Gazette Daily News Podcast: Thursday, Feb. 15, 2024

– Caitlin Clark’s date with destiny arrives Thursday at Carver

– Income-eligible households can apply to buy new homes through Cedar Rapids program

– Judge to decide rightful owner of $14,800 cash involved in possible fraud scheme

– Drake seeks most ‘beautiful bulldog’ for relays mascot

Episode Transcript

You are listening to The Gazette’s Daily News Podcast on Thursday, February 15. This podcast gives quick bites from the latest headlines coming out of The Gazette newsroom. I’m Bailey Cichon.

Coming up, tonight, Caitlin Clark is set to make NCAA women’s basketball history

And later, were you affected by the 2020 derecho? You may be eligible to buy a new home through a Cedar Rapids program

Plus, bulldog owners can enter Drake University’s “beautiful bulldog contest”. More on that in a bit, but first, let’s talk about what’s looking to be a historic night in women’s basketball history.

Iowa senior guard Caitlin Clark is en route to becoming the leading scorer in NCAA women’s basketball history. Clark has amassed 3,520 points in her career at Iowa. The current record holder is Kelsey Plum, who played for Washington from 2013 to 2017. Plum’s record is 3,527 points. It’ll take 7 points to tie the record and 8 points to pass it. Clark is averaging 32.1 points per game this season and 28.2 points in her 126-game career.

Iowa Coach Lisa Bluder said quote, “It should be a historic day. Obviously she’s going to blast (the scoring record) out of the water.” end quote. Tonight, fourth-ranked Iowa hosts Michigan at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Tipoff is at 7 p.m. and the game will be streamed by Peacock.

Next, income-eligible households affected by the 2020 derecho can apply to buy new homes through the city of Cedar Rapids’ Redeveloping Ownership Opportunities Together program or ROOTS program. The ROOTS program is using $15 million in federal disaster recovery funds to expand affordable housing with 76 single-family homes. Construction for the homes is expected to start this spring. The city will take applications until there are purchase agreements for every home. The maximum price these homes will be sold for is $175,000. Eligible buyers must be at or below 80 percent of the area median income and must be able to secure an approved mortgage through a qualified lender. Income limits range from $53,000 for a one-person household to $106,000 for a nine-person household. Eligible buyers may qualify for up to $35,000 in down payment and closing cost assistance as a forgivable loan. That would be forgiven in monthly installments over 15 years. Find the application and additional information at cityofcr.com/roots.

Next, a judge is deciding the rightful owner of $14,800 involved in a possible fraud scheme. 69-year-old Shelby Cason, of Coggon, asked the court Wednesday to return the money he deposited in a machine in exchange for bitcoin cryptocurrency. But lawyers for the bitcoin machine,Bitcoin Depot Operating LLC say the money belongs to the company. Cason alleged that a scammer threatened him into depositing the money into a bitcoin machine at Hawks Smoke Shop in Marion back in July. According to court documents, Cason received a pop up warning on Facebook telling him his computer had been hacked and provided a number to call. When Cason called the number, the alleged scammer told him to withdraw the $14,800 from his bank and deposit it in the Marion bitcoin machine. The alleged scammer accused Cason of having child pornography on his computer and said if Cason didn’t comply and turn over the cryptocurrency to him, he would turn Cason in to the FBI. Later, Cason realized he had been scammed.

Linn County Sheriff’s investigators found the money in the machine after obtaining a search warrant. Cason filed a motion to have the seized money returned to him. Bitcoin Depot filed a motion to have the court determine the rightful owner of the money. Bitcoin Depot’s lawyer Kevin Collins argued that the cash taken from the machine isn’t evidence of a fraudulent scheme and it is Bitcoin Depot’s property. Collins said Cason gave the money to someone who turned out to be a scammer–that isn’t the responsibility of Bitcoin Depot.

6th Judicial District Judge Ian Thornhill will provide a written ruling at a later time. Find the full details of the case at the link in this episode’s description or at the gazette dot com.

Are you the owner of a beautiful bulldog? If so, your pup could become the mascot for the Drake Relays. The Des Moines university is holding its annual contest to crown an official mascot. Last year’s winner was a 2-year-old rescue from Johnston named “Patch”. Patch quote “delighted the judges when she strutted down the runway in her custom jean jacket featuring a Drake University patch sewn into the fabric” end quote. If you think your dog has what it takes, you’ll have to win a lottery to compete in the runway competition. That’s where a panel of judges will picks the top-dog from 30 contestants. In addition to crowning the winner, judges will award winners in categories like best dressed, people’s choice and most Drake spirit. Registration for the lottery opens March 11 and requires owners to submit details like their bulldog’s name, social media handle and fun facts about their dog. The lottery will be livestreamed at 4 p.m. on March 13. 30 contestants and 10 alternates will be chosen. Register your bulldog online at alumni.drake.edu/beautifullbulldog.

As always, you can find a link to each of the stories featured in today’s episode in this episode’s description or at the gazette dot com.

Finally, let’s take a look at today’s weather. I hope everyone enjoyed the 40- and 50-degree temperatures while they lasted because things are cooling down. Today it will be mostly cloudy. Anticipate a high of 37 degrees and a low of 25 degrees. Friday, we’ll see some sun but temperatures will stay put. Expect a high of 31 degrees and a low–get ready for this–of 14 degrees Friday night.

Thank you for listening to The Gazette’s Daily News Podcast. Stay up to date with the latest news from Eastern Iowa at the gazette dot com. I’m Bailey Cichon.

Comments: bailey.cichon@thegazette.com