The Lancaster County Sheriff's Office announced five people from out of state have been arrested in a fraudulent petition signature investigation. The petitions themselves aimed to add term limits and change who can vote in Lincoln city elections. While the LCEC announced the rejection of more than 65-percent of the over 30-thousand signatures Thursday, The Lancaster County Sheriff's Office says they were first tipped off July 23rd.Five people have been arrested in Washington D.C., Missouri, Nevada and Florida. Investigators say the no connection has been found between the suspects and any political group.
The organizer of an Omaha youth baseball program is facing a felony charge. Sam Leng allegedly collected about 19-thousand dollars from 30 families for the Omaha Nighthawks youth baseball program. Before the first practice, he sent all families an email saying he decided to discontinue the program, with no one receiving a refund. Leng was arrested and is facing a theft by deception charge. Court documents say Leng told a DCS investigator that he didn't create the program to steal money, but admitted that he gambled it away.
The Nebraska State Penitentiary is impacted by two water line breaks. The Nebraska Department of Correctional Services announced yesterday that the water line breaks took place on Thursday and Friday. The breaks forced inmates to use water bottles and portable toilets. Officials say the leaks will be repaired by today or tomorrow.
Several tubers are rescued from the Elkhorn River. Emergency crews were called to the Elkhorn River Maple Access Site on Saturday after storms moved through the region. Bystanders pulled the victim from the water, and that person was taken to a hospital. Crews also rescued others who were stranded on a sandbar.
Tomorrow is National Poll Worker Recruitment Day, and the state is hoping to bring in more poll workers ahead of November. Iowa Secretary of State Paul Pate says finding poll workers for all of Iowa's 16-hundred precincts can be a tall order, so his office works in advance to find people willing to take a shift. The Secretary of State's Office will host a free webinar on Wednesday at 11 a.m. for those interested in becoming a poll worker. More information on becoming a poll worker and webinar registration is available on the Secretary of State's website.
Omaha Mayor John Ewing and his wife have endorsed Nebraska Second Congressional District Democratic candidate Denise Powell in her bid to replace Republican Nebraska Congressman Don Bacon, who is not seeking reelection. Powell is facing Republican Brinker Harding and Libertarian Eric Michael Foreman in the November general election.