NEWS
--Authorities are investigating a homicide that happened at a business in downtown St. Cloud early Sunday morning. The St. Cloud Police Department says they responded to a report of a stabbing at the Red Carpet Nightclub just before 1:30am. When officers arrived they found a 29-year-old man that had been stabbed during an argument inside the nightclub. The victim was taken to the St. Cloud Hospital where he later died. His name has not been released. Authorities say there are no suspects in custody at this time. The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension and the Stearns County Sheriff's Office are assisting in the investigation.
--A 33-year-old from Bowlus was killed Saturday morning around 4:20am in Stearns County. The Stearns County Sheriff’s Office received a report of a crash with injuries at the intersection of 125th Avenue and 440th Street in Brockway Township, which is 1 mile north of Opole. The caller reported a crashed vehicle in the tree line and a deceased male victim. Deputies arrived and located a deceased male partially ejected from the vehicle. He was identified by funeral announcements at Jeffrey G. Kalis. The cause of the crash and the manner of death of Kalis is still under investigation.
--An ambulance driver was taken to the hospital after he lost control of the vehicle and crashed. The Minnesota State Patrol says it happened just after 8:00am Sunday on Highway 23 two miles west of Foreston in Mille Lacs County. 43-year-old Jeremy Black of Mora was transferring a non-emergency patient westbound on Highway 23 when he lost control on the slush and freezing rain roads. The ambulance rotated clockwise, went off the road and rolled over onto the driver's side. Black was taken to St. Cloud Hospital with non-life threatening injuries. The two passengers, 54-year-old Lisa Dayon of Mora and 51-year-old Peter Gagnon of Mora, were not hurt.
--The Minnesota State Patrol reported over 1,000 accidents or spinouts from the ice, rain, slush and snow over the past 2 days. There were at least 6 fatal accidents reported by the State Patrol alone which did not include the fatal reported earlier on the newsletter in Stearns County and others from the county or city law enforcement. Jackknifed Semi-Trucks, plows had to be taken off the roads at times as the snow was so thick and heavy that plows were breaking over it. The winter storm is not done yet as more snow is expected later today and into early tomorrow morning which could drop another 2-5 inches around Little Falls and heavier amounts off the east and up by Lake Superior that could see over a foot.
--12-year-old Alex Boesl has died, six days after a silo accident in Millerville, Minn. that also took the lives of his father and uncle. Alex was taken to Children's Hospital after the accident on December 21st. His father, 47-year-old Curt Boesl died at the hospital on the 22nd. Curt, who owned the farm in Douglas County where the accident happened, was also the Millerville Assistant Fire Chief. Curt and Alex passed out out atop a silo holding high-moisture corn. The fermenting process creates a gas, commonly known as silo gas, that had escaped. Steve Boesl, 49, died at the scene while trying to save his brother and nephew.
--Authorities have arrested a Minnesota man accused of kidnapping his 6-month old son from the boy's mother after assaulting her Thursday in Chisago County which sparked an Amber alert.
--The Morrison County Commissioners will hold their year end meeting on Tuesday at 9am at the government center boardroom.
--A baby Jesus figure has been returned to a Nativity scene in St. Cloud a year after it was stolen. The executive director of the Stearns History Museum says a staffer at U.S. Bank noticed someone out by the manger around noon Thursday. When the staffer got to the Nativity scene, that person was gone, and the baby Jesus figure was put back where he belongs. The museum owns and sets up the scene outside the U.S. Bank building. The 1944 statue was stolen in December 2018. This year, a doll swaddled in cloth took the role of baby Jesus until Thursday afternoon. The museum would not elaborate if it was the same Jesus statue that was stolen but the one in the manger looked very close to it.
--Fire crews responded to a shed fire in Melrose Thursday night. The incident happened around 11:00pm at Tom's Refuse along Thunder Road in Millwood Township. The Stearns County Sheriff's Office says 58-year old Keith Frank, of Pequot Lakes, was staying in a camper near the shed when he lost power. When he went to check on the electrical breaker system, he noticed the shed was on fire. There were no injuries. The shed and its contents were heavily damaged. Dames were estimated at around $800,000. The cause of the fire is unknown. The incident remains under investigation with the State Fire Marshall's Office.
NATIONAL NEWS
--Anyone under 21 can no longer legally buy cigarettes, cigars or any other tobacco product in the U.S. A new law enacted last week by Congress also applies to electronic cigarettes and vaping devices that heat a liquid containing nicotine. The change took effect immediately after President Donald Trump signed a spending bill December 20th that included the age increase. About a third of states already had restricted tobacco sales to those 21 and older. The signed law from President Trump now makes it nationwide.
DEATH NOTICES
--Douglas G. Mackissock, age 85 of Little Falls.
--Sylvia Trafas, age 85 of Little Falls.
--Harold Welle, age 93 of Pierz formerly of Lastrup.
--Bernadette “Bernie” Lattimer, age 85 of Little Falls.
--Mary Ann Bartlett, age 80 of Little Falls.
--Jeffrey G. Kalis, age 33 of Bowlus.
WEATHER
WINTER WEATHER ADVISORY IN EFFECT THRU 12AM TUES.
TODAY= drizzle and light snow early, heavier snow this afternoon with highs near 32 early dropping into the 20s later today.
TONIGHT= snow likely 2-5 inches by midnight, windy, low 16.
TUESDAY= sunny and colder, high 19 early dropping below zero late.
WEDNESDAY= partly sunny, high 21 low around 5 above.
SPORTS
NFL= Chicago beat Vikings 21-19 on Sunday. Vikings did not play most of their first team starters. Vikings will travel to New Orleans in the opening round of the playoffs at noon on Sunday. San Francisco and Green Bay get byes, Seattle at Philadelphia on Sunday. In AFC Baltimore and KC byes, Tennessee at New England and Buffalo is at Houston both AFC games on Saturday. Hear all action of the NFL Playoffs starting Saturday at 2:30pm on AM960 KLTF.
COL FB= LSU and Clemson will play in the National Title Game.