CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (KCRG) – After bricks fell off the exterior of the building Thursday morning, the Ecumenical Community Center’s Chief Operations Officers said the organizations the building houses will operate normally. It’s not clear why bricks fell off the building, but engineers will inspect the building on Monday to see how bad the damage is and what caused it. The building is on 6th Street and Second Avenue Southeast. The center houses several organizations like the NAACP, NAMI and Helping Hands Ministry. The 6th street entrance is now fenced off and a couple rooms are closed for the time being. The Center’s COO said the groups who used those closed rooms can still operate remotely, and the organizations in the rest of the building are using the Second Ave entrance.
JOHNSON COUNTY, Iowa (KCRG) – A 43-year-old man has been arrested in connection with an incident that involved the Johnson County Metro Bomb Team on Wednesday. Police say that at on July 31st, at approximately 10:07 p.m., an individual called 911 anonymously and reported that suspicious items had been left outside the Johnson County Courthouse. The caller reported the items were destructive, and law enforcement needed to retrieve them. Officers closed off the immediate area around the courthouse, at 417 S. Clinton Street, for a couple of hours. The Johnson County Metro Bomb Team responded and removed the suspicious items, which were discovered to be a stack of books. Following an investigation, officials arrested 43-year-old Kenneth Davis in connection to the incident. They say he placed the books there and then called 911. Officials say he also called in a false threat from an Iowa City gas station earlier in the day. He was charged with False Reports to a Public Safety Entity.
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (KCRG) – A Cedar Rapids man will be sentenced on lower charges after accepting a plea deal relating to the shooting death of a 22-year-old. On January 8, 2023, officers responded to a report that someone had been shot in the 5500 block of Kirkwood Boulevard. Officers found a vehicle off the road in the 5600 block of Kirkwood Boulevard SW with an unresponsive driver suffering from what appeared to be gunshot wounds. He died later at the hospital. He was identified as 22-year-old Mohamed Tawfik. Following an investigation, 21-year-old Paris Diamond was located by the United States Marshal’s Northern Iowa Fugitive Task Force on February 3 and was subsequently arrested. According to the criminal complaint, Police discovered during their investigation that Tawfik and Diamond were communicating with one another via cell phone before the incident. Messages reportedly indicated that Tawfik was arranging to meet Diamond to sell him drugs. The night of the incident, a witness reported seeing a male individual approach Tawfik’s vehicle with the two of them shouting at one another. Tawfik attempted to drive from the scene, driving the vehicle off the road where he was later found unresponsive by investigators. Investigators found two shell casings in Tawfik’s vehicle and a large amount of marijuana in a backpack inside. Officials also found an “SS” car emblem at the scene of the crime. When investigators went to the registered address of the defendant’s vehicle, they found it was missing the “SS” emblem. Court records also say that police found a Taurus G3 pistol at Diamond’s address that was seized following a search warrant. According to officials, it was test-fired and found to be a match to the shell casings found inside Tawfik’s vehicle. On August 2, 2024, Diamond accepted a plea deal to the following charges: Voluntary Manslaughter, Intimidation with a Dangerous Weapon–Intent, and Going Armed with Intent. He is set to be sentenced on November 8, 2024.
TAMA, Iowa (KCRG) – On July 21, 2024, Toledo Police responded to reports of a suspicious subject wearing a mask and carrying a machete. Officials say the subject was ringing doorbells with the weapon and pointing it at passing motorists. Following an investigation, officials identified the suspect as 32-year-old Anthony Reitinger of Tama. Reitinger was arrested and charged with Harassment-1st Degree and Trespass-1st Degree.
