic Police on multiple Cass County warrants,
• On Oct. 7th, 27-year-old Nicholas Renner, of Atlantic, was arrested for Possession of Drug Paraphernalia.
• And, on Oct. 6th, Atlantic Police arrested 37-year-old Nichole Price, of Atlantic, for Operating (A vehicle) Under the Influence/1st offense.

Each of the aforementioned subjects (with the exception Clark and Buboltz) were transported to the Cass County Jail, and booked-in. Out of those who were booked-in, only Michael Parrott remained in the jail as of Monday (Oct. 18).

(Greenfield, Iowa) – Adair County Sheriff Jeff Vandewater reports six arrests from over the past week:

• On Oct. 13th, there were three arrests – 40-year-old Justin Paul Parker, of Bridgewater, was arrested on an Adair County warrant for three felony counts of Burglary in the 3rd Degree. He was released from custody on the 16th, after posting a $10,000 cash-only bond; 31-year-old Justin Lee Whipple, of Des Moines, was arrested on the 13th on an Adair County warrant for Violation of Probation. He was being held in the Adair County Jail without bond; and 40-year old Christopher Michael Fasce, of West Des Moines, was arrested on an Adair County warrant for Assault causing bodily injury or mental illness. He was released on his Own Recognizance after his initial court appearance.
• On Oct. 12th, 30-year-old Daniel Austin Heinen, of Guthrie Center, was arrested an Adair County warrant for Forgery and Fraudulent Practice/3rd Degree. He was released the following day on a $2,000 cash or surety bond.
• On Oct. 10th, 56-year-old Carlos Humbert Vanegas Godinez, of Hambden, CT., was arrested for OWI/1st offense, following a traffic stop for speeding, by the Iowa State Patrol on I-80. The report says Godinez – who was on his way to Las Vegas when his 2014 Mercedes GL550 was pulled over – was clocked at 101 miles per hour. He was subsequently charged with Speeding 101 in a 70mph zone, and Open Container, in addition to the OWI charge. Godinez was released later that same day on a $1,000 cash or surety bond (w/10% acceptable).
• Also arrested on the 10th, was 47-year-old Kirk Monroe Hutchings, of Greenfield. He was charged with OWI/1st offense following a traffic stop on Highway 25 a little after 2-a.m. Hutchings was later released on a citation.

Sheriff Vandewater reported also, there were three juveniles arrested, but because of their age, no information will be released.

(Radio Iowa) – You can now access the past via your computer through the State Historical Society of Iowa’s online catalog. State Archivist, Anthony Jahn (Jan) says there are some 200 million pieces of history. “For decades we’ve been collecting Iowa’s past — its history. Through the books in our collection, other published materials, through things, items Iowans have donated to us — whether they be photographs or what we call manuscripts collections, they can be books, journals, personal papers,” Jahn says.

Jahn says the online catalog puts it at your fingertips without leaving home. “For decades the only way people could access those materials was by coming in and visiting our research center, our research libraries in Iowa City and Des Moines. Or seeing things that we made available to the public through online exhibits and so forth,” according to Jahn. He says making the catalog available is one of the key duties of the Historical Society. “These collections that we have here at the State Historical Society of Iowa, they’re the peoples’ collections. We’ve been tasked by the government of the State of Iowa to not only collect these materials from Iowans of from the government to organize them and make them available for the people,” Jahn says. “And so this is really a fulfillment of our task in Iowa law and kind of our rules of an organization to help people better connect with their past.”

October is Family History Month. “This is a great month to think about family history and what better place to learn about your family’s history than to come to the State Historical Society and look up marriage records, birth records, probate records, all these records that we have available within our institution,” Jahn says. He says the online catalog is easy to use. “Go to IowaCulture.Gov, and on the website there is a whole section dealing with history. And within that history section, there is a section call research. And if they click into that they can see more detail on our collection catalog,” he says.

Jahn says they hear from a lot of people doing research for projects or their personal information. “We average about 18-19-thousand questions a year. It’s gone up actually a little bit since the pandemic,” Jahn says. The project aligns with the department’s ongoing efforts to increase access to historical research materials, both online and at the State Historical Society of Iowa Research Centers in Des Moines and Iowa City. The society recently expanded visiting hours at both research centers to 9 a-m until noon and 1-4 p-m Wednesday through Friday by appointment.