>>Moorhead Officer on Paid Leave
(Moorhead, MN) — Captain Deric Swenson, Acting Deputy Police Chief of Moorhead, has been placed on paid administrative leave due to a filed complaint. The details of the allegations have not been released, as the city is following the state’s Data Practices Act. It is unclear whether the complaint was made by someone within the department or from an external source. Swenson has been with the police department since November 2000.
>>Bird Flu Detected at Stearns County Dairy
(St. Paul, MN) — A statewide milk surveillance confirms avian influenza in samples from a Stearns County dairy herd. The Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA) is conducting monthly testing of pre-pasteurized (raw) cow milk samples already collected from the state’s nearly 1,600 dairy farms. The positive test was confirmed on Friday, and the herd has been quarantined until it meets requirements indicating the infection is gone. Officials say there’s no concern for the safety of the public milk supply.
>>Minneapolis Man Pleads Guilty to FOF Fraud Scheme
(Minneapolis, MN) — Today (MON) marks the 45th conviction in the $250 million Feeding Our Future fraud scheme. 40-year-old Abdihakim Ahmed pleaded guilty to wire fraud and money laundering for his role in exploiting a federally funded child nutrition program during the COVID-19 pandemic. From September 2020 through January 2021, Ahmed claimed to operate ASA Limited LLC as a child nutrition site in St. Paul and serve over 1.6 million meals. Ahmed created multiple attendance rosters of nearly 2,000 fake children (names and ages) who attended his site’s “after-school program.” He used some of the stolen funds to buy a bar/restaurant in Brooklyn Park and a 2022 Mini Cooper vehicle, both of which have been forfeited to the U.S. Ahmed will be sentenced later.
>>FCC Deadline for Comments on CBS News Distortion Inquiry
(Undated) — All comments and replies are due to the FCC today (MON) regarding the inquiry into CBS’s 60 Minutes interview with Kamala Harris last year, prompted by the conservative nonprofit Center for American Rights. University of Minnesota Professor Christopher Terry says the FCC had already done an inquiry before Donald Trump took office, decided there was no new distortion, and closed the case. However, they relaunched the proceeding three days after Brendan Carr became chairman. Terry says the investigation represents an unconstitutional intrusion into editorial decision-making that violates established Supreme Court precedent. Multiple conservative advocacy groups have called for the inquiry to be dropped.
>>Missing Man with Alzheimer’s in Mounds View
(Mounds View, MN) — An elderly man with Alzheimer’s disease is missing. Mounds View Police say 85-year-old Jeffery Elsesser was last seen at 7 this morning (MON) driving a 2002 gray Lexus sedan with Minnesota license plate NTX916. He’s described as white, 5 feet 7 inches tall, 145 pounds, with gray hair and hazel eyes. Jeffrey was last seen wearing a MN Twins baseball hat, a brown plaid button-up, and blue jeans.
>>Shipping Season Underway
(Duluth, MN) — The shipping season is now open on Lake Superior in the Twin Ports. Jayson Hron of the Duluth Seaway Port Authority says the first “laker” arrived this weekend. Hron says they are still waiting for the first “saltie” of the season, which is a ship that comes all the way from the Atlantic Ocean.
>>Minnesota’s Black Bears Are Emerging From Their Hibernation
(St. Paul, MN) — Black bears in the state are emerging from their winter dens. The DNR advises residents to bring in their bird feeders to prevent them from being broken or taken by bears. After hibernating for six months, the bears eat lightly on plants, leftover acorns, and fruit until their digestive systems fully adjust. The DNR estimates that Minnesota has between 13,000 and 18,000 black bears. These bears have been expanding their territory to the south and west, and they have previously been sighted near St. Cloud, the Twin Cities, and the Rochester area. Residents are encouraged to report any bear sightings in these locations to the DNR.
>>Northern Minnesota Snow Totals
(Undated) — A late-season snowstorm brought some impressive snow totals for areas in far northern Minnesota over the weekend. Hovland – 10.7″, International Falls – 10.4″, Grand Marais – 9.5″, Kabetogema – 9.0″, Island View – 9.0″, Crookston – 7.3″, Ely – 7.3″. The northern parts of Minnesota might not be done with now just yet. The National Weather Service says there is a chance for a light wintry mix Tuesday, mainly west of the Red River, with another chance of more widespread precipitation Friday into the weekend.
>>U of M to Introduce Medved as Gopher Men’s Basketball Coach Tuesday
(Minneapolis, MN) — The University of Minnesota has a new men’s basketball coach. Colorado State head coach Niko (NEE’-ko) Medved will take over the Golden Gophers reins and bring a lot of local flavor with him. Medved just led the Rams to the Mountain West Tournament championship and a first-round victory over Memphis in the N-C-A-A Tournament. Fifty-one-year-old Medved is from Roseville and is a U of M graduate, having served as a student manager for coach Clem Haskins in the 1990s. He started his coaching career as an assistant coach at Macalester before stopping at Furman, having a brief stint in Minnesota and a tenure at Colorado State. Medved will be formally introduced at a news conference on campus tomorrow (Tuesday).
