Authorities in Montgomery County report a man and a woman were arrested Wednesday afternoon on assault charges. 23-yearold Caleb Nathaniel Brown and 21-year old Bradina Sky Gary, both of Red Oak, were taken into custody at around 2-p.m., after officers with the Red Oak Police Department responded to a reported domestic situation in the 1800 block of East Summit Street.

An investigation determined Brown and Gary had allegedly assaulted each other. Both were subsequently charged with Domestic Abuse Assault, and brought to the Montgomery County Jail, where their bonds were set at $300 each.

A large boulder painted with a patriotic theme by Adair County artist Ray “Bubba” Sorensen II, of Greenfield, will be found in the Pottawattamie County city of Oakland, thanks to the efforts of a local coffee clatch. The Daily NonPareil reports a “Freedom Rock” for Pott. County was approved by the mayor and city council, after the Oakland Coffee Ladies – a six-member group – approached Mayor Michael O’Brien about bringing it to Oakland.

A Nebraska man convicted of killing a former western Iowa woman and her husband was sentenced Wednesday to two life terms in prison. The Daily NonPareil reports 34-year old Matthew Hinrichsen, of Ewing, NE, will serve two life sentences for murdering newlyweds Victoria Lee Vargas and her husband Alex, in December 2012. Victoria Vargas was a former Missouri Valley city councilwoman. Their murders took place in northeast Nebraska’s Antelope County.

Hinrichsen – who was convicted in Antelope County District Court in October 2013 – received a life sentence for each of two counts of first-degree murder, 25 to 30 years for one count of possessing a firearm while committing a felony and 40 to 50 years for one count of using a firearm to commit a felony. His sentences will be served consecutively.

The bodies of the couple he killed were discovered in a burned-out mobile home on Dec. 8th, 2012. The Nebraska Attorney General said autopsies showed Alex Vargas was shot three times in his midsection, while his wife suffered traumatic blunt force trauma to the head before their home was torched.

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press…

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Acclaimed opera singer Simon Estes joined forces with fine arts lobbyists to advocate for arts education. Estes, along with members of the Iowa Alliance for Arts Education, urged lawmakers to add fine arts to the Iowa Core Curriculum in a presentation Wednesday before the Senate Education Committee.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Governor Terry Branstad has appointed former U.S. Representative Leonard Boswell to the Iowa Department of Transportation Commission. Branstad announced the appointment yesterday. Boswell, a Democrat, will take over a seat vacated by former Democratic state Senator Tom Rielly, who resigned due to a professional conflict of interest.

MARENGO, Iowa (AP) — A former county treasurer in eastern Iowa has been accused of stealing more than $62,000 from the county over several years. The Iowa County Sheriff’s Office says Kimberly Tanke has been charged with felony first-degree theft in connection with missing funds. A private auditing firm and Iowa County officials say the money was taken between 2006 and 2010, when Tanke served as treasurer. They gave their findings to authorities, including the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation.

BOONE, Iowa (AP) — Boone police say autopsies are complete on the bodies of two people found dead in their home last week, but it’s still unclear how they died. KCCI-TV reports the Iowa State Medical Examiner’s report showed no apparent injury or trauma to the bodies of 47-year-old Lisa Kurth and 56-year-old David Morrison. They were found in a Boone home on Friday.

Iowa Governor Terry Branstad has appointed former Congressman Leonard Boswell to the state transportation commission. The governor announced he appointed Boswell to fill out the term of Tom Rielly, who resigned from the commission due to a business related conflict of interest. Boswell served in Congress from 1997 to 2013 and prior to that was a state legislator and a decorated veteran of the Army who served in Vietnam.

Boswell is a Democrat who has worked with the Republican governor recently on the initiative to recruit veterans to come and live in Iowa when they leave the military. Boswell’s appointment must be confirmed by the Iowa Senate and the term runs through April of 2017. The seven-member commission set transportation policy and state law requires the commission be balanced by gender and party affiliation.

(Radio Iowa)