DAVENPORT, IA– A former University of Iowa Student Wrestler was sentenced Thursday, to four months in prison, after pleading guilty to unauthorized access and damage to the University of Iowa college computer network. 23-year old Trevor J. Graves was also ordered to serve two years of supervised release, pay $67,900 in restitution, and pay $100 to the Crime Victims’ Fund. Graves pleaded guilty in April 2018.

Graves admitted he knew from May 2015 to November 15, 2016, the University of Iowa Iowa Courses Online (ICON) computer network was a protected computer. During this time period, Graves knowingly and intentionally placed a key logger on University of Iowa computers and fraudulently obtained professors’ user names and passwords, accessed the ICON computer network, and deleted and changed student grades.

Specifically, Graves accessed the ICON system and, without authorization, changed course grades for himself and five other students. The University of Iowa’s information technology costs associated with their internal investigation, response to the discovery of the network breach, and remedial steps taken to update the University of Iowa information technology security was approximately $67,900.

The investigation was conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, University of Iowa Department of Public Safety, and University of Iowa, Information Services Technology division. The case was prosecuted by the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Iowa.

BROOKLYN, Iowa (AP) — Preliminary autopsy findings show that Iowa college student Mollie Tibbetts was killed by ‘sharp force injuries.’ The Iowa State Medical Examiner conducted an autopsy yesterday (Wednesday, August 22, 2018), on the body confirmed to be Mollie Tibbetts, and drew some preliminary conclusions.

The State Medical Examiner determined that the manner of death was homicide resulting from multiple sharp force injuries. Further examination may result in additional findings. Autopsy reports are confidential under Iowa law, except for the cause and manner of death.

Cristhian Bahena Rivera has been charged in the Iowa District Court for Poweshiek County with Murder in the First Degree. Iowa courts have established rules limiting the release of information regarding an individual who has been criminally charged in a state court. The rules are designed to protect a defendant’s interests in a fair trial that could be affected by media attention to the facts in the case. Court proceedings are open to the public, in almost all circumstances, and those formal proceedings are the primary method for communicating information about the case.

Given that criminal charges have been filed in state court, the Division of Criminal Investigation does not intend to grant individual interviews with members of the media, and will conduct a limited number of press conferences while the case is pending in the Iowa District Court.

HUMBOLDT, Iowa (AP) — A northern Iowa woman has died from injuries she suffered in a crash with a semitrailer. The Messenger in Fort Dodge reports that 28-year-old Yessi Sanchez Collazo, of Algona, was a passenger in a 2016 Ford Mustang that collided head-on with the semitrailer around 3:45 p.m. Tuesday on U.S. Highway 169, north of Humboldt.

Authorities say the semitrailer driver, 63-year-old Jerry Jay Metzger, of Whittemore, was attempting to turn left at an intersection when the car with Collazo stuck his vehicle. They say 38-year-old Yorday Leon Perdomo, of Algona, was driving the Mustang. Perdomo suffered serious injuries and was airlifted to a Des Moines hospital. Collazo died at the scene. Metzger was taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

Jerry Evans, Water Superintendent for the City of Elk Horn reports today (Thursday) the Boil Order placed into effect Monday, has been lifted. The Order was removed after tests for contamination that may have occurred during a problem at the plant, came back negative.

KIMBALLTON, Iowa (AP) — A former City Clerk in Kimballton has been criminally charged after a state audit that found nearly $90,000 in undeposited collections and improper disbursements. Audubon County Attorney Sarah Jennings says 49-year old Tammy Thompson, of Exira, turned herself in today (Thursday), and was booked on four felony counts: ongoing criminal conduct, fraudulent practices (Money or value of property exceeding $10,000), theft (more than $10,000 in value) and unauthorized use of a credit card (in excess of $1,000, but less than $10,000).

She was released on her own recognizance after appearing before the Magistrate. Her preliminary hearing is set for Sept. 10. Sarah Jennings told KJAN News Thompson was released from custody on her Own Recogizance, as she was not deemed to be a flight risk. Jennings said also, the case was “An egregious violation of the public trust,” and it “Will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.”

The charges stem from an investigation initiated by Kimballton Mayor Millette Shores after receiving information from Kimballton’s accounting software that there may be misappropriated funds within the city’s accounts. Mayor Shores reviewed financial statements from their bank and also reviewed electronic documentation of the city’s financial standing. Mayor Shores deemed a misappropriation had occurred and, after receiving guidance from the City Attorney, contacted the State Auditors to assist in the investigation. The Audubon County Sheriff’s Office was also asked to assist in the investigation. Following the conclusion of the State Auditor’s audit, there was a meeting involving the City Attorney, City Council, and the Audubon County Sheriff’s Department. The Audubon County Sheriff’s Department concluded their investigation and then filed criminal charges. The time frame of the misappropriation spans from May 1, 2014 to August 31, 2017.

Iowa State Auditor Mary Mosiman said in a release Thursday that an investigation found more than $42,400 of improper disbursements, including checks issued to or redeemed for cash that went to Thompson and improper purchases on the city’s credit card. The report also found more than $37,000 in undeposited utility collections and nearly $9,000 in unsupported disbursements. (You can read the complete audit report under a separate posting on the kjan.com News page)

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — The U.S. Department of Energy reports that the continued construction of wind-power generating stations is bringing down both the cost of building the installations and the price for wind-generated electricity. The report released Thursday shows Texas leads the nation with 22 gigawatts of wind capacity, followed by Oklahoma, Iowa, California and Kansas with each at more than 5,000 megawatts. A gigawatt is 1 billion watts of power, a megawatt is 1 million watts.

The report says wind energy provided 6.3 percent of the nation’s electricity supply in 2017. The average price for wind power has fallen from 7 cents per kilowatt hour in 2009 to about 2 cents per kilowatt hour in 2017. The U.S. Energy Information Administration says the average home in the U.S. uses 897 kilowatt hours per month.

DES MOINES, Iowa–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Aug 23, 2018–Gen X and Gen Y ‘super savers’ deferred 90 percent or more of the IRS maximum ($16,500-$18,000) to their retirement accounts in 2017. That’s according to new research from Principal Financial Group® which found that while retirement may be a distant goal for many in the group, more than half saved over $20,000 for retirement in the last year. So, what drives their motivation for saving? Sixty-five percent cited the simple “having a good life during retirement,” and another 47 percent said a desire to pursue passions in retirement comfortably. “There is no better advice I can give anyone than save more, earlier,” said Jerry Patterson, senior vice president of retirement at Principal. “These ‘super savers’ are making sacrifices today that should help set them up to have the freedom to do the things they want in the future.”

Being a ‘super saver’: Interestingly, the overwhelming majority (70 percent) are making maximum contributions without having a formal budget in place, instead favoring other sacrifices to max out their retirement contributions. The top sacrifices ‘super savers’ cite include:
Travel: Millennials aren’t seeing the world nearly as much as they’d like, with 41 percent limiting their travel expenses.; Homes: ‘Super savers’ live in humble dwellings, with 31 percent of Gen Y owning a modest home at the expense of savings.; Stress: For both generations, high work-related stress (44 percent) comes alongside the desire to max out retirement savings.

Still willing to splurge ‘Super savers’ have a few items worth a splurge. More than half (51 percent) cite travel as their top splurge expense, with subscription entertainment services such as Netflix or Hulu (44 percent) and general shopping splurges (27 percent) making the cut, as well. The role of family Family is important to ‘super savers.’ Nearly three-quarters of ‘super savers’ (72 percent) learned nothing or very little about personal finance in school. Instead, they overwhelmingly cite their parents (41 percent) as the top influence for their savings habits. Additionally, a third of respondents cited their parents financial situation as a driver in their own savings habits.

“The more we learn about what makes these ‘super savers’ tick, the more may want to emulate their savings habits,” added Patterson. “These savings habits are especially impressive considering most don’t have a formal budget. This underscores the importance of retirement plan features like auto-enrollment and auto-escalation. With these features, these ‘super savers’ exemplify the ‘don’t even notice it’s gone’ approach.”
The Super Saver survey was conducted by Principal between October 19 and November 10, 2017 with 1,498 respondents to the survey. A survey was sent to Millennial and Gen X participants who work for a company that has Principal as the recordkeeper for their retirement account and have reached the IRA max for retirement contributions or who have saved 90% of the IRS max allowed under a retirement plan.

There were 1,498 responses to the survey. For this research study Millennials (Gen Y) are individuals born in 1978 – 1995. Gen X are individuals born in 1965 – 1977.