(Radio Iowa) – Republican U-S Senate candidate Ashley Hinson has submitted over 15-thousand petition signatures to qualify for the 2026 G-O-P Primary ballot.  “We’ve really built a movement of people who are sick and tired of the way Washington, D.C.’s chaos and dysfunction has been running and who will not rest until our nation’s capitol runs a whole lot more like Iowa,” Hinson said. Hinson, a former T-V journalist, served two terms in the Iowa House and she’s been a member of the U.S. House since 2021. Hinson announced her campaign for the U.S. Senate a few hours after Iowa Senator Joni Ernst said she would not seek reelection. Hinson says over the past six month she’s built a coalition that will be an asset to other Republican candidates in the fall election.

“This is Ashley’s Army of pepole who are going to be out telling that story, just like I will be as top-of-ticket and working with our colleagues up and down the ballot to continue to share the contrast of our vision for the state and the country and what those on the other side of the aisle are proposing.” During an appearance early this (Wednesday) morning at the Westside Conservative Club, Hinson said she’s held events in 65 of Iowa’s 99 counties so far to hear what Iowans are concerned about. “They are making sure we have a safe country, making sure we have a secure border and we’re deporting these dangerous illegals out of our communities,” Hinson said. “We all saw what happened in M with some of these thugs that they have arrested and deported. Some of those very people are hiding in Iowa. We need to do everything we can to deport the dangerous illegals from our communities.”

Hinson says Iowans tell her their other priorities are ensuring only girls participate in girls’ sports, standing up for farmers, protecting Social Security and Medicare — but first and foremost, protecting taxpayers. A man in the crowd asked why Republicans in congress don’t stick together like Democrats do. “Trust me. I look forward to serving in the Senate because there’s a little less chaos over there than there is in the House and frankly I went to Washington to get things done and I find it frustrating when we have some obstructionists (for whom) good is the enemy of perfect,” Hinson said. “I will always vote for the most conservative bill we can get consensus on. That has always been my philosophy.”

Republican Jim Carlin of Sergeant Bluff has also been campaigning for the U.S. Senate, however Hinson has been endorsed by President Trump and has raised far more money for her race. Two candidates are competing in the June 2nd primary for the Democratic Party’s nomination for U.S. Senate.

(Radio Iowa) – Zach Wahls of Coralville — one of two Democrats running for the U.S. Senate — says 10-thousand people signed his nominating petitions for the Primary ballot — and 15 percent of them are registered Republican or independent voters. “I think it’s a good example of the coalition that we are building as we’ve been traveling across Iowa,” Wahls says. “A lot of the issues that we’re facing are not just Democrat versus Republican or left versus right. They’re about bottom versus top and Iowans trying to put our state first rather than just the status quo out in Washington.” Wahls says he’s done 250 campaign events in 66 of Iowa’s 99 counties — and voters tell him they’re most concerned about the economy.

“We’re hearing a lot of concern right now about the war in Iran and the impact that’s going to have on costs, whether it’s gasoline, diesel, fertilizer and a lot more,” Wahls said. “It’s time for us to have someone in the Senate who is going to fight for us and not just toe the party line.” Wahls started his campaign last June, a few months before Iowa Senator Joni Ernst, a Republican, announced she would not seek reelection. “Everywhere we’ve gone, whether we’re in big cities, small towns, rural communities, there’s a lot of excitement at the prospect of real change in the United States Senate,” Wahls said. “People understand that we have an economy right now that’s working great for Elon Musk and the billionaires but so many Iowans — working class Iowans, middle class Iowans, retired Iowans — are really struggling with what’s going on right now.”

Wahls was first elected to the Iowa Senate in 2019 and reelected in 2022. ) “I’m really proud to have represented small town and rural Iowa, to have won elections in swing counties like Cedar County and Muscatine County,” Wahls said, “and I think that the lessons that I learned from representing those communities is it’s really important for Democrats to show up, to listen, to have a positive vision for the future of small town and rural Iowa.” Wahls spoke with reporters in the Iowa Capitol’s rotunda this (Wednesday) morning.

Josh Turek, a member of the Iowa House, is also running for the Democratic Party’s U.S. Senate nomination, but has not yet filed the paperwork to get his name on the June 2nd Primary ballot. Friday at 5 p.m. is the deadline for federal and state candidates to submit nominating petitions for this year’s Republican and Democratic Party Primaries.

(Radio Iowa) – Administrators at the Iowa Department of Transportation says they are cutting the budget for the next fiscal year in part with savings in building construction and equipment. The D-O-T’s Melissa Gillette says the big construction project is a new maintenance garage in Alton in Sioux County. “The newest sections of the Alton garage were constructed in the 1970s, but the oldest were constructed in the 1940s. So of course, our equipment has changed,” she says. Gillette told the Transportation Commission the new garage will provide much more space.

“This will allow us to expand into 12 maintenance bays and two wash bays, appropriately sized, as you can see there, rebuilding on land that we already own, “Gillette says. “And simply we have outgrown what our older facilities were designed to accommodate. And so this is a 13 million dollar recommended budget for the replacement of the Alton garage.” She says the budget is four-point-nine million dollars less than the last new garage the D-O-T built. Gillette says they are making some changes that will allow the D-O-T to save million of dollars in the budget for the equipment that is maintained at the state garages. “That includes leasing tractors versus owning. So we’ve identified a significant savings and positive return on investment by making this choice. And so this is something that our teams have been working toward for some time,” she says.

Gillette says they started looking at their plow configurations after the pandemic and have dramatically reduced them to help save costs.  “We, of course, like everyone else, had supply chain issues and were struggling to receive our plow trucks on time. And so the team work together to identify an opportunity to streamline and standardize those configurations,” Gillette says. “We had 55 separate different configurations that we were sending out to outfitters, and we were able to reduce that and standardize that to five.” She says the has helped with the supply chain issues as they don’t need as many different types of truck setups. Gillette says they cut 33 light vehicles from their fleet and the total equipment savings will be 14-point-six million dollars.

(Atlantic, IA) – The Cass County Assessor’s Office has issued news releases with regard to the re-assessment of commercial and residential properties. “In March 2023, the Cass County Conference Board and the County Assessor signed a contract with Vanguard Appraisal Services to conduct a reassessment of all commercial, industrial, and apartment properties in Cass County for the 2028 assessment year.

COMMERCIAL PROPERTY REASSESSMENTS

Beginning next month (April 2026) —and continuing for approximately nine months—data collectors from Vanguard Appraisals will visit each commercial and industrial property to gather both interior and exterior information. This data will be used to help estimate the market value of each property. Information to be collected includes:

• Type of construction
• Interior finish
• Physical condition
• Age of structures
• Exterior measurements

Each Vanguard employee will carry a photo ID signed by the County Assessor. For additional safety, all law enforcement agencies will be informed of their activities and provided with the names and vehicle license plate numbers of the individuals working in Cass County. Iowa’s property tax system is founded on the principle that all assessable property should be evaluated equitably across the state. Local assessors play a critical role in maintaining uniformity. Reappraisal projects are conducted to correct such imbalances and ensure fairness—not to raise taxes. Fair and equitable assessments are the cornerstone of our property tax system. The Cass County Assessor’s Office appreciates your understanding and cooperation throughout this important process.

RESIDENTIAL REASSESSMENT PROJECT CONTINUES INTO RURAL AREAS OF CASS COUNTY

Data collectors with Vanguard Appraisals are continuing to visit residential properties in Cass County. Rural Cass County Residents may notice representatives conducting exterior inspections and verifying property information. This data will be used to help estimate the market value of each property. Information to be collected includes the same criteria as commercial properties (listed above). Again, each Vanguard employee will carry a photo ID signed by the County Assessor.

For additional safety, all law enforcement agencies will be informed of their activities and provided with the names and vehicle license plate numbers of the individuals working in Cass County.

(Greenfield, IA) – A weekly meeting of the Adair County Board of Supervisors took place Wednesday (March 11) in Greenfield, during which the Board approved a wage increase for an On-call maintenance worker to $20 per hour, with regard to snow removal.

The Board held a Public Hearing on a proposed ordinance that would repeal the Ordinance regulating the placement of Hazardous Liquid Pipelines on property located in the Unincorporated Areas of Adair County. Supervisor Jodie Hoadley…

Having received no comments, the Board went ahead and approved the 2nd and 3rd readings of the ordinance before making it official by having Board Chair Jerry Walker sign the Ordinance as written. The Board then held a Public Hearing on the proposed vacating of a portion of 115th Street in Adair County.

Persons attending the hearing expressed their thoughts and opinions on the matter. The Board noted the request to vacate came from adjacent property owners. Chair Jerry Walker said he personally had received one comment prior to the hearing.

After continued discussion, a motion NOT to vacate the proposed section of road passed by a vote of four-to-one, and revisit the issue at a later time. Supervisor Michael Christofferson was the lone “Nay” vote.

In other business, the Adair County Supervisors approved the signing by Board Chair Walker, of: the FY26 Farm-To-Market Contract with Schildberg Construction & a Performance Bond for the project; The Right-of-Way Contract for the installation of a box culvert for the W26 Prussia (Township) , and related Project Plans, along with the front page of plans for the W36 Lincoln (Township) Bridge Project.

Adair County Engineer Nick Kauffman then presented his weekly report to the Board. And, the Adair County Supervisors discussed a possible, pro-active Ordinance regulating Data Centers within the County. Supervisor Jodie Hoadley said she is concerned about the large supply of water and power, especially with regard to the installation of new, 10-story tall high power lines structures in the Hebron area.

She said she would like to see some Ordinance regulations in-place before the County authorizes the construction of any potential/future data centers, their removal when deactivated, and five-year reviews and/or oversight.

If approved, the Ordinance would be enacted under the County Home Rule Authority found in the Iowa Code to protect natural resources – such as ground water, mitigate nuisance light, vibration and noise pollution, and County infrastructure. Hoadley made the motion to move forward with the drafting of an ordinance (which would be based on similar ordinances in other counties), and a legal review of the specifics. The Board agreed to move forward on the matter.

(Creston, IA) – The Creston Police Department reports the arrest at around 10-a.m., Tuesday, of 49-year-old April Danell Gross, of Creston. She was arrested in the 500 block of Livingston Street for Possession of Drug Paraphernalia and Driving While License Suspended. Gross was cited, and released from the scene with her citation along with a Promise to Appear (in court).

DES MOINES, Iowa – The U-S Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa reports a Connecticut man was sentenced on March 5th, 2026, to nine years’ imprisonment for wire fraud and money laundering stemming from his participation in a romance scam that affected victims across the country, including in central Iowa.

According to public court documents and evidence presented at sentencing, 30-year-old Naabanyin Aniagyei-Cobbold played an integral part in an extensive romance scam conspiracy—a fraudulent scheme in which individuals create fake profiles on internet dating sites and other social media platforms to exploit victims for financial gain. Aniagyei-Cobbold operated a fake company, Alpha Distributions LLC, that he used to receive money from victims. Aniagyei-Cobbold recruited and coached at least one other individual through creating a sham entity, a website, and opening bank accounts—all for the purpose of receiving money from romance scam victims.

Aniagyei-Cobbold received over $1.5 million from victims, including over $400,000 from a victim living in the Southern District of Iowa. The victims sent Aniagyei-Cobbold money at the request of their purported romantic partners, believing it was going to be used to facilitate uniting them with their partner, among other things. Many victims drained their retirement accounts, sold their homes and vehicles, returned to work after retirement, and borrowed substantial sums from friends and family.

During the conspiracy, Aniagyei-Cobbold created and starred in a music video titled “S.C.A.M.” which contained lyrics about receiving “scam money” and “laundering it up,” with “money coming in” and “living lavish.” In one frame of the video, Aniagyei-Cobbold poses next to a vehicle on which “SCAM” is spelled out in on the hood of the car in one-hundred-dollar bills. When confronted by the FBI, Aniagyei-Cobbold lied about the nature of Alpha Distributions LLC and why the victims were sending him so much money, claiming Alpha Distributions was a legitimate company used to source electronics for individuals in Africa. He produced false invoices, receipts, and other documentation in response to a federal grand jury subpoena in an attempt to further obstruct the investigation.

Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Omaha Field Office Eugene Kowel said in a news release, “Romance scammers prey on victims when they are at their most vulnerable. They exploit people by convincing them they are in a real relationship, then slowly abuse that trust to steal their life savings, often leading to bankruptcy. This case is an egregious example of the ruthless persistence exhibited by scammers to enrich themselves at the expense of vulnerable people. The FBI will continue working with all of our partners to apprehend these criminals and bring them to justice.” Polk County Sheriff Kevin J. Schneider added, “The financial and emotional harm caused by this scheme has been devastating.

“Victims were deliberately targeted and manipulated through deception and false relationships, often losing money they could not afford to lose. Many were elderly or living on fixed incomes, and the impact has extended beyond financial loss to broken trust, emotional trauma, and lasting hardship for families.”The Polk County Sheriff’s Office appreciates the strong partnership with our federal law enforcement partners and the U.S. Attorney’s Office in holding those responsible accountable and seeking justice for victims across central Iowa. We remain committed to protecting our communities, supporting victims, and working collaboratively to uphold the rule of law.”

In addition to the term of imprisonment, Aniagyei-Cobbold was ordered to pay $1,554,442.46 in restitution. After completing his prison term, Aniagyei-Cobbold will serve a three-year term of supervised release. Co-defendant, Nana Takyiwa Adonu, will be sentenced on July 16, 2026. The Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Omaha Cyber Task Force and the Polk County Sheriff’s Office investigated the case.

According to the FBI, in 2024, approximately 59,000 people fell victim to romance-related scams, losing over $672 million dollars. The FBI says that many times, once a victim realizes that they have been exploited, they feel embarrassed or ashamed, and do not want to let anyone know what happened to them, including law enforcement. However, the FBI encourages anyone who has been victimized by this fraud or unsuccessfully targeted to file a complaint. If you suspect an online relationship is a scam, stop all contact immediately. If you have already sent money, report any transfer of funds to your financial institution and contact law enforcement.

If you or someone you know has been targeted by a scam, contact the Iowa Attorney General’s office at 1-888-777-4590 or file a complaint online: https://www.iowaattorneygeneral.gov/for-consumers/file-a-consumer-complaint. You can also report fraud complaints to your local FBI field office by calling 1‑800-CALL-FBI (1-800-225-5324), or visiting https://www.fbi.gov/how-we-can-help-you/scams-and-safety.

(Des Moines, IA – Iowa DNR News) – Once easily visible in large winter flocks scratching in picked crop fields along timber edges for waste grain, Iowa’s wild turkeys will seemingly disappear into the landscape as the days lengthen and temperatures warm. The Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) says driven by instinct, males will begin calling, displaying and competing against other males for the attention of the hens as part of the annual breeding season. In this arena, steps the turkey hunter – who tries to mimic the hens and frustrate the toms (mature) and jakes (one-year old male’s) to the point of investigating why she is not responding to his calls.

Jim Coffey, Iowa DNR Forest Wildlife Biologist, says “Turkey hunting is an intimate experience, calling the birds close, making it go against instinct, using your experience and skills learned from time spent in the woods to try to trick that bird to coming to you. And if everything goes right, only around 22-25 percent of our tags get filled. Even the most experienced turkey hunters make mistakes.” Last year, more than 50,000 tags were sold and hunters reporting harvesting more than 15,000 birds; the second highest total since mandatory harvest began in 2006. “We had a good turkey hatch in 2025, and that was on top of a good hatch in 2024, so we should have a good number of jakes and young toms available this spring,” Coffey said.

Considered a woodland species, turkeys can be found in grasslands, field edges and other places you don’t expect to see them. Birds were harvested in all of Iowa’s 99 counties in the 2025 spring season. Iowa’s spring turkey hunting offers four split seasons, where hunters may choose up to two seasons, with at least one being season four. Seasons spread out hunting pressure to provide positive experience. Surveys indicate that hunter satisfaction is highest when they do not run into another hunter while hunting and when they hear a lot of gobbling. With a few weeks to go till the season starts, Coffey said now is a good time to go through the equipment and gear to make sure it still works and fits, and to practice calling. “Spring weather could be finicky – it could be in the 70s or snowing,” he said. “And just a reminder, it will be tick season.”

Hunting safety reminder

• Hunters should write out their hunting plan that identifies the hunt location, who’s on the hunt and outlines their role, describes how the hunt will unfold and when the hunters are expected to return home. Hunters are encouraged to leave a copy of the plan with someone or somewhere easy to find, in the event of an emergency.
• Hunters are reminded to avoid wearing patriotic colors – red, white and blue – that are colors found on a male turkey head and waddle, and to not shoot at movement. Identify the target and what’s beyond it, especially with the new loads that have increased range.
• If another hunter walks in to your area, Coffey said remain still and say in a clear voice ‘Hunter over here.’ “The person should turn and walk directly away,” he said.

Those who harvest a bird are required to report their harvest through the harvest reporting system. It is essential and mandatory to report the bird, which helps the DNR with management. “There are plenty of birds – be mindful of other hunters out there – they’re out there to have fun too,” he said.

Youth Season

Youth season is designed to be a mentoring experience, teaching the youth about turkey hunting and building skills, like learning how to call.

SEASONS

• Youth-only – residents only, age 15 and younger – April 10-12
• Season 1 – April 13-16
• Season 2 – April 17-21
• Season 3 – April 22-28
• Season 4 – April 29 – May 17
• Resident Archery Only – April 13 – May 17

(Council Bluffs, IA) – A Judge in the Pottawattamie County case against a man charged in connection with a shooting incident in Avoca on Oct. 9th, 2025, has granted another request by Defense Attorney Joseph Hrvol, to continue the jury trial of Shaun Patrick McCarthy, of Avoca. The trial was previously continued until March 10th, but on Monday, Judge Margaret Reyes granted the Defense’ request to delay the proceedings until 9:30-a.m. on April 14th, in Council Bluffs. The 29-year-old McCarthy faces charges that include domestic abuse assault, attempted murder, reckless use of a firearm, going armed with intent, three counts of child endangerment—substantial risk, and willful injury resulting in bodily injury. He has pleaded not guilty.

On October 9th, the Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Office took a report at a little after 8-p.m., of a person injured in a shooting in Avoca. The victim suffered minor injuries in the shooting. Deputies arrived on scene and determined the shooting occurred at a rural residence just west of Avoca, that the suspect was believed to still be in the home with minor children, and more gunfire was reported from the rural residence.

The Pottawattamie County Emergency Response Team and Negotiators responded to the scene west of Avoca. While deploying to the residence more gunfire was heard coming from near the home, and a male suspect, identified as Shaun McCarthy, was located outside. After a brief standoff, McCarthy was taken into custody, and the minor children were found to be safe and unharmed inside the home.

The Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Office was assisted by the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office and Iowa State Patrol.

(Radio Iowa) – The leader of the Ankeny-based Casey’s convenience store chain says he’s not worried at this point about gas sales despite what is happening with Iran. Casey’s C-E-O Darren Rebelez says this is similar to when Russia invaded Ukraine, and oil prices were impacted and gas costs went up.”Wholesale prices move up, retail prices move up, but tend to move a little bit more slowly. And so margins get a little bit compressed on the front side of that curve,” he says. Rebelez says the gas margin, or the amount they make on each gallon, tends to increase. “When there’s an ultimate inflection point and the costs start to come down, retail prices will come down as well, but also tend to come down more slowly and the margin expands,” he says. “So over the course of the cycle, it historically has ended up being a net positive from a fuel margin standpoint.”

He says that is what they saw the last time a war impacted oil and gas prices. “The history from the most recent event with the Ukraine war, that’s exactly what played out. Margins did get a little bit compressed, but not bad. I mean, the quarter, our quarter in 2022, where we had the first initial shock from the Ukraine war, we printed a 36 cent fuel margin that quarter. Then the subsequent three quarters were all over 40 cents a gallon,”Rebelez says. Rebelez says they are also not worried right now about people cutting back on how much gas they buy. “We really don’t start to see any level of demand destruction until we’re approaching five dollars a gallon at retail,” he says. “And we, as we sit here today, we’re right around three dollars a gallon in our footprint. So we have quite a ways to go before we would be concerned from a volume standpoint.”

Rebelez made his comments on a conference call to discuss their third quarter results. The company reported net income for the quarter was up 49 percent compared to last year at just more than 130 million dollars. Total fuel gross profit for the quarter was up 15 percent with a fuel margin of 41 cents a gallon.