United Bank Of Iowa at Moville Is Robbed
(Moville) — Woodbury County authorities are searching for a suspect who robbed the United Bank of Iowa at Moville during the noon lunch hour on Friday. Authorities say the white male subject came into the bank, demanded to get money, then fled. Woodbury County Sheriff Dave Drew says no weapon was displayed. The suspect is described as being 6 foot tall, between 40 and 50 years of age, wearing a blue shirt and tan cargo pants. The suspect fled in a black car which is being described as a BMW stolen from Polk County with an Iowa license plates DDJ-097. No injuries were reported in the robbery.
photo courtesy of KMEG-TV.
Iowa Lawmakers Pass Infrastructure Sabotage Bill
(Des Moines) — The Iowa legislature passed a bill this week that would make it a felony crime if people sabotage public utilities, gas lines, highways and bridges, and other infrastructure systems. Le Mars Republican House
Representative Chuck Holz says the bill easily passed through the Iowa House.
Holz says one reason the state lawmakers decided on a substantial penalty is because any sabotage actions would adversely affect hundreds, if not, thousands
of people. Holz says the bill also takes into account any sabotage actions on the internet, and computer servers.
The bill also covers wastewater treatment facilities, water supply treatment, storage, collection, or delivery systems. It also covers any land, building, conveyance or other structure publicly or privately owned that contains, or is connected to any critical infrastructure system. The Iowa House approved the bill on a 69 to 31 vote.
Iowa Agriculture Secretary Visits Marcus Ethanol Facilities
(Marcus) — Newly appointed Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig visited with the Board of Directors and staff of the Little Sioux Corn Processing facility at Marcus on Thursday afternoon. Naig says the focal point was the Renewable Fuels Standard.
Naig says he hopes the state legislature considers offering incentives for fuel marketers to have blend credits, allowing convenience stores in smaller towns the opportunity to install E-15 ethanol fuel pumps.
Following the meeting, Naig was led on a tour of the Little Sioux Corn Processing facility by General Manager Steve Roe. Naig learned that the Little Sioux Corn Processing ethanol plant has expanded from originally processing about 60 million gallons of ethanol on a yearly basis, to now it is capable of making over 130 million gallons of ethanol. Little Sioux Corn Processing officials say the plant has more than a thousand trucks dumping corn each week, which adds up to more than a million bushels of corn being processed through the Marcus facility.
Farmers Intend To Plant More Soybeans Than Corn
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Corn has been dethroned as the king of crops as farmers report they intend to plant more soybeans than corn for the first time in 35 years.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture says in its annual prospective
planting report released Thursday that farmers intend to plant 89 million acres in soybeans and 88 million acres in corn.
The primary reason is profitability. Corn costs much more to plant because of required demands for pest and disease control and fertilizer. When the profitability of both crops is close, farmers bet on soybeans for a better return.
Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig doesn’t believe the intended reduction of corn acres will mean much of a shortage of corn for end users, such as livestock producers and ethanol plants.
The only year that soybean acres beat corn in recent memory was 1983, when the government pushed farmers to plant fewer acres to boost prices in the midst of the nation’s worst farm crisis.
Iowa is the top corn producing state, followed by Illinois, Nebraska and Minnesota. Top soybean states are Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota and North Dakota.
Judge Dismisses Lawsuit Against Branstad
IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) – A judge has dismissed a lawsuit brought by a fired Iowa investigator who complained he was punished for reporting speeding by Gov. Terry Branstad’s security detail. Judge David May on Friday dismissed several claims brought by former Division of Criminal Investigation Larry Hedlund. The ruling cancels a trial that had been scheduled for April 9 in the long-running case, which has made headlines for nearly five years.
Fugitive Arrested After 37 Years
PHOENIX (AP) – The wife of an Arizona man arrested because he walked away while serving an Iowa prison term 37 years ago says they thought he was in the clear legally.
Virginia Cagley says it was a shock when police arrived at the couple’s door in Prescott Valley because Charles “Chuck” Leroy Cagley began using his own name a decade ago after being told an arrest warrant had been dismissed.
The Prescott Valley Police Department says detectives arrested Cagley Tuesday on an active felony extraditable warrant after the FBI notified the department that Cagley lived in Prescott Valley.
Virginia Cagley said her husband got a 2006 letter from an Iowa prison warden that a warrant had been withdrawn.
The FBI and the Iowa Corrections Department didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.
Mega Millions Worth More Than $500 Million
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – A giant lottery jackpot has grown a bit bigger. The Mega Millions jackpot climbed from $502 million to $521 million ahead of Friday night’s drawing as more players bought tickets.It’s the nation’s 10th largest lottery jackpot. No one has matched all six numbers drawn since January.
It costs $2 to play the game and a willingness to ignore the fact that you’ll almost certainly lose. The odds of winning the jackpot are one in 302 million, though odds of winning smaller prizes are better.
The $521 million figure refers to the annuity option, in which payments are made over 29 years. The cash option would pay $317 million. Mega Millions is played in 44 states plus Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
