Police in Red Oak, Wednesday evening, arrested a man wanted on a Mills County warrant. 33-year old Christopher Allen Lundgren, of Red Oak, was arrested at around 5:15-p.m. on the warrant charging him with Possession of Drug Paraphernalia. Lundgren was transported to the Mills County Jail, where his bond was set at $300.
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) — A 34-year-old Waterloo man who sent threatening tweets to U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst has been sentenced to six years in federal prison. Federal prosecutors say Joseph Hilton Dierks was sentenced Wednesday in Cedar Rapids’ federal courthouse. A judge noted at the sentencing Dierks’ criminal history, which included a prior conviction for harassing a Waterloo police officer and carrying weapons.
Prosecutors had said Dierks sent Ernst several threatening tweets in August, one which suggested he would shoot her and included a link to a 2010 movie in which a man shoots a woman in the head and kills her.
U.S. Capitol Police contacted the Waterloo police and officers sent to Dierks’ home say he promised to “tone it down.” Within 24 hours he was sending more threatening tweets to Ernst.
NEWELL, Iowa (AP) — Authorities say a Storm Lake man has died after the agricultural sprayer he was driving was hit by a train at a rural northwestern Iowa railroad crossing. The Sioux City Journal reports that the crash happened Wednesday morning, killing 33-year-old Kyle Drey. He was pronounced dead at the scene. Buena Vista County Sheriff Kory Elston says the crash happened about four miles northwest of Newell.
A preliminary investigation showed that Drey had been driving east in the sprayer and had turned north to cross the railroad tracks on 170th Avenue when he was struck by the eastbound CN Railroad train. The sprayer rolled into the ditch, and Drey was ejected. Elston says the crash is still being investigated.
The Audubon County Sheriff’s Department reports 37-year old Dylan Ron Drake, of Exira, was arrested June 7th on an arrest warrant for 2 charges of Sex Offender Registry violations. Drake was seen by the magistrate and is currently being held on a $5,000 bond. On June 9th, 31-year old Aaron Lee Ihnken, of Atlantic, was arrested in Audubon County for Operating While Intoxicated and Operating without Owner’s Consent. He was released following an appearance with the magistrate.
Last Sunday, 21-year old Melinda Kay See was arrested on an outstanding warrant from Pottawattamie County. She was held in the Audubon County Jail until she was transferred to the Pottawattamie County Jail.
33-year old David Lee Nelson, of Exira, was arrested Monday for 2 counts of Reckless Use of Firearm, 2 counts of Intimidation with a Dangerous Weapon and 10 counts of Shooting over water, highway or railroad. He posted a cash bond and was released. That same day, 48-year old Heather Lynn Lund, of Exira, was arrested for Interference with Official Acts, 2 counts of accessory to a misdemeanor and 2 counts of accessory to a felony. She posted a cash bond and was released.
And, 21-year old Andrew Malloy, of Audubon, was arrested Tuesday on two outstanding warrants for violation of probation. He appeared before the magistrate and is currently being held on a $20,000 bond.
IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Authorities have launched another investigation into the suspected misuse of public money by an employee at an Iowa soil and water conservation district. The latest case involves the Jasper County district in Newton. A spokesman for the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship tells The Associated Press the agency was notified May 25 about concerns involving a district employee’s use of funding, which were discovered during an audit of the district’s financial records. State Auditor Mary Mosiman and law enforcement officials are now looking into the case.
A similar audit and criminal investigation have been going on for months into an employee who allegedly misused funds while working as an assistant in the soil districts based in Black Hawk and Bremer counties.
A 2014 audit found that an employee in the Mahaska County district embezzled $280,000.
DES MOINES – Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig reported today (Wednesday), that many strawberry growers across the state are now reaching the peak season for many varieties of this delicious crop. Naig encouraged Iowans to visit a local strawberry grower or shop for strawberries at one of Iowa’s many farmers markets. Strawberries go from bloom to fruit in about 30 days and are best eaten within a few days of being picked. Strawberry harvest season only lasts about 4 weeks in Iowa and harvest times vary across the state. Most strawberry growers in the state offer pre-picked and u-pick options at their farms.
“Locally grown, fresh strawberries are a delicious and versatile treat that can be eaten alone or enjoyed as an addition to many recipes. They’re a great crop to kick-off the growing season of purchasing and consuming fresh, Iowa grown fruits and vegetables,” Naig said. As a favorite fruit among many Iowans, strawberries are low in calories and fat-free. One cup of unsweetened strawberries only has 55 calories. Strawberries are also a good source of vitamin C, folic acid, potassium, and fiber.
A family trip to the strawberry patch is a great way to support a local farmer and make memories that will last a lifetime. If visiting a strawberry patch, be sure to call or check the website for their harvest information. Many growers also offer other fruits and vegetables for sale to consumers. You can find strawberry growers by visiting the Fruit and Vegetable Farms Directory at https://www.idalsdata.org/fmnp/index.cfm or on the Iowa Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association “farm search” page at http://www.ifvga.org/en/about_us/farm_search/.
Police in Council Bluffs have identified the body of a man who was found near the riverbank just north of the Ameristar Casino, Saturday afternoon. Authorities say he was 22-year old Abdilatif B. Abdi, of Omaha. At this time, cause of death is still under investigation.
Officers were called to the scene at around 3:30-p.m., Saturday. Upon arrival, the Council Bluffs Fire Department located Abdi deceased in the river and brought him to shore.
MORNING SUN, Iowa (AP) — The remains of a World War II soldier have been identified and are being sent home to Iowa for burial. The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency said Wednesday that the remains of U.S. Army Pfc. John Walker will be buried June 20 in his hometown of Morning Sun. The agency says Walker was reported missing on Nov. 24, 1944, after his 1st Infantry Division unit battled Germans near Schönthal, Germany. He was declared deceased in November 1945.
The agency says a German resident found remains in the area in November 1948. They eventually were interred at the Ardennes American Cemetery in Neuville, France. Follow-up research that began in 2016 led to the remains being exhumed, and subsequent DNA and other testing confirmed the remains were those of Walker.
Two woman upset with each other pulled into a Co-Op parking lot in Union County, Tuesday afternoon. The Union County Sheriff’s Office said both driver’s were possibly driving too fast at the time. 22-year old Cheyenne Lindsey White, of St. Joseph, MO., was driving a 2004 Chevy Impala. When she realized the lot was a dead-end, she tried to turn around, and in doing so collided with a 1991 Ford Ranger, driven by 19-year old Mackenzie McKinney, of Afton, as McKinney was still going straight ahead. The accident happened at around 1:30-p.m. Damage from the collision amounted to $6,000. Authorities said McKinney was operating her vehicle in a “Reckless, erratic, careless, negligent manner, but no citations were issued. There were also no injuries reported.
An eastern Iowa school district is re-examining its policies after letting a convicted sex offender volunteer there. Mid-Prairie School Board officials say they’re on track to have new rules for volunteers in place this August. Ryan Schlabaugh co-chairs the committee that’s drafting the new policy for the district. He says the 30-member group doesn’t want to rush the process. “The goal is to get it right,” Schlabaugh says. “We can…rush this thing through and have a document and put it in front of the school board very quickly, but it’s not going to be a document that’s been vetted.”
The district has schools in Wellman, Kalona and West Chester. The team working on the new rules is comprised of teachers, law enforcement, elected officials and lawyers. Schlabaugh says other school systems are watching this process. “As we move forward and implement a policy here in August and September, that’s going to be looked at by attorneys and other administrators as to how can that be implemented into our school district to better protect our students, in any district in Iowa.”
Trent Yoder was removed from the state’s sex offender list in 2008 and began volunteering in the Mid-Prairie district in 2015. Though school officials knew his background, it wasn’t made public until April in reports by the Des Moines Register. School board officials say the rules are on track for a final vote on August 27th, two days after the fall semester starts.
(Radio Iowa)
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