Blue Earth County Justice Center, LG A Lake Crystal man is accused of sexually assaulting a mentally impaired minor. William Linard Green, 41, was charged Friday in Blue Earth County Court with felony counts of first, second, and third-degree criminal sexual conduct. A criminal complaint says the then 39-year-old Green sexually assaulted the girl, then 14-years-old in his semi-truck in Blue Earth County. Court documents say the victim is mentally impaired and has been diagnosed with developmental cognitive disability and Green was in a position of authority over the girl. The girl told police ..read more

Minnesota State Patrol A man was injured in a single-vehicle crash in Nicollet County shortly before midnight Sunday night.  The state patrol says a Chevy Tahoe driven by 21-year-old Hidalgo Hernandez, of Minneapolis, was southbound on Highway 169 between Le Sueur and St. Peter when it went off-road and struck the median cables. Hernandez was transported to River’s Edge Hospital in St. Peter with non-life threatening injuries.  ..read more

MnDOT Logo Work begins Monday on Highway 14 between North Mankato and Nicollet as crews begin fiber optic installation.  The Minnesota Department of Transportation says the work is part of improvements to the traffic management system.  Crews will also install new traffic monitoring system cameras for maintenance and non-intrusive vehicle detection devices for traffic data collection.  MnDOT says those camera feeds will be intermittently monitored for crash response efforts or to verify road conditions.  Motorists should expect shoulder closures along the highway and watch ..read more

A server is accused of altering tip amounts on credit card receipts at the Waseca restaurant where she worked. Kate Isabelle Moses, 18, of New Ulm, was charged last week with felony financial transaction card fraud in Waseca County Court. A criminal complaint says a manager from the Mellow Mushroom in Waseca contacted investigators in February to report that Moses had been altering credit card receipts.  The manager learned about the situation after receiving calls from two customers questioning discrepancies in their charges from the restaurant.  The manager then found 27 total tran ..read more

SMN Logo Minnesota’s Largest Candy Store, a popular stop for travelers on Highway 169 is changing locations for the first time in nearly 50 years. The big yellow barn between Jordan and Belle Plaine is expected to get even bigger and better, with plans calling for double the current capacity at the future location, which will put the store within the City of Jordan. The store’s move comes with an upcoming Highway 169 interchange project, slated to begin in May, with completion expected in the spring of 2025.  The project will cut the store’s access to Highway 169 permanently. Scott County ..read more

Nicolae Miu HUDSON, Wis. (AP) — A 54-year-old Minnesota man was convicted Thursday in the slaying of a high school student and stabbing of four other people who were tubing on a western Wisconsin river. A Wisconsin circuit court jury found Nicolae Miu guilty of first-degree reckless homicide, four counts of first-degree recklessly endangering safety and one count of battery, Minnesota Public Radio reported. No sentencing date has been set. Isaac Schuman, 17, of Stillwater, Minnesota, was stabbed to death in late July 2022 while he and the other victims were tubing along the Appl ..read more

Police car with emergency siren at night. 3D rendered illustration. Windom Police are warning the public after an apparent coyote attack at the Environmental Center near the high school. Police were dispatched to Windom Area Health on Thursday for a report of an animal bite.  Officers spoke with the male victim, who had been walking his dog in the area at about 7:45 p.m. when the pit bull was attacked by what appeared to be a larger dog with longer hair. The male victim suffered non-incapacitating injuries to his arm while trying to get his dog away from the other animal.  His pitbul ..read more

Credit: MGN (Associated Press) – There have been 17 times as many U.S. measles cases in the first three months of this year compared with the average number seen in the first three months of the previous three years. That’s according to a government report published Thursday. The report’s authors say the increase represents a renewed threat to measles elimination in the U.S. There have been more than 110 cases of the contagious disease so far. Measles can be dangerous, especially for young children. Experts say it’s highly preventable because there is a safe and effective vaccine. But national ..read more

Credit: MGN LOS ANGELES (AP) — Federal authorities have charged the former longtime interpreter for Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani with federal bank fraud. Prosecutors allege that interpreter Ippei Mizuhara stole more than $16 million from the Japanese sensation to cover gambling debts. U.S. Attorney Martin Estrada announced the charges Thursday at a press conference in Los Angeles. Mizuhara was abruptly fired by the team after the scandal surfaced last month and Major League Baseball opened a separate investigation. Prosecutors say Ohtani was the victim in the case. Mizuhara’s attorne ..read more

The Master flag waves to the breeze on the second hole during the first round at the Masters golf tournament at Augusta National Golf Club Thursday, April 11, 2024, in Augusta, Ga. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip) AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) — The Masters got underway Thursday after a 2 1/2-hour weather delay on Thursday when Jack Nicklaus, Gary Player and Tom Watson hit the ceremonial first shots. Most of the heavy rain expected at Augusta National missed the club, though high winds were still expected to make for a difficult day. Those teeing off late, including Tiger Woods and Dustin Johnson, were unlikel ..read more