STORM LAKE, Iowa (AP) — Authorities say a man and child died after the vehicle there were in broke through lake ice in northwest Iowa. The Buena Vista County Sheriff’s Office says deputies and other first responders were sent to Storm Lake a little before 6 p.m. Sunday after receiving a report about the vehicle. The emergency workers went onto the ice, found the man and three small children and took them to shore.

The sheriff’s office says the man and one of the children were pronounced dead later at a hospital. The two other children were flown to a Sioux Falls, South Dakota, hospital. The names of those involved and details about their being on the ice have not been released.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Omaha is planning a pilot project for electric scooters that would be available for rental. The city is seeking proposals from companies interested in participating in the test, which will run from late March until mid-November. The scooters would be dockless — no permanent home — so they could be left anywhere. The scooters would have GPS devices so users can see where they are and the companies that own them can find them and retrieve them to be charged for more use.

The scooters likely would be barred from sidewalks and major thoroughfares with far higher speed limits than the scooters can scoot: about 15 mph. A company app lets people access the scooters. The rental cost can vary from city to city, but generally $1 to start the scooter and 15 cents per minute of use.

Sheriff’s deputies in Page County, Sunday, arrested 30-year old Nathan Andrew Wilcoxson, of Clarinda. He was taken into custody at his home, following the execution of a search warrant by the Clarinda Police Department that Sheriff’s deputies assisted with. Wilcoxson was charged with two counts of Theft in the 2nd degree, Conspiracy to commit burglary, and Trespass. Clarinda Police Department also has several charges on Wilcoxson.

Nathan Wilcoxson

During the search warrant, numerous items were recovered that had allegedly been stolen from a structure in rural Page County. The Items had previously been reported stolen by the owner on January 5, 2019. The Sheriff’s Office has been actively investigating the case since it was reported. The owner was contacted and identified the items that were seized. Wilcoxson remains in the Page County Jail on $5000.00 cash only bond as set by a Magistrate.

(Radio Iowa) — Some Iowa credit unions and banks are offering special loans and payments plans to help those affected by the partial federal government shutdown. About 27-hundred Iowans work for departments that have lost their funding. First Federal Credit Union C-E-O Tom Chalstrom says the program is aimed at them. “Anybody impacted by the furlough can obtain up to a five-thousand dollar ($5,000) unsecured loan, that’s interest free, no interest, during the course of the furlough. And no one knows how long that is,” Chalstrom says.

He says the loan provisions are linked to the shutdown. “We won’t start applying interest to the loan until the day they get paid,” he explains.  First Federal operates in the Cedar Rapids area and Chalstrom says they will also work with farmers on an individual basis, if they’re missing out on farm loan or tariff relief payments. “We’ll work with anybody that’s impacted by the furlough on an individual basis,” according toe Chalstrom. “It is targeted towards government employees per se, but somebody that would come to us in that situation, absolutely we would look at it.”

The University of Iowa Community Credit Union and Veridian are also offering special loans or grace periods. Bank Iowa, the People’s Bank and First Citizens Bank also say they’ll work out individualized plans for federal employees.

The Shelby County Sheriff’s office reports three arrests took place from Jan. 13th through the 17th. Last Thursday, Deputies arrested at a residence in Elk Horn, 53-year-old Rosemary Ann Yoder, of Omaha, on an outstanding warrant for failure to appear in Shelby County District Court. Yoder was also charged with violation of no contact order and possession of drug paraphernalia. She was transported to Shelby County Jail and after initial appearance, was being held in the jail under a $1,200 cash/surety bond.

On Jan. 15th, authorities with the Department of Public Safety Commercial Motor Vehicle Division arrested 38-year-old Anthony Lee Nielsen, of Council Bluffs, as a result of a traffic stop. Nielsen was arrested for a driving a commercial vehicle under a suspended license in the State of Iowa. He was transported to the Shelby County Jail without incident and was released shortly thereafter by posting a cash bond. He was subsequently given a future court date.

And, on Jan. 13th, Harlan Police and Shelby County Deputies arrested 38-year-old Joshua Lynn Mauseth, of Omaha, on an outstanding warrant out of Kansas. Mauseth was transported to Shelby County Jail without local charges and held pending an extradition waiver hearing. He was then transferred into custody of the Cloud County Kansas Sheriff’s Department.

Audubon Police Chief Matt Starmer reports two arrests took place last Thursday. On Thursday, and again on Saturday,40-year old Joshua Robert Saunders, of Audubon, was arrested for Violation of No Contact Order.  Both times Saunders was arrested and appeared before a magistrate. And, 33-year old Jamie Carine Christiansen, of Audubon, was arrested Thursday, for Violation of No Contact Order.  Christiansen made an appearance before a magistrate.

The Mills County Sheriff’s Office reports four arrests over the past few days. Early Sunday morning, 37-year old Brandy Lynn Blamble, of Bellevue, NE., was arrested for OWI/1st offense. At around 9:20-p.m. Sunday, 22-year old Chase Donald Walseth, of Marshall, MO., was arrested following a traffic stop on I-29. Walseth was charged with Possession of a Controlled Substance and Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. At around 5:20-a.m. Saturday, 35-year old John Anthony Love, of Pacific Junction, was arrested for OWI/1st offense. And, at around 12:20-a.m. Friday, 30-year old Joshua Arthur Rhodes, of Council Bluffs, was arrested following a traffic stop on I-29. He was charged with OWI/1st offense, two counts of Child Endangerment, and Assault causing bodily injury. Bond was set at $9,000.

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

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ADEL, Iowa (AP) — A former Iowa school district official has been given three years of probation for embezzling nearly $217,000 over the course of several years. Dallas County District Court records show 35-year-old Melissa Lantz was given a 10-year suspended prison sentence during a hearing Friday in Adel. The judge also ordered her to pay restitution and perform community service. Lantz had pleaded guilty to theft from Woodward-Granger Community School District. She was hired in 2012, assigned to payroll duties and eventually became business manager.

Her arrest followed a state audit that identified improper and unsupported disbursements by the district over five years, including 101 checks that Lantz issued to herself on top of her authorized paychecks. The district serves around 1,000 students about 20 miles northwest of Des Moines.

The Iowa State Patrol was investigating a serious injury accident this (Monday) morning, north of Cumberland. Rescue crews from Cumberland and Massena, along with Medivac ambulance were dispatched to the scene on a bridge 690th Street (County Road N-28), just south of Oxford Road (County Road G-43), at 7:40-a.m. One person, a female, was injured. The “Jaws of Life” was used to extract her from the vehicle. LifeNet transported the victim to the UNMC in Omaha. The accident remained under investigation, and no other details are currently available.