(Radio Iowa) – Ankeny-based Casey’s convenience stores reports the end of pandemic shutdowns has had a big impact on the company’s bottom line. C-E-O Darren Rebelez talked about the first-quarter results today (Wednesday) in a conference call. “Sales volume and margin improved dramatically as guest traffic began to rebound — driving an all-time high gross profit for the company,” Rebelez says.  Chief financial officer Steve Bramlage filled in more of the details. “Casey’s had gross profit of 723-point-nine million dollars in the first quarter. That’s an increase of over 100 million dollars in the prior year. This represent the highest gross profit in Casey’s history,” Bramlage says.

He says the increases came as more people visited the convenience stores. “It is primarily attributable to higher inside gross profit of 66-point-three million dollars — or nearly 17 percent. As well as an increase of 24-point-four millions dollars — or 11 percent — of fuel gross profit,” according to Bramlage.  He says the fuel profits included a higher than normal sale of 19 million dollars in renewable fuel credits. Gas sales increased nine percent — and he says the company took advantage of higher gas prices to make 35 cents on each gallon sold. The company also had an increase in the number of stores in the mix as they completed the Buchanan Energy and Circle K store acquisitions.

Rebelez says alcohol sales that had soared during the pandemic dropped back down. “Although alcohol sales have moderated and were about flat versus pandemic buying the prior year — we still achieved a 20-point-two percent two-year stack growth,” Rebelez says.  Casey’s had two-thousand-380 stores at the end of the first quarter on July 31st.

(Radio Iowa) – An eastern Iowa man has been sentenced to more than three years in prison for rigging up an explosive device that was found by a child before it went off. Information released when 46-year-old Aaron Hinke was arrested a year ago indicates he set up the device near a shed on a neighbor’s property in La Motte — and Hinke sent text messages about it to the homeowner. The U.S. Department of Justice describes the device as a cigarette, a firework, and a long fuse taped to a small container with gasoline and oil mixed inside. It was diffused by officials from the State Fire Marshal’s Office after the homeowner’s five-year-old child found it in the yard.

Hinke was living in La Motte at the time of his arrest in September of last year. The U.S. Justice Department now lists his address as Bellevue.

The Mills County Sheriff’s Office reports two arrests. On Tuesday, Sept. 7th, 33-year-old James Thomas Hume, of Sidney (IA) was arrested at the Pottawattamie County Jail on a Mills County warrant for Probation Violation. Hume was being held on a $5,000 bond. And, on Aug. 31st, 33-year-old Stephen Richard August Begbie, of Glenwood, was arrested for Failure to Appear on a Driving While Revoked charge. His bond was set at $10,000.

Sheriff’s officials said also, no injuries were reported following an accident Tuesday afternoon. Authorities say at around 4-p.m., a 2007 Freightliner semi pulling a side dump rock trailer, was stopped at the intersection of 195th Street and Bunge Avenue. The driver, 23-year-old Dylan Wood, of Omaha, attempted to back up, to allow another semi to make the wide turn onto 195th. Wood failed to notice a 2014 Ford Focus driven by 23-year-old Stephanie Rhodd, of Pacific Junction, was behind him, and backed into the vehicle. The car sustained extensive front end damage to the hood and bumper. There was no visible damage to the semi. Both vehicles were driven away from the scene.

No citations were issued.

A man from Villisca and a man from Red Oak were arrested on separate, felony drug charges this week. Today (Wednesday), Montgomery County Sheriff’s Deputies executed a search warrant at a residence in the 600 block of E. Grimes Street, in Red Oak. As a result of the search, deputies arrested 38-year-old Stephen Ray Adams, of Red Oak, on three Class-C felony counts for Delivery of Methamphetamine. Adams was being held without bond in the Montgomery County Jail.

A search warrant executed Tuesday on the 600 block of S. 5th Street, in Villisca, resulted in the arrested of 26-year-old Jeffrey Steven Whitt, of Villisca. He faces Class-D felony charges for three counts delivery of marijuana and one count of possession with the intent to deliver, marijuana. Bond was set at $5,000.

COUNCIL BLUFFS — Rep. Cindy Axne (IA-03) is raising significant concerns over unnecessary delays of critical levee repairs along the Missouri River, repairs that would help protect Iowans in the southwest corner of the state that she represents in Congress. Her office says in a letter sent today (Wednesday) to Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland and key officials at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Axne raised concerns about delays in repairs to the Coulthard Levee, which runs through the DeSoto National Wildlife Refuge in Harrison County.

Repairs to the Coulthard Levee have faced obstacles from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, causing delays that – if not completed by next spring – could devastate homes, businesses, and acres of farmland south of the Levee in Harrison and Pottawattamie Counties. Axne’s letter said “We cannot allow bureaucratic red tape to stand in the way of Iowans protecting their communities from future flooding Two and a half years since the flooding along the Missouri River, Iowans are still rebuilding and working to protect their communities from future devastation and I’m greatly concerned about the delays with the Coulthard Levee in Southwest Iowa.”

Rep. Axne requested the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service work promptly with the Coulthard Levee District to allow the levee to be repaired. Axne also highlighted that the levee district has received a grant from the State of Iowa to help fund the repairs which expires at the end of this year. Last year, Axne introduced bipartisan legislation to provide the Army Corps with new authority to cut through red tape and provide federal funds for levees in repeated flooding communities such as Hamburg. That legislation was adapted within the Water Resources Development Act of 2020 to successfully give new authority to the Army Corps of Engineers in order for them to address the needs of communities facing repeated flooding events.

(Greenfield, Iowa) – The Adair County Board of Supervisors, Wednesday (Today), discussed possible, proposed changes to mental health services. Supervisor John Twombly said he’s learned through an e-mail from the State distributed through ISAC (the Iowa State Association of Counties), there’s a 99% likelihood the State will act to combine the various mental health regions, so Adair County has voluntarily started to hold meetings with the far Southwest Region (Southwest Iowa MHDS, which covers 9 counties and is based in Council Bluffs), because it appears the realignment will be based on total population, and the County doesn’t want to be told where residents will have to go for those services…officials want a choice.

With regard to who pays for mental health services, effective July 1, 2022, there will be no more levy for services. A meeting is set for next week in Des Moines, to discuss the State’s role.

Lori Nosekabel, CEO for Southern Hills Regional Mental Health that serves the counties of Adair, Adams, Taylor and Union, is expected to attend. Supervisor Board Chair Steve Shelley said there likely isn’t anything the County could do if it was forced to merge into specific mental health service regions.

In other business, the Adair County Board of Supervisors were informed by Auditor Mandy Berg, her office would be closed for Election Training, all-day Sept. 22^nd.

Since the training is being held on a regular Supervisor’s meeting date, the Board approved holding their regular meeting on Thursday, Sept. 23^rd, instead of the 22^nd.

Des Moines – The Iowa Department of Corrections reports John Miles Wright, who was convicted of Robbery 2nd Degree in Polk County, failed to report to work from the Fort Des Moines Facility as required, Tuesday. Wright is a 33-year-old white male, height  5′ 10″, and weighs 245 pounds. He was admitted to the work release facility on 7/6/2021.  Persons with information on Wright’s whereabouts should contact local police.

John Miles Wright

(Radio Iowa) – Refugee resettlement agencies in Iowa are preparing for more refugees who were evacuated from Afghanistan last month. The Des Moines office of the U.S. Committee for Refugees and Immigrants has already resettled one family and it expects the capacity to stretch to about 350 more Afghan refugees. Kerri True-Funk is the office’s director. True-Funk says, “We’re going to get overwhelmed pretty quickly, just with the number of ongoing arrivals that we have, in addition to Afghan folks.”

She says agency has received an outpouring of support from many Iowans for the effort, including the governor’s office. After consulting with the Iowa Bureau of Refugee Services, True-Funk says the hundreds of expected Afghans are in addition to the agency’s scheduled arrivals from other countries. “We haven’t started getting the bulk of people that were airlifted out at this point,” she says. “They are still in processing, so we’re kind of seeing how it goes along and playing it by ear.”

True-Funk says USCRI is being overwhelmed with calls from Iowans who want to help. The best way to do that, she says, is through cash donations.

(By Kassidy Arena, Iowa Public Radio)

(Des Moines) – Former President Donald Trump is scheduled to hold a rally in Iowa, next month. His leadership Political Action Committee, Save America, announced Tuesday Trump will make an appearance at the State Fairgrounds in Des Moines, on Oct. 9^th.

Doors open with live entertainment at 2-p.m., with Trump’s speech set for 7-p.m. Tickets are limited to two per mobile number, are available on a first-come, first-served basis through Save America.

Trump’s last visit to Iowa was just before the election in November, 2020, during a rally in Dubuque. 

The broadcast News at 8:06-a.m., from Ric Hanson.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (4.1MB)

Subscribe: RSS