State Treasurer Michael Fitzgerald is helping the federal bureau which oversees banks try to return unclaimed payments from 15 mortgage servicers to Iowans. Fitzgerald says the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency has the money from a settlement with lenders who were using improper mortgage lending practices. “They’ve tried to locate the owners, but we still have over one-point-two million dollars we’re holding for over two-thousand Iowans who have anywhere between 300 and three-thousand dollars coming back to them. And we want to find them,” Fitzgerald says.

Fitzgerald says some people may’ve already gone through a foreclosure, but could still be due some money. “If you had a mortgage between 2009 and 2010 — and especially if you were in financial difficulty with it — you are probably on our list,” he says. The servicers involved what was a three-point-six billion dollar overall settlement are: Aurora, Bank of America, Citibank, CountryWide, Goldman Sachs, H-S-B-C, J-P-Morgan Chase, MetLife Bank, Morgan Stanley, P-N-C, Sovereign, SunTrust, U-S Bank and Wells Fargo.

Fitzgerald says you can now claim any money you may be due from the settlement through the long-running program to return abandoned property known as The Great Iowa Treasure Hunt. “You go to the Great Iowa Treasure Hunt-dot-Gov and just put in your name, and it’ll pop up if you are there,” Fitzgerald says. He says even if you aren’t due any settlement money, you may find something else.

” When you are there and you punch up your name — you might find you have some other property coming too. Because we have over one million names and we are holding over 300 million dollars for people, so along with that you might find you have other money,” Fitzgerald explains. “It’s really simple, it takes about two to three weeks, and we have easy ways to work with you to prove that you are who you say you are.”

Fitzgerald says The Great Iowa Treasure Hunt program has returned over 214 million dollars in unclaimed property to more than 500-thousand people since it was created in 1983.

(Radio Iowa)

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The Veterans Affairs Nebraska-Western Iowa Health Care System is out of the nuclear business after entering the atomic age with its small-scale reactor nearly six decades ago. The Omaha World-Herald reports that the Nuclear Regulatory Commission terminated the operating license for the Alan J. Blotcky Reactor Facility, effective Monday. The facility had run in the basement of Omaha’s VA Medical Center for more than 40 years.

VA researchers used the reactor primarily for neutron activation of biological samples from 1959 to 2001. The facility was also used to train operators of the Fort Calhoun nuclear plant. Soon after 9/11, it was shut down because of security concerns. Last year, the VA spent $1.3 million to dismantle what was left of the reactor, in addition to $5.9 million spent in 2001 and 2002.

The fall Becoming an Outdoors-Woman (BOW) workshop is Sept. 16-18, at the Springbrook Conservation Education Center, adjacent to Springbrook State Park, north of Guthrie Center. While the focus of BOW is primarily for women, the workshop is an opportunity for anyone 18 years or older to learn outdoor skills. Workshop courses include basic fishing, Dutch oven cooking, birdwatching, kayaking, deer hunting, wild edibles, basic camping, intro to archery, intro to firearms, canoeing and more.

“This workshop is an excellent opportunity to try activities under the guidance of our top-notch instructors,” said Rachel Ladd, with the Iowa Departments of Natural Resources. “Our workshop is popular because we keep our class sizes small and the setting at Springbrook is beautiful, particularly in the fall.”

The cost for the workshop is $150 before Sept. 4, and $180 beginning Sept. 5. The fee includes program materials, equipment, lodging and meals. Enrollment is limited to 100 participants. A limited number of scholarships are available that can reduce the fee by $75.

Go to www.iowadnr.gov/bow to download a registration form, select classes and for more information on applying for a scholarship. Lodging is in dormitories with eight people per room.

SIOUX CITY, Iowa (AP) – A chapel that is one of the last standing remnants of Sioux City’s World War II air base could be moved to a nearby museum. The Sioux City Journal reports that city officials are discussing the possibility of moving the chapel at the entrance of the Sioux Gateway Airport to the Mid America Museum of Aviation and Transportation, which is also located on the former grounds of the base.

Airport director and assistant city manager Mike Collett says the potential move is something that officials have been eyeing to create more space for possible commercial developments. The air base was constructed in 1942 as a B-17 bomber training facility. Three of the base’s original structures remain, and the chapel is the only structure that’s regularly open to the public.

Iowa Senators Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst, along with Wisconsin Senator Ron Johnson, today (Tuesday), urged the Office of Inspector General of the Department of Veterans Affairs to review the case of a combat veteran who committed suicide after seeking help at the Iowa City Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center. Brandon Ketchum reportedly was denied admittance to a psychiatric ward after seeking help during a mental health crisis.

The senators wrote to Inspector General Michael J. Missal, “In light of what has transpired, we strongly urge your office to examine the facts and circumstances of Mr. Ketchum’s interactions with the Iowa City VA Medical Center on July 7, 2016, to determine what, if any, steps can be taken in the future to better protect our veteran population, including potential changes to VA policy, if applicable” They said also, “It is also important for policymakers within the VA and in Congress to know if this is an isolated incident, how often veterans seeking inpatient mental health care are turned away, and how often this leads to adverse consequences.”

Ketchum, a native of Wisconsin living in Davenport, Iowa, was a veteran of the Marine Corps and Army National Guard. On July 7th, according to a later post on his social media, he believed himself to be a threat to his own safety and sought assistance from the Iowa City VA Medical Center.  The Senators say “Despite his year-long treatment with a psychiatrist at the facility that knew of his struggle with post-traumatic stress disorder as well as repeated flags for suicide over the last three years, his request to be admitted to the psychiatric ward due to what he termed ‘serious mental issues’ was reportedly denied. Mr. Ketchum took his own life just over 24 hours later.”

A representative for the medical center has stated that the standing policy is never to turn away a patient who requires admittance as long as beds are open and that even if beds at the Iowa City facility are unavailable, the VA would find the patient a bed at another facility, the senators wrote. The senators asked to be informed of whether the inspector general’s office has decided to open an inquiry and if not, why not, and if so, for a status update when appropriate.

PRIMGHAR, Iowa (AP) – An October trial has been scheduled for a northwest Iowa home health care worker accused of stealing from an elderly client. Spencer radio station KICD reports 36-year-old Rebecca Rutledge, of Paullina, has pleaded not guilty to three counts of forgery, one count of theft and one of unauthorized use of a credit card. Her trial is set to begin Oct. 25th.

The O’Brien County Sheriff’s Office says Rutledge obtained access to the client’s debit card and checking account. The office says that between June and September 2015, Rutledge took more than $7,500 from the client.

MidAmerican Energy has launched a campaign to encourage customers to raise awareness about scams. Spokesperson Ashton Hockman says “Our message is Slam the Scam, which is very simple. We encourage customers if they think they are talking to a scammer to slam down the phone or slam the door shut, if they think they are talking to a scammer in person,” Hockman says. “And to immediately call MidAmerican Energy to check on their account.”

Hockman says there are different variations of the scams, but they all include some common elements. “They often pretend to be MidAmerican Energy employees, and they often call and threaten to shut off service unless they pay immediately,” Hockman explains. The goal is to get the customer’s personal information. She says MidAmerican will not call and make such demands.

“On average we receive about 100 scam calls each month from our customers. And since the start of the year, our customers have reported losing nearly nine-thousand dollars to scammers. And those are only the calls we know about,” She says. Hockman says customers can fight back by slamming down the phone or the door on the scammers. She also encourages everyone to share information about scammers with others.

“Spread the word when it comes to scams, we do find that education is the best defense and best way to fight back against these scammers,” according to Hockman. For more information you can go to MidAmerican Energy’s website. They have also produced a video that shows how scammers work.

(Radio Iowa)

Police in Glenwood arrested a man Monday for OWI/2nd offense. Officials say 74-year old Charles Kruse, of Glenwood, was brought to the Mills County Jail and held on a $2,000 cash bond.

Sheriff’s Deputies in Page County, Monday, arrested a man on an assault charge. Sheriff Lyle Palmer says 27-year old James Dean Archer, of Shenandoah, was arrested in Shenandoah, on a warrant was for Domestic Abuse Assault.  Archer was transported to the Page County jail, and was unable to posted a $2000 cash only bond. He was being held in the jail pending further court appearances.

James Dean Archer

A Cass County man was injured during a single-vehicle accident Monday evening, near Walnut. Pottawattamie County Chief Deputy Sheriff John Reynolds told KJAN News 42-year old Darrell Pershin, of rural Anita, was transported by Walnut Fire and Rescue to the Cass County Memorial Hospital in Atlantic, and later transported by LifeFlight Helicopter to a hospital in Des Moines.

The crash happened at around 7:20-p.m. on Highway 83. Chief Deputy Reynolds said  witnesses stated Pershin was traveling west at a high rate of speed on Highway 83 in a 2016 Chevy Express van registered to Plumb Tech Mechanical, Inc., out of Knoxville, when in the vicinity of 505th Street and Sycamore, the vehicle left the road and jumped an embankment on 505th and landed on the west side of 505th before entering a cornfield and coming to rest right side up. The vehicle sustained about $10,000 damage.

The accident remains under investigation, with charges or citations pending the outcome of the investigation.