The Fourth of July, for the third year in row, falls on a day that gives most Iowans a three day weekend. That’s one reason why AAA (Triple-A) spokesperson Gail Weinholzer is projecting more people than ever before will be hitting the road. “We expect more than 43 million Americans to travel at least 50 miles or more. That is the highest on record, in fact it’s 5 million more than this past Memorial Day weekend,” Weinholzer says. The biggest factor in the motor club’s prediction is gas prices.

“It’s been 11 years since we’ve had prices this low on the Fourth of July weekend,” Weinholzer says. In Iowa, the statewide average for a gallon of regular unleaded gas stands at $2.29. “That’s 43-cents below a year ago…when it was $2.72,” Weinholzer says. AAA reports, nationwide, the average motorist has saved about $100 on gasoline so far this year compared to the first six months of 2015.

(Radio Iowa)

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 2:40 a.m. CDT

(Update 5:30-a.m.: Fred Scalatta with the Department of Corrections says Formaro was located around 2:30 a.m. and taken into custody. He will now be housed in a medium security prison. No details about where Formaro was found have been released yet.)

Officials with the Iowa Department of Corrections said early this (Tuesday) morning, that Timothy Joseph Formaro, Jr., an inmate housed at the Newton Correctional Release Center was not present during routine count at 9:20-p.m., Monday, and after further search by security staff was been determined that Formaro escaped from the facility. The Newton Correctional Release Center is a minimum security facility.

Timothy J. Formaro, Jr.

The Iowa State Patrol, Jasper and Polk County Sheriff’s Departments and Fifth Judicial District Warrant Team have been notified, and are assisting in the public search of Formaro. He’s a white male, 5’8″ tall, 202 Lbs., Brown Hair and Blue Eyes with Left Forearm and Right Shoulder tattoos.

Formaro is serving a 25 year sentence from Clarke County for Prohibited Acts and Domestic Abuse assault. Information as to Formaro’s whereabouts should be immediately reported to the Jasper County Sheriff’s Department at 641-792-5912 or 911. Due to the ongoing search and investigation, no additional information is available at this time.

Officials with the Council Bluffs Police Department says as a result of their investigation into a bank robbery that occurred late Monday morning, they were able to identify a suspect in the Robbery. The suspect, 52-year old Henry J. Godina, of Council Bluffs, was taken into custody at approximately 2:27 p.m. in the 3000 Block of Ave H. Godina was booked into the Pottawattamie County Jail for Robbery in the 2nd Degree.

Just after 10-a.m., Monday, officers were called to the U-S Bank at 2901 W. Broadway Street in Council Bluffs, where a robbery had just occurred. Officials say the suspect (later identified as Godina) entered the bank and proceeded to the teller window, where he produced a note demanding money and indicating that he was in possession of a firearm. The man received an undetermined amount of cash from the bank and fled the area in a Blue late 1990’s model Ford Expedition or Mercury Mountaineer.

Officials say this man, caught on surveillance video, was arrested & identified as Henry J. Godina.

Adair County Sheriff Jeff Vandewater reports a Madison County man was arrested Friday afternoon for 3^rd Degree Theft, and Trespassing. 24-year-old Benjamin Riser Feller, of Dexter, was subsequently cited and released from the scene.

And, 62-year-old Gregg Charles Smith, of Stuart, was arrested Thursday for OWI 1^st offense, failure to maintain control and failure to provide proof of financial liability. His arrest followed an investigation into a single vehicle accident. The Sheriff says Smith admitted he had consumed alcoholic beverages. Smith’s breath test results were above the legal limit of .08. He was being held in the Adair County Jail on $1,000 cash, or surety bond.

The Guthrie County Sheriff’s Office reported just before 2-p.m. today (Monday), a Tennessee man who was missing and believed to have been lost somewhere in the southern part of the County, had been found. According to reports, Deputy Jess Swenson found Frank Dietz’ large, black Ford 2012 truck located near a pond behind several trees, at around 11:55-a.m.  Upon their arrival, the deputies and trooper approached the vehicle only to find that no one was in or around the truck. A search by the deputies and volunteer fire departments and ambulance led to Dietz being found 20-minutes later by a Guthrie County Secondary Roads Department crew, at 320th and Ranch Trail.

Authorities reported that although Dietz was disoriented and dehydrated, he was expected to be okay. The man had apparently spent a couple of days walking in the area. The Sheriff’s department at around 9:25-a.m. Monday, put out an alert, asking the public and rural property owners for help in finding the man, because a triangulation of his cell phone indicated he was in the area. At the time, they said Dietz indicated he was sick and disoriented.

The Sheriff’s office was assisted by the Iowa State Patrol, Stuart Police Department and Rescue units from Stuart and Menlo. Authorities also thank the public for their help in keeping an eye out for the man and his truck.

The Atlantic Police Department says no injuries were reported following three separate accidents, Friday. Just before 10-a.m., a vehicle driven by Brandon Embrey, of Atlantic, struck the right rear side of a parked vehicle registered to Wellendorf ENT, P-C, of Atlantic, in the CCMH parking lot. The accident happened as Embrey was backing out of a parking stall. Embrey left the scene but he was located later. The damage amounted to $2,000.

At around 1:15-p.m., Friday, vehicles driven by Samantha Christensen and Vincent Perry, both of Atlantic, collided at the intersection of 7th and Mulberry Streets, when Perry failed to stop at the posted stop sign. He was cited for Failure to Obey a Traffic control device. The damage amounted to $6,000.

And, at about the same time, a vehicle driven by Daniel Norman, of Omaha, was pulling out of a parking stall in the 400 block of Chestnut Street, when it was hit by a northbound vehicle driven by Nathan Hansen, of Stuart. Damage from the collision amounted to $2,600. No citations were issued.

Atlantic Police said also, 39-year old Kodi Newman, of Anita, was arrested for OWI. Newman was booked into the Cass County Jail.

Police in Council Bluffs are looking for a man who allegedly robbed a bank there this (Monday) morning. Just after 10-a.m., officers were called to the U-S Bank at 2901 W. Broadway Street in Council Bluffs, where a robbery had just occurred. 

Officials say the suspect, a white male about 60-years old, who stood approximately 5-feet 9-inches tall, and weighed about 200-pounds,  entered the bank and proceeded to the teller window, where he produced a note demanding money and indicating that he was in possession of a firearm. The suspect received an undetermined amount of cash from the bank and fled the area in a Blue late 1990’s model Ford Expedition or Mercury Mountaineer.

Anyone having information concerning the Robbery is encourage to contact the Council Bluffs Police Department @ (712) 328-4728 or Crime Stoppers @ (712) 328-7867.

(12:40-p.m. News)

Senator Chuck Grassley’s regional director based in Council Bluffs, Donna Barry, will be holding open office hours in Monona, Crawford, Audubon, Carroll, Cass, Adams and Taylor counties from July 8 to July 15. The office hours provide an opportunity for Iowans to obtain casework assistance or to express views.

Barry’s schedule is as follows:

Friday, July 8, 2016:

10 a.m.-11 a.m.- Cass County- Basement Meeting Room Cass County Court House 5 W. 7^th Street in Atlantic.

12:00 p.m.-1:00 p.m. – Adams County- Adams County Court House Supervisors Room, 500 – 9^th Street in Corning.

2:00 p.m.-3:00 p.m. – Taylor County – Taylor County Court House Supervisors Room, 405 Jefferson Street in Bedford.

Tuesday, July 12, 2016:

2:00 p.m.-3:00 p.m. – Audubon County – Audubon County Courthouse Supervisors Room, 318 LeRoy Street in Audubon.

4:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m. – Carroll County – Carroll Chamber of Commerce, Harold Bierl Community Room, 407 W. 5th Street in Carroll

Friday, July 15, 2016:

1:00 p.m.-2:00 p.m. – Monona County – Monona Court House Supervisors Room, 610 Iowa Avenue in Onawa

3:00 p.m.-4:00 p.m. – Crawford County – Crawford County Court House 1^st Floor Conference Room, 1202 Broadway in Denison.

Grassley’s offices in Iowa regularly help constituents contact federal agencies to sort through problems with Social Security payments, military service matters, immigration cases and other issues.  His state offices are located in Cedar Rapids, Council Bluffs, Davenport, Des Moines, Sioux City and Waterloo.

Should constituents have any questions, please contact Grassley’s Council Bluffs office at (712)-322-7103.

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources said Monday (Today) a young black bear in northeast Iowa was struck and killed by a truck Friday evening on Highway 76 near the Yellow River Forest in southeast Allamakee County. Officials say the bear is believed to be the same one that had been pictured on social media last week in a corn field near the Yellow River Forest. It was a young bear weighing about 200 pounds.

The last bear reported to be killed in a traffic collision in Iowa was just over a year ago on U.S. Highway 20 near Jesup. DNR Conservation Officer Burt Walters said the bear has been frozen and will be analyzed. It is likely the bear will be put on display at a new Allamakee County nature center being constructed in Lansing.

Bears are believed to wander into Iowa from neighboring states such as Minnesota, Wisconsin and Missouri where there are breeding populations of black bears. Walters said the wooded terrain of Allamakee County combined with the Mississippi River provides prime habitat for bears.

People seeing a black bear, or finding sign (tracks or scat), are urged to contact local Iowa DNR wildlife or law enforcement staff to report the animal’s presence. If the bear is causing conflicts with humans, livestock, pets, or bee hives then measures can be taken to deal with the situation. Human safety will always be the first concern, however respect for that animal receiving the attention from the public and how it is handled is also a primary concern.

Even though the black bear is not currently managed in Iowa with wildlife management laws or a regulated season, the Iowa DNR’s law enforcement and wildlife personnel will continue to play a lead role in public reports of black bears. However, in cases where human safety or livestock depredation are a concern, the DNR will work closely with the following partners: USDA-Wildlife Services, Iowa Dept. of Agriculture and Land Stewardship – State Veterinarians (IDALS), local police departments, county sheriffs, and other officials as needed.

In 2015, there were at least three to four black bears reported several times as they moved around northeast Iowa. In addition to the bear killed on the highway near Jesup, mushroom hunters found a dead bear along the Fayette-Clayton County border in May of 2015.