ROBBERY UPDATE
Le Mars Police have a suspect in custody in the case of an armed robbery Sunday morning.
Police say a juvenile male, age 16, was arrested Sunday afternoon. He was charged with 1st degree Robbery, Assault Displaying a Weapon, Interference with a 911 call for help, False Imprisonment, and 5th degree Theft.
Police say the suspect entered the Brew Coffee Shop on Plymouth St SW, and displayed a handgun to employees. The suspect cut the pone lines, threatened employees, and stole money, liquor and personal items from them. He left the scene on foot. Police tracked the suspect with the aid of security video shared by nearby homes and businesses. Several tips from the community led police to a residence at 108 3rd Ave NW The suspect was taken into custody at that address. Stolen items and a replica handgun used in the robbery were recovered. Le Mars Police were assisted by the Plymouth County Sheriffs Office, the Iowa State Patrol, and community members who reviewed their security camera footage.to track the suspect.
TRAFFICKING PRESENTATION
A Le Mars Police community presentation takes place tonight. Trafficking: Perception vs Reality is at 6 pm at the Wells Visitors Center and Ice Cream Parlor. Participating agencies include the Siouxland Coalition Against Human Trafficking, The Plymouth County Attorney’s Office, Safe Place, and CAASA, the Centers against abuse and Sexual Assault. Topics during this two-hour event include: online safety; protecting our youth; trafficking defined and indicators; and what to do if you are a victim.
DOG IMPORTATION
It’s said a dog is man’s best friend, but a dog can also be a family’s worst enemy if they’re adopting an animal and don’t know about its origins and full medical history.
Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley says he’s introducing a bill called the Healthy Dog Importation Act which aims to keep a closer eye on the million-plus dogs that are brought into the U-S every year.
Grassley says this kind of vigilance on biosecurity is important to maintain for Iowa’s livestock producers, and it’s equally important for potential pet owners.
He says more needs to be done at the federal level to shield our country’s residents from an array of infectious diseases that can be transmitted to people by canines.
The C-D-C has released a list of dozens of countries that are considered “high risk” for the importing of dogs.
STREET CLOSING
The Le Mars Street Dept. says Well’s South Ice Cream Plant will temporarily shut down part 18th St. S.W. between 6th Ave. S.W. and 12th Ave. S.W. Tuesday, February 28th, 2023, between 7:30 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. They will be installing another new crane rail in the freezer which requires them to pull it across 18th St. S.W. and to line it up to slide into the freezer . There will be detour signs set up during the hours listed.
WATERMAIN BREAK
A watermain break occurred last night in the area of 120 Plymouth St SW in Le Mars. The Le Mars Water Department says repairs are now complete. Property owners in the area of the break are advised that they may experience discolored water up to a day after repairs are made.
AEA BUILDING SOLD
Northwest Area Education Agency has sold its Sioux Center regional office building. The AEA board, meeting last week, gave approval to the sale of their building, located in the Sioux Center industrial park, to Northwest Iowa Community College. The purchase price was 1.9 million dollars. As part of the sale, NCC will lease back to the AEA 1-thousand square feet of office space within the building. Northwest Area Education Agency also has regional offices in Le Mars, Cherokee, Denison and Onawa. They are based in Sioux City.
SERGEANT BLUFF SHOOTING
The Woodbury County Sheriff released more information Sunday on a shooting in Sergeant Bluff Friday evening. Sheriff Chad Sheehan says it appears 43-year-old Raymond Rogers shot his estranged wife and the man she was living with, and then shot himself. Deputies who responded to a shots fired call looked through a window and saw Rogers on the floor.
The 50-year-old man, Gerele Jones died, and the woman, 40-year-old Ashley Rogers was taken to the hospital. Raymond Rogers is hospitalized in critical condition. Sheriff Sheehan credited the boy with calling deputies in the midst of the shooting.
He says the boy is the son of Jones, who was killed.
Sheehan says it is fair to term the case as a murder and attempted suicide — though the investigation has not been completed.
CROPS AND SOLAR PANELS
Iowa State University researchers are studying an emerging field called agrivoltaics, the practice of farming on land where solar power is being generated. Matt O’Neal, an I-S-U professor of plant pathology, entomology and microbiology, says the team will be planting a variety of fruits and vegetables literally in the shadow of an array of solar panels at a planned site south of Ames. I-S-U has won a four-year, one-point-eight million dollar grant from the U-S Department of Energy to conduct the research in the non-traditional farm setting. Agrivoltaics holds much promise, O’Neal says, as there’s an increasing amount of prime farmland that’s -not- being used for farming because it has solar panels planted instead.
DIVORCE DECREES
A bill eligible for debate in the Iowa Senate would prohibit judges from requiring a divorcing parent to cover some of the costs of their child’s college education. Senator Scott Webster of Bettendorf says the bill would prevent one parent from weaponizing the subsidy against a parent who can’t afford to pay for college. An Iowa judge currently has the option of ordering a parent getting a divorce to pay up to one-third of the total cost of their child’s undergraduate education. The bill cleared a Senate committee last week. A Democrat who voted against it said college-educated adults, on average, earn more over a life time and have a greater degree of marriage stability. Senator Webster, the Republican from Bettendorf, said that’s disrespectful to people like him and his wife who do not have college degrees.
