An investigation by the Iowa Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Investigation & Identity Protection has uncovered fraudulent business practices at Adams Motor Company, in Denison. Due to the nature of this criminal behavior, the Iowa DOT is in the process of revoking the vehicle dealer’s license that was issued to Robert Adams for this business. Customers alleged Adams was mishandling the money they paid for certain services related to vehicle purchases. The investigation discovered funds paid by customers for title transfers, warranty contracts, and protection plans were kept by the dealership and not forwarded to the agencies that provide these services, leaving the customer without the intended coverage they had paid for.

The dealership also sold property that had outstanding loans and then failed to pay off lending institutions. Customers who bought this property were unable to get a clear title since the lending institution maintains possession of the title until the loans are paid. As a result of the investigation, Robert Adams was arrested on multiple felony charges that included ongoing criminal conduct. He has also been charged with multiple counts of theft in the first degree and one count of theft in the second degree for selling secured property and not providing payment to the lending institutions.

SUTHERLAND, Iowa (AP) — Authorities say a man was pronounced dead at a hospital after being pulled from a creek in northwest Iowa. Sutherland police say 41-year-old Daniel Wetherell was found underwater at the bottom of Murray Creek early Sunday morning. A vehicle was snagged on a guardrail nearby. Police say Wetherell was pronounced dead later at a Primghar hospital.

The accident is being investigated. Authorities say Wetherell was director of Sutherland’s General N.B. Baker Library.

Investigators in Iowa have concluded their investigation into an incident that took place at around 5-a.m. May 4th in Belle Plaine, where a mother and son were struck by a train. Authorities say based on evidence collected at the home of 36-year old Teresa Gerleman, interviews of Union Pacific Railroad employees, video footage from the Union Pacific engine, and a multitude of a sundry interviews, the conclusion is Gerleman committed suicide, and pulled her eight-year old son Henry Fields into the path of the train. Both died at the scene.

Evidence at the impact site indicates Gerleman waited near the railroad tracks for the Union Pacific train to approach. She and her son can be seen on video crossing the tracks and as the train draws near. She then returned to the center of the tracks and at the last moment pulled her son into the path of the train.

The Adair County Sheriff’s Office reports four arrests this past week. A traffic stop on Interstate 80 at around 6-p.m. May 13th resulted in the arrest of two men from Illinois. An Iowa State Patrol Trooper pulled a car over for speeding 88-mph in a 70 zone at around mile marker 88. Upon further investigation, the Trooper arrested 27-year old Christopher J. Jackson, of Genoa, IL., and 27-year old John Michael Joseph Daniells, of Harvard, IL., for possession of a controlled substance/1st offense. Both men were released a couple of hours later on a $1,000 cash or surety bond, each.

On May 14th, 35-year old Luke Allan Mullen, of Bedford, was transported from the Adair/Union County line during a transfer from another agency, and brought to the Adair County Jail for Violation of a No Contact Order. Mullen was released on the 17th, after posting a $300 bond. And, 34-year old Adam Michael Roan, of Bridgewater, was arrested Saturday afternoon following a traffic stop on Highway 92 near 250th Street in Adair County. Roan was arrested for Driving While License denied or revoked for OWI Test Refusal. He was released later that same day on a $1,000 cash or surety bond.

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

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• 1 package yellow cake mix
• 1 package instant lemon pudding mix
• 16 oz. can fruit cocktail (undrained)
• 1 cup coconut
• 4 eggs
• 1/4 cup oil
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Butter Glaze:

• 1/2 cup butter
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup evaporated milk
• 1 1/2 cups coconut

Blend all ingredients together except brown sugar and nuts.  Beat 4 minutes at medium speed in large mixer bowl.  Pour into greased and floured 9″ x 13″ pan.  Sprinkle brown sugar and nuts on top.  Bake at 325 degrees for 45 minutes or until cake springs back and pulls from sides of pan.  Don’t under bake.  Cool 15 minutes and spoon hot glaze over warm cake.

Butter Glaze:  Boil sugar, butter and milk for 2 minutes in saucepan.  Stir in coconut.

(Dolores Swope)

FOREST CITY, Iowa (AP) — A 20-year-old man has been accused of stealing around 150 pigs from a confinement near Lake Mills in northern Iowa. Winnebago County Court records say Robert Morales, of Buffalo Center, is charged with theft and burglary. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for June 8. The pigs were reported stolen Nov. 4 from a Christensen Farms operation.

Officials with the Creston Police Department report 35-year old Jason Johnson, of Lenox, was arrested just before 6-p.m. Monday. Johnson was taken into custody at the Union County Law Enforcement Center, on a Union County warrant for Violation of Parole. He was being held in the jail without bond.

And, there were separate theft and vandalism incidents reported to the Creston P-D, Monday. A resident of the 500 block of W. Montgomery Street said that sometime in the last few months, someone stole an intake manifold and carburetor from a vehicle that was parked in the back of a residence. The loss was estimated at $300. A resident of the 1000 block of S. Sumner Street in Creston told police that sometime between 11-p.m. Sunday and 6:30-a.m. Monday, someone keyed his vehicle while it was in a parking lot near the residence. The damage was estimated at $200.

The area’s latest and/or top news stories at 7:06-a.m., w/KJAN News Director Ric Hanson

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OTTUMWA, Iowa (AP) — A man accused of killing an Ottumwa teenager is expected to change his plea. Court records say a hearing has been scheduled May 29 for 20-year-old Venhure Tsegay. Authorities say he shot 16-year-old Christian Madueno in the face on Nov. 29, 2016. Authorities say Madueno died nearly a month later. Tsegay has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder. The records don’t say what other charges are involved, if any. He’s also been charged with robbery, burglary, assault and a drug crime.