WASHINGTON (AP) — A U.S. senator says a whistleblower has alleged that an internal review found 665 FBI personnel have resigned or retired to avoid accountability in misconduct probes over the past two decades. The whistleblower told the office of Iowa Republican Chuck Grassley that the Justice Department launched the review in 2020 after an Associated Press investigation into sexual misconduct among senior FBI officials. It was not clear how many of the 665 cases involved sexual misconduct. Grassley’s office said that was the kind of information it was still seeking. The FBI declined to comment specifically on the whistleblower’s allegation or to provide its own tally of disciplinary cases.
HIAWATHA, Iowa (KCRG) – An Iowa man was arrested on Thursday for sending a threatening communication to an election official on the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors in Maricopa County, Arizona, and for sending a threatening communication to an official with the Office of the Arizona Attorney General. According to court documents, 64-year-old Mark Rissi allegedly left voicemail for an election official on the Maricopa County Board of Supervisors back in September 2021. Rissi left another voicemail for an official with the Office of the Arizona Attorney General in December 2021. Rissi is charged with two counts of making a threatening interstate communication and one count of making a threatening telephone call. If convicted, Rissi faces a maximum penalty of up to five years in prison for each count of making a threatening interstate communication and up to two years in prison for making a threatening telephone call.
LINN COUNTY, Iowa (KCRG) – The Linn County Sheriff’s Office has received several reports of scammers using the actual names of Sheriff’s Office employees and advising the victims that they have missed jury duty and now have a warrant issued for their arrest. Victims are then told they can take care of the warrant by submitting a payment through Bitcoin or a similar cryptocurrency kiosk. They are then told to come directly to the Sheriff’s Office after they have deposited the money in an effort to make the scam appear to be legitimate. Officials are reminding the public that a law enforcement agency will never request payment for a citation or warrant through these types of kiosks. They will never ask people to purchase gift cards either. Anyone receiving these calls is reminded to just hang up. If you feel you have been a victim of a scam, contact your local law enforcement agency.
WATERLOO, Iowa (KCRG) – A Waterloo woman will spend up to 10 years in prison for luring her cousin to his death. Prosecutors originally charged Danaesha Martin with first degree murder. She later pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of conspiracy and testified at the trial of Raymond Birden Junior. Birden is one of two men who shot Shavondes Martin in 2018. Prosecutors said it was in retaliation for a drive-by shooting, which killed Birden’s brother in 2016. Shavondes was acquitted in the shooting. That’s when Birden had Danaesha bring her cousin to her apartment complex on South Street. Shavondes was later shot and killed in an alley behind Danaesha’s apartment.
