A rural Dexter man was found lying in his driveway Wednesday and pronounced dead at the scene.

Thursday, January 13, 2000

A rural Dexter man was found lying in his driveway Wednesday and pronounced dead at the scene.

According to Mower County Sheriff Barry J. Simonson, investigators found no signs of foul play and the county medical examiner’s preliminary ruling was that he died of natural causes.

The 68 year old man, whose name is not being announced pending notification of next of kin, was found by a neighbor, who stopped by the residence in Section 25, Dexter Township.

A sister, also not identified, told investigators the man had a history of seizures.

More thefts

A Lyle Township farm home leased by Metro-Temp Employment Agency, Inc. of Des Moines, Iowa has been vacated.

However, another theft has been reported of items taken from the residence near the intersection of Highway 105 South and Mower County CSAH 5 south of Austin.

According to a Mower County Sheriff’s Department report, a guitar valued at $1,200 was among the items reported missing.

In addition, a van used to transport residents of the farm home to their jobs in Austin, is still missing and believed to be stolen.

Officials choose no charges

Juveniles involved in the apparent theft of coins and Pokemon cards from an Austin business will not be prosecuted.

According to an Austin Police Department report, the owner of the business where the coins and cards were stolen has chosen not to press charges against the juveniles after the items were recovered.

The thefts were discovered after an unidentified Ellis Middle School student told the Austin Public Schools police liaison officer a male student gave him a foreign coin in exchange for allowing him to borrow a pencil from the teacher.

The teacher became suspicious of the transaction, when he noticed it was a foreign coin and the liaison officer being his investigation.

The 12 year old juvenile denied his complicity in the crime, but the investigation revealed the roles of three other juveniles, one age 11 and two age 12 and the trio admitted their roles in the thefts and implicated the fourth juvenile.

Because the store owner told investigators he was acquainted with the boys and trusted them, he said he would not file charges against them. Instead, the matter will be referred to Cooperative Solutions for a victim/offender conference between the store owner and the boys and their parents.

The coins included Japanese and others and the cards included 10 packs of the Pokemon cards. The total value on the items was estimated at $300.