NEWS
--A man who went kayaking on the Mississippi River has gone missing. The Stearns County Sheriff's Office says they got a call at about 4pm on Wednesday from a boater reporting an overturned kayak. The boater recovered the kayak but did not see anyone around. The St. Cloud Fire Department responded and used several boats and a drone to search the area. The Sheriff's Office and the DNR also deployed boats equipped with side scan sonar to search the water. However, the missing kayaker was not found. He is described as a white man, 39 years old, 5'10", and about 200 pounds. He was last seen wearing blue jeans and a black t-shirt with an American flag on the front. He was in a dark red and red kayak. He put it in the water near the Holiday Station Store in Sartell and his destination was the Munsinger Gardens in St. Cloud. He has been identified by law enforcement, but they are withholding his name at this time.
--The Stearns County Sheriff’s Office will hold a public notification of the release of a registered predatory offender. Mark Fleischman has finished his sentence and will be moving into Munson Township near Richmond. Fleischman has a history of sexual contact with women that he knows. In each incident, he made initial contact through social media and then, in several instances, meet them, drug their beverages, and take advantage of the victim’s vulnerable state.
The meeting will take place on June eighth, 6:30pm at the River Lakes Civic Arena in Richmond (319 Central Avenue South). Anyone interested will receive more information on Fleischman and the predatory offender registration process.
--A request for more time in the case against the 45-year-old Center Township man accused of murdering his daughter’s boyfriend was discussed in court Tuesday in Crow Wing County. Michael Lee LaFlex appeared in person before Judge Charles Halverson in Crow Wing County District Court in Brainerd. LaFlex’s public defender Mark Hansen asked Halverson for more time as evidence is still being discovered. Crow Wing County Attorney Don Ryan had no objection to Hansen’s request. LaFlex remains in custody at Crow Wing County Jail and is due back in Crow Wing County District Court October 5th.
--The Wadena County Sheriff’s Office received a report of a fire in the ditch in section 8 of Lyons Township, along County Road 26, south of Nimrod. The fire was reported at 12:50pm Tuesday. It began to spread quickly due to the dry conditions. Multiple fire departments were dispatched to the scene, as well as aircraft and tracked vehicles from the Department of Natural Resources. The fire was contained to 58 acres. No structures were damaged, and no injuries were reported. The fire is still under investigation. It is believed a mechanical issue on a passing vehicle caused the fire according to the sheriff’s office report in their news release.
--4th Annual Brewskis for Newskis join the Flyer Nordic Ski Club will be on Thursday June 8th at the Starry Eyed Brewing Company. You can stop by for custom brews, brats, games, raffles, split the pot and more. This is a very family friendly event on Thursday, June 8th from 4-9pm. Proceeds of the event go to help the Nordic Ski Team and their program at Little Falls Community High School.
--Their is a retirement celebration for Father Kenneth Popp in Pierz on Sunday, Mass at 10:30am with food and music to follow. Check out other events in June at fallsradio.com and community calendar.
--The Little Falls City Council meets Monday 7:30pm at City Hall, a work session will be held prior to the regular meeting Monday.
--Morrison County Administrator Matt LeBlanc will be the guest Monday on AM960 KLTF Community Program at 8:30am. Matt will discuss the recent items around the county into the summer.
--Another St. Cloud road is closing due to planned construction. Starting on Monday, Wilson Avenue will be closed from East St. Germain Street to Highway 23. The closure is expected to last until the end of October, weather permitting. Detours will be posted. You can see an interactive map of all road closures around the city of St. Cloud on the St. Cloud Public Works website.
--The Minnesota State Patrol says a man from Rice and a three-year-old girl from Rice were involved in a fatal wrong-way head-on crash. The Minnesota State Patrol says the incident happened at about 2:30am yesterday on Interstate 694 in Oakdale in the east metro. One of the drivers 32-year-old Alexander Ripka of Rice was ejected from his vehicle and died. Three-year-old Nevaeh Ripka of Rice was taken to Gillette Children's Hospital with life-threatening injuries. The wrong-way driver, 28-year-old William Flores-Zamora of St. Paul had to be extricated from the Toyota and also died. A third vehicle later involved in the crash had a driver from Buffalo, New York who had minor injuries. Authorities are investigating the cause of it.
--The final budget has been released at St. Cloud State University, and it includes cuts to both staff and programs. In total, four programs and one center will be suspended, and 70 programs will not be accepting new students next fall. Officials report more than 80 percent of the cut programs have fewer than three enrolled students, and all currently enrolled students will be able to complete their program of study at SCSU. In addition to the program cuts, 36 employees will be laid off; eight faculty positions in the four programs and one center are being cut, as well as 13 faculty in other programs and 15 non-faculty positions. After the cuts, the university will offer 239 programs of study. Officials do not expect a significant impact on students enrolled already and those planning to enroll at SCSU.
BIRTH ANNOUNCEMENT
--Noah Christensen and Allura Wilson, a baby girl born May 29th.
WEATHER
TODAY= sunny, warm and humid with PM storms, high 87.
TONIGHT= storms before dark, then clearing, low 65.
SATURDAY= sunny and humid, high 90, storms likely at times.
SUNDAY= sunny and hot, high 92, storms late, low 64.
MONDAY= AM storms, then turning cooler, high 82, low 55.
SPORTS
TWINS= Twins win in a walk-off last night 7-6 over Cleveland. The Twins continue series with Cleveland tonight at Target Field, pregame at 6:30pm, Saturday at 5:30pm and Sunday Inside Twins begins at noon, all games live on Q92 WYRQ.
HS SB= Upsala beat Browerville 10-3 to win the Section 6A Championship and will head back to the State Softball Tournament for the 2nd straight year. Pequot Lakes beat Pierz twice 1-0 in game 1 and then 3-0 in game 2. Pequot Lakes moves on, Pierz is eliminated.
HS BAB= Alexandria beat Little Falls 2-1 so Little Falls will face Sauk Rapids-Rice at 11am Saturday in an elimination game on KLTF. If the Flyers win they play again Saturday afternoon. Pierz lost last night and will be in an elimination game Monday on KLTF. Teams like Upsala-Swanville, Foley and Holdingford are still alive in playoffs.