(Creston, IA) – The Creston Police Department reports a man was arrested Friday night on drug-related charges. 46-year-old Levi David Capp, of Creston, was arrested at around 7:25 P.M., Friday, in the 1400 block of N. Elm Street. Capp was taken into custody for Possession of a Controlled Substance/Marijuana – 1st offense, and Possession of a Controlled Substance/Methamphetamine – 1st offense. He was transported to the Union County Jail, later posted a $2,000 cash or surety bond, and was released.

(Radio Iowa) – Many Iowans will be meeting up this week with family members they haven’t seen in a while, and some of us need to mentally prepare ourselves so we’re not sucked into a political squabble that ruins Thanksgiving. University of Iowa professor and psychologist Michele Williams says to plan ahead and give some thought to good conversation starters, things that don’t include inflation, health care, gas prices or the economy. “Think about the topics that might come up, and think about these conversations as a chance to get to know and understand our family members a little better,” Williams says, “as opposed to a time to convince them, this once a year time, I can finally convince my family members of my political views. Thanksgiving isn’t that time.”

In order to keep the conversations civil, Williams says the key is to remain cool and patient, and to tread carefully on potential hot-button topics. “Think of this as a dialogue and not a debate that you want to win, but a dialogue to understand your family members’ points of view,” Williams says. “Ask them questions. ‘Hmm, what makes you think that way?’ Maybe you can understand better what assumptions they’re making and why they’re thinking that way. Thanksgiving isn’t the time to change somebody’s mind.” She says some families manage conflict by deciding only to talk about football, the kids, or other things they have in common — and not politics. “We need to listen more. Americans are not really good at listening. We’re good at talking, we’re good at having debates and trying to prove the other side wrong,” Williams says. “We need to kind of move that more to a dialogue where we’re interested and curious about the other side. So we need to listen and I think about it as listening with empathy and grace.”

Williams is a UI professor of management and entrepreneurship in the Tippie College of Business and she’s a psychologist who specializes in management communications and relationships.

(Radio Iowa) – There’ll be extra law officers out on Iowa roadways today (Monday) for the start of the Thanksgiving special traffic enforcement. Brett Tjepkes is the Bureau Chief of the Governor’s Traffic Safety Bureau. “Last year there were 17 fatal and serious injury crashes and five involved people that weren’t wearing their seat belts. So, it’s a lot of a lot of heartbreak for people to lose family and friends or to be seriously injured,” Tjepkes says. He says they will be looking for people who are speeding or using their phones while driving. “You know there’s consequences to risky behavior. We don’t want it to be in a crash or to get injured. And sometimes that might involve a citation or a fine from law enforcement,” he says. “But that’s that’s much better than the than the alternative.”

ISP Traffic Enforcement (file photo)

Thanksgiving is know as a day where people might eat too much turkey, but it isn’t thought to be a big holiday for alcohol. Tjepkes says it can be a factor any time of the year. “It’s always a concern whenever you know people are socializing, quite often there is alcohol involved, which is fine until you get into a vehicle and drive,” Tjepkes says. Tjepkes says there is zero tolerance for drinking and driving. “We just want to make sure people understand if they’ve been drinking alcohol or consuming other drugs, you don’t get in a vehicle and drive. You know, find an alternate transportation, get a family or friend or a rideshare like Uber, Lyft,” he says.

The special enforcement will run through November 30th.

DAVENPORT, Iowa – A Davenport man was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison for possessing a firearm as a felon.

According to public court documents and evidence presented at sentencing, Rodolfo Tellez Gutierrez, Jr., 23, threw a gun out of the window of a vehicle during a traffic stop. Review of Gutierrez’s phone revealed messages with the purchaser of the recovered firearm.

After completing his term of imprisonment, Gutierrez will be required to serve a three-year term of supervised release. There is no parole in the federal system.

United States Attorney David C. Waterman of the Southern District of Iowa made the announcement. This case was investigated by the Scott County Sherriff’s Office.

DAVENPORT, Iowa – A Prairie City man was sentenced on November 18, 2025, to 180 months in federal prison for possession of child pornography and 24 months in federal prison for revocation of his supervised release.

According to public court documents and evidence presented at sentencing, Anthony Charles VanMeter, 55, was on federal supervised release for a conviction of possession of child pornography. In October 2024, law enforcement visited another individual under federal supervision and located VanMeter. VanMeter admitted two cell phones at the residence belonged to him. One of the cell phones was later found to child sexual abuse material, including more than 75 photographs and 250 videos.

At sentencing, the Court also found VanMeter violated the terms of his federal supervised release for his 2016 conviction for possession of child pornography in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Iowa. VanMeter received an 84-month sentence in 2016, was released from prison in 2022, and his supervised release was revoked in October 2022, November 2023, and September 2024.

After completing his term of imprisonment, VanMeter will be required to serve a 10-year term of supervised release. There is no parole in the federal system. Vanmeter was also ordered to pay $24,000 in restitution.

United States Attorney David C. Waterman of the Southern District of Iowa made the announcement. This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

This case was brought as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative to combat the growing epidemic of child sexual exploitation and abuse launched in May 2006 by the Department of Justice. Led by U.S. Attorneys’ Offices and the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section, Project Safe Childhood marshals federal, state, and local resources to better locate, apprehend and prosecute individuals who exploit children via the Internet, as well as to identify and rescue victims. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, please visit https://www.justice.gov/psc.

DES MOINES, Iowa – On October 15, 2025, a federal grand jury in Des Moines charged a Des Moines man with computer fraud.

The Indictment alleges that Ezekiel Dean Potter, 34, after being terminated by his employer in April 2023, accessed or attempted to access to the employer’s computer systems without the employer’s authorization. When he gained access, Potter reset usernames and passwords for the employer’s accounts and deleted or revoked access to employer’s accounts. The Indictment alleges Potter engaged in this conduct for over a year and a half—from May 14, 2023, until at least January 16, 2025. Potter’s actions caused widespread disruption to the employer’s operations and resulted in tens of thousands of dollars in losses to the employer.

Trial is scheduled for June 1, 2026. If convicted, Potter could be sentenced up to 10 years in federal prison.

United States Attorney David C. Waterman of the Southern District of Iowa made the announcement. The Federal Bureau of Investigation is investigating the case with assistance from the Polk County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant United States Attorney Joseph Lubben is prosecuting the case.

An indictment is merely an allegation, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

DES MOINES, Iowa – A Des Moines man was sentenced on November 20, 2025, to 21 and a half years in federal prison for conspiracy to interfere with commerce by robbery, interference with commerce by robbery, brandishing a firearm during and in relation to a crime of violence, and felon in possession of a firearm.

According to public court documents and evidence presented at sentencing, Jeremiah Kenneth McGregor, 23, robbed four Des Moines area Git-N-Go convenience store locations while armed with a firearm on October 5, 2024, October 7, 2024, October 10, 2024, and October 12, 2024, and attempted to rob a fifth Git-N-Go on October 6, 2024. In each robbery, McGregor entered the Git-N-Go, brandished and threatened a Git-N-Go employee with a firearm, and demanded cash. On October 13, 2024, McGregor, who was in possession of a loaded firearm, ran from the officers during a traffic stop and was subsequently arrested.

After completing his term of imprisonment, McGregor will be required to serve a five-year term of supervised release. There is no parole in the federal system. McGregor was also ordered to pay $1,346 in restitution. The district court also ordered this federal sentence to run consecutive to a December 2024 state sentence imposed after a parole revocation.

McGregor’s co-defendant, Donault Seandrea Logan, 23, of Des Moines, is scheduled to be sentenced on January 6, 2026.

United States Attorney David C. Waterman of the Southern District of Iowa made the announcement. This case was investigated by the Des Moines Police Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.

(Radio Iowa) – The latest state data shows Iowa consumers are spending more this year. Total sales and use tax payments to the state were up three percent through October compared to the first 10 months of 2024. Creighton University economist Ernie Goss says there’s a pretty clear division, however, between which households are driving a surge in retail sales.

“Those on the higher end are doing quite well, those that hold assets like stock, for example, bonds and so on, they’re doing much better and their buying is up,” Goss said. “Of course what’s happened is the stock market, equity markets and other asset markets — gold, silver and so on — those have held up remarkably well and moved higher and those individuals and families that hold those assets, their buying has held up really well.”

Goss says while middle and lower income Americans continue to spend on food, utilities and other essentials, they are pulling back on discretionary spending for things like concerts, vacations and high-end electronics. About half of total spending in the United States comes from households making at least 250-thousand dollars annually. Goss says new data suggests many upper income Americans have changed WHERE they shop, however.

“What we’ve seen is higher income buyers, instead of shopping at some of the fancier places, they’re moving to Walmart, Target and others,” Goss says. Last week, Walmart reported a 28 percent jump in online sales and a four-and-a-half percent increase in overall sales within the United States. Walmart operates 69 retail locations in Iowa.