A collision in eastern Iowa early this (Wednesday) morning, claimed the life of a man from Marshalltown. The Iowa State Patrol reports 23-year-old Lino Rivera-Reyes died after the 2017 Dodge SUV he was driving cross the center line of Highway 14 across the Mile Long Bridge, in Marion County, and collided with a Volvo semi-tractor. The driver of the semi, 62-year-old James David McElvain, of Corydon, tried, but was unable to avoid the crash. McElvain was not injured in the collision that took place at around 5:40-a.m.

The accident remains under investigation.

(Radio Iowa) – A cooperative based in Fort Dodge has built an 11-million dollar barge terminal on the Missouri River near the small Iowa town of Blencoe.

The NEW Cooperative Port of Blencoe is about 50 miles up river from Council Bluffs. The port has the capacity to load and unload up to nine barges at a time. Test runs began in April. The official opening is today. The Missouri River terminal may help reduce operating costs for western Iowa farmers. Shipping commodities like corn, soybeans and fertilizer by barge is cheaper than transporting the materials by trucks or trains. One tow managing 15 barges can handle as much material as 870 semis according to the Iowa D-O-T.

The Port of Blencoe is now the northernmost access point to barges on the Missouri River. Barge traffic out of Sioux City ended around the turn of the century due to a combination of factors, including a lack of consistent river depth for navigation. State officials say the Army Corps of Engineers has agreed to maintain a nine-foot depth in the Missouri near the Port of Blencoe to accommodate barge movement.

The Mills County Sheriff’s Office today (Wednesday), reports numerous arrests occurred from May 25th through June 1st:

• On Tuesday (June 1), 48-year-old Andrew Robert Skokan, of Omaha, was arrested on a warrant for Failure to Appear (FTA), on a charge of Railroad Vandalism. Bond was set at $300.
• On Monday (May 31) 52-year-old Alfredo Rosalez Moreno, of Council Bluffs, was arrested on at the Pottawattamie County Jail, on a warrant for FTA, re: Driving While Denied or Revoked – Bond: $50,000.00
• Last Saturday, 23-year-old William James Kallhoff, of Lincoln, NE., was arrested for Trespassing. – Bond $1,000.
• On May 28th, Jaymie Ilene Rowe, age 25, of Hastings, was arrested at the Page County Jail, on a warrant for Trespassing and Criminal Mischief 4th – Bond: $2,000.
• 51-year-old Michael Alexander Capps, of Council Bluffs, was arrested May 27th, for Driving Under Suspension. – Bond $1,000.
• 32-year-old Audrey Elise Martin, of Council Bluffs, was arrested May 27th at the Pott. County Jail, on a warrant for Ongoing Criminal Conduct, Theft in the 1st, Conspiracy to commit a non-forcible felony, and Criminal Mischief in the 2nd. – Bond $45,000.
• That same day, 43-year-old Andy Charles Andrew, of Council Bluffs, was arrested at the Pott. County Jail, on a warrant for Violation of Probation. – Bond $5,000.
• On May26th, 33-year-old Samantha Renee Martin, of Council Bluffs, was arrested at the Pott. County Jail, on a warrant for Ongoing Criminal Conduct, Theft in the 1st, Conspiracy to commit a non-forcible felony, and Criminal Mischief in the 2nd. – Bond $45,000.
• And, on May 25th, 47-year-old Jerry Lee Dawson, of Silver City, was arrested in Mills County, for Criminal Mischief in the 2nd and 3rd Degrees. – Bond $7,000.

There were also two, non-injury accidents reported. Both took place May 29th, and involved vehicles driven by 19-year-old Cory Julich, and 21-year-old Makayla Huffman, both of Glenwood. The collision took place at the intersection of 250th & Gaston Avenue. The second collision happened on Highway 34, about a mile east of I-29. Officials say vehicles driven by 43-year-old Brian Dvorak, of Papillion, NE., and Jesse Beno, of Carson, were traveling eastbound on the highway, when the hood of a vehicle being transported on a trailer pulled by Dvoark’s 2014 Chevy, suddenly flew off and struck Beno’s 2018 RAM.

The impact caused the pickup’s windshield to shatter and glass to fly into the cab. Beno suffered possible/unknown injuries from the flying glass, but was not transported to a hospital.

Auditor of State Rob Sand today (Wednesday), released a report on a special investigation of the Civil Commitment Unit for Sexual Offenders (CCUSO) in Cherokee, for the period August 1, 2019, through February 28, 2021. CCUSO is operated by the Division of Mental Health and Disability Services within the Department of Human Services (DHS) and is located on the campus of the Cherokee Mental Health Institute. CCUSO houses sexually violent predators from all ninety-nine Iowa counties.

The special investigation was requested by CCUSO and DHS officials as a result of alleged improprieties regarding actions taken by a former administrative assistant, Renae Rapp, which resulted in unauthorized payroll disbursements to her husband. Ms. Rapp’s husband was also previously employed by CCUSO. Sand reported the special investigation identified $61,610.66 of improper disbursements, including $52,618.19 of gross wages paid to Ms. Rapp’s husband and $8,992.47 of related payroll costs. The excess pay and benefits were a result of Ms. Rapp using her husband’s key fob and making manual adjustments to the payroll system to show he worked when he did not. The improper pay was electronically deposited to a bank account Ms. Rapp shares with her husband.

Sand recommended CCUSO officials implement procedures to ensure information recorded in the time keeping system is verified and accurate and adjustments to it are properly monitored. Sand also recommended CCUSO officials implement procedures to ensure compliance with requirements established by the Code of Iowa. Copies of the report have been filed with the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, the Cherokee County Attorney’s Office, and the Attorney General’s Office. A copy of the report is available for review on the Auditor of State’s web site at https://auditor.iowa.gov/reports/audit-reports/.

(Radio Iowa) – Some shifts were cancelled at J-B-S meatpacking plants in Marshalltown and Ottumwa yesterday after a cyberattack on the company. An updated post on the Facebook page for the J-B-S plant in Ottumwa said the company is continuing to work through its I-T issues and no pigs were scheduled to slaughtered today (Wednesday) in Ottumwa on the first or second shift. However, shifts for other tasks within the facility in Ottumwa are still on as normal.

J-B-S is based in Brazil and is the world’s largest meat producer. All of its BEEF plants were shut down Tuesday by the cyber breach. J-B-S plants that process pork — like the two in Iowa — had some level of disruption, but weren’t completely idled. Markets were rattled by the news as J-B-S plants process about 20 percent of the cattle and hogs slaughtered in the U.S. The White House said the ransomware attack likely came from a criminal organization based in Russia.

The 8:09-a.m. broadcast news, with Ric Hanson.

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(Radio Iowa) – Two separate accidents took the lives of two Marshalltown residents on Tuesday in Marshall County. The first occurred in the late afternoon as a vehicle driven by 72-year old Terry Stubbs crashed after passing several other vehicles on Highway 30 east of Marshalltown and crashed onto the gravel shoulder. Stubbs was transported to UPH-Marshalltown where he late died.

About three hours later, 59-year old John St. Clair was killed when he failed to navigate a curve on Luray Road in rural Marshall County. St. Clair’s vehicle rolled several times and he and his pick-up came to a rest in a farm field.

The Creston Police Department reports three people were arrested on separate charges, Tuesday. Authorities say 39-year-old Amanda M. Nelson, of Creston, was arrested at her residence on a charge of Theft in the 3rd Degree. She was taken into custody at around 9:15-a.m. and transported to the Adams County Jail, where her bond was set at $2,000. About an hour later, 35-year-old Michael Lakers, of Creston, was arrested at his residence for Criminal Mischief in the 5th degree. He was cited and released at the scene, on a Summons to Appear.

At the same time and place, 29-year-old Ryan M Johnson, of Creston, was arrested for Simple Assault. He was also cited and released at the scene, on a Summons to Appear.

The 7:07-a.m. broadcast news, with KJAN News Director Ric Hanson.

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