Des Moines, Iowa – Officials with the Iowa Insurance Division report a Sioux City woman, 28-year old Ashley Oakley, pled guilty Monday in Woodbury County District Court, to one Felony count of Insurance Fraud – Fraudulent Submissions to an Insurer (a Class D Felony). Her plea followed an investigation by the Iowa Insurance Division’s Fraud Bureau. Oakley received a Deferred Judgment, was given credit for previous time served, and will be placed on probation for two years. Oakley was assessed a $750.00 fine, and ordered to pay $4,422.21 in restitution. Oakley’s conviction stemmed from an investigation which began in April of 2018.

Ashley Oakley

The investigation uncovered that after being involved in a motor vehicle accident in Sioux City, Oakley’s vehicle was determined to be a total loss by her insurance company. During the insurance claim process, Oakley intentionally provided false information to her insurance company indicating that her vehicle loan was paid in full, when in fact a promissory note with a balance of over $8,000 remained. As a result of Oakley’s fraudulent scheme, she received insurance benefits in the amount of $4,422.21 to which she was not entitled and intentionally defaulted on the remaining promissory note balance.

Iowans with information about insurance fraud are encouraged to contact the Iowa Insurance Division’s Fraud Bureau at 515-242-5304.

Police in Creston report a the driver of an SUV and a 12-year old girl were injured during a collision Friday morning. Authorities say Mercedez Quinn, of Creston, was a passenger in a 2005 Chevy Equinox driven by 19-year old Mia Maxwell, of Creston. According to the report, the SUV was facing east on Townline Road, stopped in traffic at around 7:25-a.m., and waiting to turn into the Creston High School parking lot, when the vehicle was struck from behind by a 2002 Toyota Tundra. The Tundra was driven by 15-year old Luke Tebbenkamp, of Creston. The teen told police he didn’t see the SUV due to glare from the sun.

Quinn and Maxwell were transported by Union County Medics to the Greater Regional Medical Center, in Creston, for treatment of undisclosed injuries. Damage from the collision amounted to $6,000.

A judge today (Tuesday) sentenced 34-year old Toby McCunn, of Red Oak, to life in prison, without the possibility of parole, for a fatal shooting that took place in Shenandoah on April 22nd. Judge Jeffrey Larson also ordered McCunn to pay restitution in the amount of $150,000 to the family of the victim, 33-year old Joshua Jordan. McCunn was found guilty of 1st Degree Murder last month.

COUNCIL BLUFFS, Iowa — The Iowa Dept. of Natural Resources reports that at around 7:30-p.m. Sunday, a collision occurred on Lake Manawa, between a boat and a personal watercraft (PWC). Both were leaving a 5 mph zone and gaining speed, going in the same direction, when the PWC made an abrupt right turn and collided with the front of the boat, according to witnesses. The PWC was driven by 20-year old Olum Sandel, of Offutt Air Force Base, and the boat was operated by 23-year old Rodney Smith, of Plattsmouth, Neb.

Smith was take to the Pottawattamie County Jail and charged with Boating While Intoxicated, first offense. Sandel was taken by the Council Bluffs Fire and Rescue to UNMC in Omaha where he is being treated for injuries sustained during the crash. The crash is under investigation by the Iowa DNR Law Enforcement Bureau, and was assisted by the DNR Parks Bureau and the Iowa State Patrol during the initial investigation.

ALLISON, Iowa (AP) — A man has been give five years of probation for the deaths of his 41-year-old brother and another man who were riding in his pickup truck when it crashed in north-central Iowa. The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier reports that 47-year-old Matthew DeWitt was sentenced Monday to 10 years in prison, suspended, and ordered to pay $150,000 in restitution. He’d pleaded guilty to vehicular homicide-reckless driving. Prosecutors had reduced his charges in exchange.

Authorities say DeWitt’s blood showed the presence of alcohol and marijuana after the Oct. 27, 2016, crash near Clarksville. DeWitt was towing a trailer when his pickup veered off the roadway and hit a culvert. His brother, 41-year-old Jeffrey Joe DeWitt, of Shell Rock, and 28-year-old Andrew John Baker, of Waverly, were killed. Matthew DeWitt also was injured.

AMES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa State is exploring construction of a multi-use “arts, culture and community district’ between Hilton Coliseum and Jack Trice Stadium. The school announced the plan Tuesday, saying athletic director Jamie Pollard and Iowa State Research Park President Rick Sanders will lead a feasibility study on the area, which is mostly a series of parking lots.

Iowa State President Wendy Wintersteen transferred oversight of the Iowa State Center, a series of buildings near the basketball coliseum and the football stadium, to the athletic department. The proposed plan would also look into relocating commuter and football game day parking to a new parking area east of the stadium.

DECORAH, Iowa (AP) — A man has been accused of using an ax to kill two dogs belonging to a relative in northeast Iowa. Winneshiek County court records say 21-year-old Douglas Usgaard is charged with two counts of animal torture. The records say Usgaard killed a 14-year-old labradoodle and a 13-year-old Shi Tzu-bichon mix on Saturday at a Decorah home where he was living with family members. The records also show he’s pleaded not guilty and is awaiting a trial in November on a theft charge.