Here is the latest Iowa news from The Associated Press at 3:30 a.m. CST

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Presidents of Iowa’s three state universities are asking for funding increases to pay for more financial aid for undergraduate students. But stagnant tax revenue could make additional spending unlikely. The Des Moines Register reports the university presidents requested $12 million on Tuesday from the governor. The requests come as the governor warns that Iowa may face another tight budget next year. But she says she’s committed to working with the universities.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Federal prosecutors say a Des Moines tax preparer has been sentence to nearly four years in prison for wire and tax fraud and identity theft. The U.S. Attorney for Iowa’s southern district says 48-year-old Lony Tap Gatwas, of Ames, was sentenced Wednesday to 21 months in prison for wire fraud and tax fraud, and 24 months for aggravated identity theft, to be served one after the other.

HARLAN, Iowa (AP) — Authorities say a body has been found in the burned-out wreckage of a vehicle in western Iowa. The Council Bluffs Daily Nonpareil reports that that Shelby County sheriff’s deputies and firefighters responded to a report late Tuesday night of an explosion and fire in Harlan, about 50 miles northeast of Omaha, Nebraska. First responders found a vehicle next to a shed in a backyard, and both were engulfed in flames. The body was found inside the vehicle once the flames were extinguished.

DUBUQUE, Iowa (AP) — The Pentagon has approved a Silver Star medal of heroism for a Navy chaplain from Iowa who’s been credited with helping sailors escape a battleship during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941. Station KDTH reports that Pentagon staffers will travel to Dubuque next week and present the nation’s third-highest medal to the family of Aloysius Schmitt.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — It won’t be adding “international” to its name, but Omaha’s main commercial airport will offer its first international flight — to Toronto — starting this spring.

The Omaha World-Herald reports that the daily nonstop flight from Omaha’s Eppley Airfield to Toronto will be operated by Air Canada starting May 1. Air Canada is the first foreign airline to offer regular service to and from Eppley.

The flight will leave Toronto at 2:30 p.m. and land in Omaha at 4 p.m. The return flight will leave Omaha at 4:30 p.m. and land in Toronto at 7:50 p.m. Air Canada will fly the route with a 50-seat, single-class CRJ-200 jet.

Officials with the Cass County Health System report that at the Monday business meeting for the Cass County Board of Health, Pat Markham was presented with a Certificate of Appreciation for more than 30 years of service on the Cass County Board of Health. Markham is resigning from the board as she will be relocating outside of the county after the New Year and will be ineligible to fill the position.

Photo (left to right): Dawn Mouw, Regional Community Health Consultant with Iowa Department of Public Health; Pat Markham, Cass County Board of Health Secretary; and Gerald Wessels, DVM, Cass County Board of Health Chairman. (Photo provided)

Beth Olsen, Director of Public Health for Cass County, said “Pat has played a crucial role in promoting and protecting the health of the public. It has been an honor to work with her in advancing public health initiatives throughout the county. She has a tremendous wealth of knowledge and experience that will be greatly missed by the entire board.”

The Cass County Board of Health works to support the mission of public health by developing public health policy, assuring compliance with legal responsibilities, and supporting quality practices. Promoting and protecting the health of the public depends upon capable and dedicated community leadership by the local Board of Health.

Deter Motor Company and The Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce have announced the nominations are currently being accepted for the 17th annual ATHENA Award, in Atlantic. The award will be presented on Saturday, Jan. 13th, 2018 at the Cass County Community Center. It will be presented to an exceptional individual who has achieved excellence in her/his business profession, has served the community in a meaningful way and has assisted women in their attainment of professional goals and leadership skills.

Athena Award

The ATHENA Award was first presented in 1982 in Lansing, Michigan and has grown to include presentations to more than 6,000 individuals in hundreds of cities across the globe. Locally, past winners include Lavon Eblen, Kathie Hockenberry, Lanette Plambeck, Pat Markman, Dolly Bergmann, Wendy Richter, Ann Pross, Janell Hansen, Jan Kinison, Carole Schuler, Glenda Farrier, Margaret Slepsky, Denise O’Brien, Leanne Pellett, Judy Marnin, and 2017 winner Tressa Wilcox.

Deter Motor Company believes in the values underlying ATHENA’s philosophy of incorporating talent and expertise of women into the leadership of our businesses, our communities and our government. The spirit of the ATHENA Award Program is captured in a quotation from Plato, “What is honored in a country will be cultivated there.” By honoring exceptional leaders, others will be encouraged to excel.

Those interested in nominating an individual can pick up a nomination packet at the Atlantic Area Chamber of Commerce, 102 Chestnut Street, or by visiting www.AtlanticIowa.com. Nominations are due by December 12th, 2017 at noon at the Chamber Office.

DUBUQUE, Iowa (AP) — The Pentagon has approved a Silver Star medal of heroism for a Navy chaplain from Iowa who’s been credited with helping sailors escape a battleship during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on Dec. 7, 1941. Station KDTH reports that Pentagon staffers will travel to Dubuque next week and present the nation’s third-highest medal to the family of Aloysius Schmitt. He was born in St. Lucas and attended what is now Loras College in Dubuque.

His remains were returned to the area in October 2016. Steve Sloan, Schmitt’s great-nephew, helped organize the efforts to upgrade Schmitt’s honors. Schmitt is credited with saving a dozen sailors from the USS Oklahoma after it was attacked. Witnesses say he turned down several chances to escape in order to help men through a porthole.

A Nebraska man was arrested Tuesday afternoon for allegedly stealing a cell phone from a worker at Oakland Foods. The Pottawattamie County Sheriff’s Office reports 48-year old Joseph Anthony Ford, of Omaha, was arrested at around 1-p.m. after the staffing company he works for in Council Bluffs was notified about the theft of a Galaxy 6 cell phone, valued at $450. The phone belonged to a female worker at Oakland Foods.

And, the Pott. County Sheriff’s Office reports 44-year old James Dale Aherns, of Council Bluffs, was arrested Tuesday evening on a warrant for a Parole Violation associated with a Prohibited Acts charge connected to the Unlawful Possession of an Explosive.

DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) — Presidents of Iowa’s three state universities are asking for funding to pay for more financial aid for undergraduate students. But stagnant tax revenue could make additional spending unlikely. The Des Moines Register reports the university presidents requested $12 million on Tuesday from Gov. Kim Reynolds. Iowa State University and the University of Iowa each requested $5 million, while the University of Northern Iowa asked for $2 million.

The requests come after Reynolds cautioned that Iowa may face another tight budget next year. But she says she’s committed to working with the presidents to provide quality education. State funding at the universities was slashed by more than $30 million this year. The university presidents also requested $40 million for major campus construction projects.

The Page County Sheriff’s Office reports the arrest on Nov. 23rd, of 56-year old Edward Paul Swanson, of rural Braddyville. Swanson was taken into custody on an Atchison County Missouri Felony warrant for Tampering with a motor vehicle, 1st Degree. He was transported to the Page County Jail and released after $7,500 bond was posted for him in Missouri. He faces court proceedings in that State.

On November 27th, Page County Deputies arrested 43-year old Jason Ludwig Reents, of Coin. He was arrested in Clarinda on a Page County warrant for Eluding. Ludwig was transported to the Page County Jail where he posted $,2000 bond and was released pending further court proceedings. Reents was not booked into the Page County Jail.

Joan Christianson

Edward P. Swanson

On November 28th, Deputies in Page County arrested 79-year old Joan Christianson, of Shenandoah, at her home. She was wanted on a Page County Warrant for Failure to serve a court ordered Jail sentence. Christianson was transported to the Page County Jail where she is currently serving the jail sentence.

And, Page County Sheriff Lyle Palmer said that on the morning of November 24th, Sheriff’s Office recovered a stolen EZ Go electric golf cart. The golf cart had been stolen from Clarinda on October 30th. It was recovered from a shed west of Clarinda. The owner of the shed had found it there while looking for something else in the shed.

The incident remains under investigation with the Clarinda Police Department. Anyone with information about the theft of the golf cart is asked to contact the Clarinda Police Department at 712-542-2194, or the Page County Sheriff’s Office at 712-542-5193.

Officials with the Harlan Police Department say there was one arrest and numerous non-injury accidents over the last couple of weeks.  Last Saturday, officers arrested 55-year old Kurt Edward Block, of Harlan, for Possession of  a Controlled Substance. Block was also cited for having no valid driver’s license. He was taken into custody following a traffic stop and transported to the Shelby County Jail.

With regard to the accidents: On Tuesday (11/28), vehicles driven by Marissa Mitchell, of Harlan, and Jayne Olson, of Panama, collided at the intersection of Southwest Avenue and Chatburn. Authorities say Mitchell was stopped at the intersection northbound, in a 1999 Pontiac Grand Am. A truck was stopped west bound, waiting to turn south on Southwest Avenue. Mitchell couldn’t see an approaching westbound 2011 Ford F-150 driven by Olson that was in the outside lane. When Mitchell proceeded north onto 8th Street, her car hit the side of the pickup. The impact spun both vehicles around before they came to rest in the intersection of 8th and Chatburn.

A collision between a 2016 Chevy Malibu and a 2014 Hyundai Sonta happened Nov. 21st, in Harlan. Officials say William McMahon, of Irwin, was traveling west on Chatburn Avenue in his Sonta, as the Malibu, driven by Richard Mikels, of Portsmouth, was eastbound, and turning north into the Burger King parking lot. Mikels didn’t see McMahon and turned in front of him, causing the vehicles to collide.

The previous day (11/20), a 1996 Oldsmobile Regency driven by Zachary Barbee, of Harlan, was traveling west on Chatburn Avenue, when it left the road and struck a curb in the 1000 block of Chatburn Avenue. The car also struck a utility light pole and utility box.

On Nov. 15th, Harlan Police investigated a minor accident. Officials say a 2008 Acura MDS driven by Nicole Walter, of Glenwood, was turning into Border Fare on Chatburn Avenue, when an vehicle struck the Acura, causing minor damage. The other vehicle did not stop.

And, on Nov. 14th, a 2011 Chevy Traverse driven by Ted Jansen, of Aspinwall, and a 2005 Ford 500 driven by Dylan Hansen, of Harlan, collided near 23rd Street and Frontage Road, in Harlan. Officials say Hansen was leaving the Shelby County State Bank westbound. He slowed for the stop sign and turned left onto the Frontage Road south. Jansen was southbound from Frontage Road when the right front side of the Ford made contact with the left rear of the SUV.