MARION, Iowa (KCRG) – A man has been arrested, accused of forcing a 14-year-old into his garage with the intent to sexually abuse her. According to a criminal complaint, 43-year-old Nicholas Roberts attempted to entice a 14-year-old girl into his garage to have sex with him back on May 20, 2022. When she refused he reportedly grabbed her and pulled her into his garage without her consent. He then exposed himself and attempted to assault her. The victim was able to get out of the garage and alert another neighbor to what happened. Roberts was charged with Kidnapping in the 2nd Degree, Enticing a Minor Under 16 for a Sexual Purpose, Assault with Intent to Commit Sex Abuse, and Indecent Exposure.
CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (KCRG) – A home on the northwest side of Cedar Rapid suffered some damage after an early evening fire. At around 5:41 p.m. Thursday, the Cedar Rapids Fire Department was sent to a report of smoke emanating from a two-story apartment building in the 2500 block of Ellis View Court NW. Firefighters arrived and did not observe smoke outside, but located smoke inside the structure. Smoke was heaviest in the basement, where firefighters discovered where the fire started in a closed room. The fire was extinguished by firefighters after it was located. Nobody was hurt in the incident, nor were occupants of the building displaced by the fire. Damage was noted in the basement room where the fire started, with additional light smoke throughout the apartment. The cause of the fire is under investigation.
DES MOINES, Iowa (KCRG) – Officials with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (Iowa DNR) have confirmed that statewide average precipitation has been below the mark for the 5th month in a row. Iowa’s August precipitation was 3.53 inches which was 0.6 inches below normal for the month. Drought conditions have made slight improvements in the southwest and central part of the state, but they have worsened in southeast Iowa over the last month. “Although August was close to normal for rainfall on a statewide basis, rainfall was below normal for the fifth consecutive month. The state needs above-normal rainfall for several months in a row, not another below-normal month,” said Tim Hall, DNR’s coordinator of hydrology resources. “Over the past several years, the state has seen very wet September and October months, and that trend would be welcome in 2022.”
SIOUX CITY (KTIV) – A carbon pipeline company is appealing a district court decision that would require it to release its list of possibly affected landowners. Summit Carbon Solutions, one of three carbon pipeline companies seeking to operate in Iowa, says the list should be kept secret to protect the privacy interest of landowners. They’re the company appealing the decision to the Iowa Supreme Court. Opponents to the carbon pipelines say the move is meant to prevent them from communicating with one another. Two carbon pipelines would carve through Siouxland in Iowa, Nebraska and South Dakota if they’re approved. “As a public disclosure matter these type of companies have a tendency to fight disclosure of a lot of things, you know, even in some cases, evacuation routes and, you know, information that really pertains to the safety,” said Dan Zegart an author with the Climate Investigations Center. The Iowa Utilities Board will ultimately decide if the carbon pipelines can be built. The pipelines are meant to capture carbon from facilities like ethanol plants and sequester it into the ground.
