Weather Warning Sirens Tested For Last Time This Season
(Le Mars) — At 1:00 p.m. Monday afternoon, the city of Le Mars, under the direction of the Le Mars Fire and Rescue Department, activated the city’s eight weather warning sirens. Assistant Fire Chief Mike Wise says all eight warning sirens were working properly during the city-wide testing. Wise says the sirens won’t be tested again until next March of 2020.
Sioux City Man Sentenced To 10 Years For Killing Roommate
SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) – A man has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for fatally stabbing his roommate in Sioux City.
Woodbury County District Court records show 39-year-old Elmi Said was sentenced Friday. He’d been charged with second-degree murder for the Oct. 28, 2018, slaying of 40-year-old Guled Nur. The jury convicted him of a lesser charge: voluntary manslaughter.
Prosecutors say Said stabbed and kicked Nur after an altercation broke out at their apartment.
Said is also known as Abdiqadar Sharif.
Ogden Loses Town’s Only Grocery Store To Fire
OGDEN, Iowa (AP) – A fire has destroyed the only grocery store in the central Iowa community of Ogden.
The fire began after one of the owners closed Ogden Mart for the night on Saturday. The rubble continued to smolder Sunday as hot spots persisted.
Fire officials say no one was injured and say the cause is still being investigated.
The nearest grocery store is in Boone, about 10 miles (16.1 kilometers) away.
Reynolds Appoints Corrections Committee
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds has named 14 officials to a committee she’s created that will make recommendations for removing racial bias from the Iowa criminal justice system and help reduce recidivism among former offenders.
Reynolds says the group’s recommendations will form the foundation of a package of legislative proposals aimed at advancing her second chance initiative which will include her continued push for a constitutional amendment that grants felons the right to vote.
The committee is chaired by Lt. Gov. Adam Gregg and includes leaders from departments of corrections, public safety, the law enforcement academy, the parole board and state public defender’s office.
She’s also included on the committee a county sheriff, a police chief, a county attorney and leaders of the NAACP, a Latino affairs group and a crime victim lawyer from the Iowa attorney general’s office.
The first meeting will be Thursday.
Davenport Man Accused Of Sexual Abuse Has Accepted A Plea Agreement
DAVENPORT, Iowa (AP) – A man accused of sex abuse and sexual exploitation while supervising a care program in Davenport has taken a plea deal.
Scott County District Court records say 63-year-old Bruce Enger pleaded guilty Thursday to sexual exploitation by a counselor or therapist. Two counts of sexual abuse will be dismissed in return for his plea. Enger’s sentencing is scheduled for Dec. 20.
The records say the person involved has been a client of REM Iowa for six years. REM Iowa serves adults and children with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Enger’s responsibilities including supervising the residence in which the person lived.
Marion Man Sent To Prison For Home Association Fraud Scheme
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) – A Marion man has been imprisoned for defrauding a homeowners association out of nearly $125,000.
The Gazette reports that 55-year-old Wayne Jones Jr. was given 18 months at his sentencing Thursday in U.S. District Court in Cedar Rapids.
He’d pleaded guilty to wire fraud.
Prosecutors say that while Jones was treasurer of Pheasant Ridge
Homeowners Association in Marion from November 2011 through August 2016, he funneled the money from the association’s account to another account that he used for personal expenses.
Prosecutors also say Jones admitted setting up fraudulent treasurer reports each year so he could hide his crime.
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Des Moines Police Make An Arrest For Murder And Robbery Suspect
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) – Another suspect has been arrested in the fatal shooting of man in north Des Moines.
Police say 20-year-old Calvonta Stallings was arrested Sunday after a robbery in Davenport. The Polk County charges include first-degree murder and robbery in the slaying of 23-year-old Rashid Ibrahim. Ibrahim was found by officers sent to investigate reports of a shooting. He was pronounced dead at a hospital.
Polk County court records don’t list the name of an attorney who could comment for Stallings, who lives in Des Moines. Stallings is the fifth person arrested in connection with Oct. 10 shooting of Ibrahim.
Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation Purchases Former State 4-H Campgrounds
(Des Moines) — The Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation plans to buy “Clover Woods” near Madrid — which used to be known as the Iowa 4-H Camp. Joe Jayjack, a spokesman for the foundation, says the goal is to ensure the area is preserved for public use.
The Clover Woods Camp and Retreat Center covers just over one-thousand acres. The purchase price won’t be disclosed
until the sale is final in December, but Jayjack says the Natural Heritage Foundation will pay the Iowa 4-H- Foundation a “significant” amount.
4-H clubs throughout the state started raising money in the 1940s to establish a centrally-located camping center and it opened in 1952. Jayjack says one option may be to convert all or part of the site into a state park, but the first goal will be to assess what’s there. The age of the cabins vary widely, for instance, from fairly new to very old.
Clover Woods sits along the Des Moines River and Jayjack says its wetlands as well as prairie spaces are important filters that contribute to water quality.
Jayjack says the Natural Heritage Foundation wanted to ensure those sites were preserved. The Iowa 4-H Foundation put Clover Woods up for sale in September and divided the camp into 12 parcels. The Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation made an offer on the entire property and foundation officials say they came to an agreement late last week with the 4-H board.
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