Two robberies at bars early Friday morning in the Guthrie County town of Jamaica are under investigation, and the Guthrie County Sheriff’s Office is asking for your help in identifying the suspect. In their social media posts, the Sheriff’s Office, Friday, said the burglaries happened sometime between 2:30- and 3:15-a.m. Friday, at “Tojo’s Bar and Grill,” and the “Just One More” bar. Security footage shows the suspect is a male wearing a white hooded sweatshirt, dark pants, black gloves, and eyeglasses. Video footage of the suspect is available on the Sheriff’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/guthriecountyso/videos/268701667185094/?__tn__=%2Cd%2CP-R&eid=ARCbkpaAv8fG0cXaCcvfwK8d3z-idnhfMNHGgxjHKmoaK0bCy-6yXuEtsg0XkWo894-jLiwsv0qQuLJo

Anyone with information about either incident is asked to contact Chief Deputy Jeremy Bennett at 641-747-2214.

Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:40 a.m. CDT

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa’s governor has ordered flags on state property flown at half-staff this weekend to honor a fallen World War II soldier and firefighters killed in the line of duty. Gov. Kim Reynolds requests that all U.S. and state flags be lowered during daylight hours on Saturday to honor Army Pvt. Donald E. Brown, of Thompson, who killed in action on July 28, 1944, when his tank was destroyed in France. On Sunday, flags will be lowered in observance of the Fallen Firefighters Memorial service.

WASHINGTON, Iowa (AP) — A second man has been found guilty of first-degree murder in the fatal shooting of a gender-fluid Iowa teenager. The Hawk Eye reports that a Washington County jury convicted 26-year-old Jaron Purham on Friday in the 2016 death of 16-year-old Kedarie Johnson of Burlington. Prosecutors say Johnson was wearing a pink headband and hair extensions when Sanders-Galvez and Purham saw the teen at a store, followed him in their car, then took him to a Burlington home before killing Johnson.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Health coverage offered by the Iowa Farm Bureau through a new option approved by the Iowa Legislature will allow people to be turned away if they have pre-existing conditions. The Des Moines Register reports the farm bureau unveiled details of its coverage, which lowers costs by skirting requirements of the Affordable Care Act. Applicants will be asked if they have been diagnosed or treated for a variety of ailments, and they can be rejected or charged more, unlike standard health insurance.

WEST UNION, Iowa (AP) — Owners of three eastern Iowa wind energy turbines are fighting a court order to tear them down. The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier reports that attorneys asked Judge John Bauercamper to put a hold on his previous order to remove the turbines by Dec. 9. The wind towers built in 2015 drew opposition from housing developers and homeowners in nearby Fairbank who believed they would be detrimental to the town.

WASHINGTON, Iowa (AP) — A second man has been found guilty of first-degree murder in the fatal shooting of a gender-fluid Iowa teenager that drew national attention. The Hawk Eye reports that a Washington County jury convicted 26-year-old Jaron Purham on Friday in the 2016 death of 16-year-old Kedarie Johnson of Burlington. Purham faces a mandatory prison term of life when he’s sentenced Nov. 19.

Purham’s cousin, Jorge Sanders-Galvez, also was convicted last year of first-degree murder in the case. Johnson’s relatives say he identified as both male and female. Prosecutors said Johnson was wearing a pink headband and hair extensions when Sanders-Galvez and Purham saw the teen at a store, followed him in their car, then took the teen to a Burlington home. Police say Johnson was sexually assaulted and tortured before being shot to death in an alley.

Purham has already served prison time in Missouri for his 2016 flight from police who were trying to arrest him in the Johnson case.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa’s governor has ordered flags on state property flown at half-staff this weekend to honor a fallen World War II soldier and firefighters killed in the line of duty.

Gov. Kim Reynolds requests that all U.S. and state flags be lowered during daylight hours on Saturday to honor Army Pvt. Donald E. Brown, of Thompson, who killed in action on July 28, 1944, when his tank was destroyed by enemy fire in France.

The 24-year-old’s remains were buried at an American military cemetery in France as an unknown soldier. His remains were disinterred last year and identified through DNA testing. He will be buried with full military honors Saturday in Thompson.

On Sunday, flags will again be lowered in observance of the Fallen Firefighters Memorial service.

The Atlantic Fireman’s Parade is set for Saturday, Oct. 13^th. And, while you may have known about that, what you may not have known, is that another parade will be held in conjunction with that event, and the City’s Sesquicentennial (150^th Anniversary) Celebration. Atlantic resident Steve Livengood told the Atlantic City Council, Wednesday evening, that there are five judged categories for parade entries. The first is “The Year 2068.” He says to think “outside the box” about what the City of Atlantic is going to look like in another 50-years.

Another category is “Civic Organization.” He said they would expect at least 20 members of your organization to participate. The third Sesquicentennial Parade category is “Agriculture,” and how it has affected the City of Atlantic. Livengood said he hopes the entry is more than just a tractor driving down the street.  The fourth category is “Historical People” in Atlantic.

The fifth and final category is “Judges Choice.” The City Council will act as the judges for this year’s Sesquicentennial Parade. Livengood said while they are still looking for some prizes for the parade entries, others have already been made available, including a $50 gift certificate from Fareway. The parade lineup starts at 4:00 p.m. Entries that want to be judged to show up no later than 4:30. Judging will begin at 5:00 and the winners will be given a banner to display on their parade entry before the parade starts.

Livengood encourages everyone to come out and watch the parade, which begins at 6:00 p.m.

Two males who absconded from the Clarinda Academy, Thursday, were apprehended in Adair County late this (Friday) morning. The Page County Sheriff’s Office was notified by PAGECOM, Thursday, that two black male juveniles were missing from the Clarinda Academy, which is located within the city limits of Clarinda. The Page County Sheriff’s Office assisted the Clarinda Police Department throughout the night in attempting to locate these males in patrol and following alleged sightings on the east side of the Nodaway River.

At approximately 8-a.m. today (Friday), Justin Dammann, rural Essex, reported to the Sheriff’s Office that his black / grey 2017 Ford F-350 Super duty pickup had been stolen from his driveway, sometime between 1:30-a.m. and 6:30-a.m. The vehicle was then entered nationwide into the NCIC computer system as stolen. At approximately 9-a.m., the Page County Sheriff’s Office was notified by the Adair County Sheriff’s Office that Dammann’s stolen vehicle had been involved in an a hit and run accident in the city limits of Adair, and Deputies were actively looking for the vehicle as well as the two juvenile males.

At Approximately 11-a.m., the Adair County Sheriff’s Office notified the Page County Sheriff’s Office that they had recovered Dammann’s stolen vehicle, and had apprehended the two Clarinda Academy Students. The Adair County Sheriff’s Office said in a social media post, that the juveniles were caught in Adair, after the stolen vehicle ran out of fuel. Authorities said “After a short game of hide and go seek on the train tracks, the juveniles were apprehended.” The case is ongoing and charges will be filed.

On a possibly related note, at around 10-a.m. Thursday, Wayne Sederburg, of rural Essex, reported that sometime during the night someone had entered his garage (which is just under one-mile east of Dammann’s residence). Sederburg said that a pair of black winter gloves were found in his car. He said also, that the contents of the car had been thrown around and messed up. Sederburg said that nothing else appeared missing at the time of his report.

IOWA CITY — U.S. Sens. Joni Ernst and Chuck Grassley sent a letter Tuesday to the Iowa City Veterans Affairs Health Care System with questions about allegations of improperly canceled diagnostic exams. “Iowa veterans rightly expect the VA to properly manage crucial medical appointments, especially with follow-ups, lab or imaging tests,” Ernst said in a prepared statement. “I remain concerned about the level of care that our veterans are receiving.”

The letter follows news reports about the Iowa City VA being audited, along with eight other VA hospitals nationwide, to determine whether radiology requests were processed in a timely manner and canceled appropriately. The U.S. senators also asked hospital staff to detail the process the VA used to follow up with veterans to make sure they are receiving proper imaging care.

“While we are glad to see corrective action by the Iowa City VA, this and similar issues over the past few years continue to raise questions regarding the level of care our veterans in Iowa are receiving,” the letter states.

Did you know, 4-H offers over 30 interest areas for youth to learn, grow and excel in? Interest areas include STEM, Outdoor Adventures, Photography, Food & Nutrition and much, much more!  Cass County Extension will be celebrating all things 4-H during National 4-H Week October 7-13. Now is the time of year for youth to join and participate in 4-H, the youth development program of Iowa State University Extension and Outreach. Keep an eye out for Cass County 4-H members, volunteers, and supporters showing their 4-H pride during National 4-H Week. Many community clubs will be creating window displays in local businesses to showcase their 4-H pride. Other clubs will be doing special events and activities during the week such as wearing 4-H shirts to school to show their 4-H pride. Some clubs are even doing service projects during this celebration week!

To kick off National 4-H Week, Cass County 4-H will be hosting a Fall Fest on Sunday, October 7 from 4-6 PM at the Cass County Fairgrounds, to celebrate 4-H as well as invite new/potential 4-Hers to join in the fun and see what 4-H is all about.  “We have a variety of fun activities planned which will showcase some of the project areas with hands-on activities, games and fun! We will have youth members providing activities, a photo booth, a giant game of twister, corn hole, and much more. Also a 4-H information booth and a potluck meal will be available,” says Shelby Van Horn, County Youth Coordinator for ISU Cass County Extension and Outreach. “It will be a fun evening for all to come out and celebrate National 4-H Week!”

4-H is a year round program for youth in grades kindergarten through 12. National 4-H Week is a great time to show all the wonderful things 4-H offers to youth,” stated Van Horn. “ In fact, research has shown that young people in 4-H are nearly four times as likely to contribute to their communities and are twice as likely to engage in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) programs during after school time.” 4-H is active in each of Iowa’s 99 counties and empowers youth to reach their full potential through many different types of experiences experiences including photography, music, woodworking, sewing, archery, livestock and horticulture. Youth have fun while gaining valuable skills in communication and the arts, citizenship and leadership, science, technology, engineering and math, as well as healthy living and personal life management by being involved in 4-H.

4-H grows confidence, creativity, curiosity, courage, character and much more in youth. 4-H allows youth to use the skills that they learn to go out and make a positive difference in their communities. Cass County 4-H has more than 320 4-H youth and 100 volunteers involved in the program. Interested in joining 4-H? Contact the Cass County Extension Office at 712-243-1132 or visit the Cass County Extension website at www.extension.iastate.edu/cass.

(Press release from Cass County Extension)

(Radio Iowa) — As mentioned earlier this week, President Trump is due to speak at a rally in Council Bluffs next Tuesday and is expected to announce the E-P-A will allow year-round sales of gasoline with a higher blend of ethanol. Republican Congressman Steve King says the E-P-A shouldn’t set any blending limits.  “Let’s not say E15. Let’s go beyond that. I don’t want to create another blend wall at E15. There’s no reason we would do that except it’s just got stuck in our vernacular,” King says. “You know how (if) you control the language, you control the policy.”

The federal Clean Air Act requires gasoline be blended with products like ethanol to reduce carbon emissions. King says it’s time to let market forces determine how much ethanol is added. “Then the consumers can choose,” King says. “And with gas prices going up and ethanol prices going down, we need to open this up.”

King met with President Trump in the White House this past Tuesday and this was among the topics they discussed.

Sheriff’s officials in Union County report 28-year old Tyree Jermaine Millsap, of Afton, was arrested at around 8:30-a.m., Thursday, in Afton. Millsap was taken into custody for false imprisonment. He was later released from the Union County Jail on his own recognizance before being transferred to Madison County authorities, where Millsap was to be held on warrants out of their county.