More area and State news from KJAN News Director Ric Hanson.

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Police in Creston report an Adair County man was arrested this (Monday) morning. 25-year old Spencer Leitzel, of Greenfield, was arrested at the Union County Law Enforcement Center on a Union County warrant for Violation of Probation. Leiztel was later released from the jail on a $5,000 bond.

The area’s top news at 7:05-a.m., w/KJAN News Director Ric Hanson

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Police in Red Oak arrested a man Sunday night on a 5th Degree Theft charge. 31-year old Kirby David Stoneking, of Red Oak, was taken into custody at the Casey’s store in Red Oak, around 9:25-p.m., and was being held in the Montgomery County Jail on a $300 cash bond.

The Iowa Department of Transportation says motorists should plan to use extra caution on Interstate 29 on the south side of Council Bluffs, beginning on Tuesday. That’s when construction will reduce traffic to one lane in each direction. A northbound crossover pattern will be used. The area affected is I-29, south of the U.S. Highway 275/Iowa Highway 92 interchange, in Council Bluffs.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Several Nebraska and Iowa organizations will receive some of the $17 million in grants the federal Agriculture Department is handing out to help new farmers and ranchers. The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced the grants recently. The money helps support programs to train and support beginning farmers and ranchers. An Iowa State University program will receive $698,393 to help aging farmers plan for succession at their operations.

A man from southwest Iowa who has served area residents in the Iowa House of Representatives for 22-years, died Sunday, in Atlantic.  Jack E. Drake, a Republican from Griswold, died from natural causes Sunday, at the Cass County Memorial Hospital. The 81-year old Drake was serving his 11th term. He was the longest tenured Republican in the Iowa House. He represented Walnut and eastern Pottawattamie County, along with much of Cass County and the entirety of Adams and Union counties.

Rep. Jack Drake (R), from Griswold.

In a statement released Monday (today) Representative Linda Upmeyer, R-Clear Lake, the incoming Speaker of the Iowa House, said “During his time in the Iowa House, Jack was a leader and trusted resource on agricultural issues, which are so important to the state of Iowa. We are all saddened to hear the news, but we will remember Jack as a strong advocate for his constituents, serving them honorably for nearly 23 years.”

Drake was born near Walnut, graduated from Atlantic High School and attended the University of Iowa. He was a farmer, and very active in local and state organizations, including his service as Secretary and board member of Walnut Telephone Company, member of Iowa Cattlemen’s Association, Iowa Farm Bureau, Iowa Corn Growers Association, and many other such groups. Drake was chair of the Finance Committee and serving on the Audit Committee at the time of his death.

Jack Drake is survived by his wife, Shirley, two sons, two daughters, 11 grandchildren, and 11 great-grandchildren. Funeral services will be held 10:30-a.m. Thu., Oct. 15th, at the Griswold United Methodist Church.

The Adams County Sheriff’s Office reports two people were arrested Saturday on separate charges. 25-year old Ke Neisha Renae Whyte, of West Des Moines, was arrested at around 7:10-p.m. for Driving While Suspended after being stopped for speeding on Highway 34. Whyte was being held in the Adams County Jail on $435 bond.

And, a little after 10-p.m. Saturday, 46-year old Santiago Arevalo Trujillo, of Lenox, was arrested following a traffic stop, during which a smell of alcohol was noted coming from inside the vehicle. Trujillo was taken into custody for OWI/1st offense. He was being held in the Adams County Jail on $1,o00 bond.

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Police say an impostor posing as an immigration officer handcuffed a man and robbed him of his passport, visas and cellphone. The Des Moines Register reports that police were called by the man’s wife from Arizona to check on her husband’s welfare. The man, who speaks only French, said through a phone-based translation service that another man wearing a yellow uniform who said he was an immigration officer approached him outside a home. He said the uniformed man pushed him inside the house, handcuffed his hands behind his back, then took the victim’s passport, two visas and a cellphone from his pants pocket.

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa (AP) — Officials say one person has been hospitalized with critical injuries in suspected natural gas explosion at a Cedar Falls apartment complex. The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier reports that the explosion occurred about 1:30 p.m. Saturday at Shady Rest apartments.

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) — A fire has forced some residents out of a Cedar Rapids apartment building. Cedar Rapids television station KCRG reports that the blaze was reported Friday night. Firefighters responded to the call around 7:40 p.m. and found a fire in a ground floor apartment, with smoke throughout the building. No one was injured.

WATERVILLE, Iowa (AP) — Officials say a bar and restaurant in the northeastern Iowa town of Waterville has burned down. The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier reports that the Waterville Store Bar and Grill was destroyed in the blaze.