Green Bay News

JANESVILLE, Wis. (AP) – Authorities say the violent death of a woman whose body was found in the garage of a Town of Beloit man appears to be linked to online sexual advertising.

The Janesville Gazette reports that investigators believe the 38-year-old man killed 19-year-old Brandy Carroll, of Beloit, after meeting her through the website backpage.com. He’s expected to be formally charged Monday with first-degree intentional homicide and hiding a corpse.

Rock County Sheriff Robert Spoden says the case illustrates the potential for tragedy arising from Internet sex ads. He says it’s a Wild West out there, and people are getting involved with individuals who are misleading them at best and putting their lives at risk.

Investigators arrested the suspect Friday in the Rock County Jail, where he’d been held since last Saturday.

BALSAM LAKE, Wis. (AP) – A Minnesota man charged with fatally stabbing a Wisconsin fisherman is back in jail after allegedly tweeting about the victim.

Charges filed in Polk County say 19-year-old Levi Acre-Kendall tweeted on May 7 that if anyone is praying for him, they should also keep the victim’s family in mind.

Acre-Kendall is charged with reckless homicide in the death of 34-year-old Peter Kelly of St. Croix Falls. Authorities say he stabbed Kelly on April 14 after an argument along the St. Croix River.

The Star Tribune reports Acre-Kendall was free on bond when he sent the tweet and wasn’t supposed to have contact with friends who witnessed the stabbing. The charges say Acre-Kendall’s tweet was seen by both men.

Acre-Kendall’s attorney has said his client acted in self-defense.

SPARTA, Wis. (AP) – The Monroe County Sheriff’s Department is investigating a fatal logging accident in western Wisconsin.

Authorities were called to the scene on County Highway Y in the Town of Leon around 12:45 p.m. Friday. They arrived to find a 38-year-old man dead from being run over by a piece of logging equipment.

The victim’s name has not been released pending notification of relatives.

BEIRUT (AP) – U.S. commandos mounted a rare raid into eastern Syria overnight, killing a senior Islamic State leader in a firefight, capturing his wife and rescuing a Yazidi woman held as a slave, the Pentagon said Saturday.

Defense Secretary Ash Carter announced the raid, identifying the militant as Abu Sayyaf. He said no U.S. forces were killed or injured in the operation.

The raid was the first known U.S. ground operation targeting IS militants in Syria. A U.S.-led coalition has been striking the extremists from the air for months, but the only previous time American troops set foot on the ground in Syria was in an unsuccessful commando mission to recover hostages last summer.

The Britain-based Syria Observatory for Human Rights confirmed an attack on the IS-controlled Omar oil field, Syria’s largest, saying at least 19 IS members, including 12 foreigners, were killed. The group did not say who carried out the attack, but said it was informed that there was an airdrop that followed the airstrikes. The Observatory relies on a network of activists on the ground in Syria.

Syrian state TV earlier reported that Syrian government forces killed at least 40 IS fighters, including a senior commander in charge of oil fields, in an attack Saturday on the Omar field.  The Syrian report, which appeared as an urgent news bar on state TV, was not repeated by the state news agency. State TV didn’t repeat the urgent news or elaborate on it.

It was not immediately clear why both Syria and the U.S. would claim a similar operation. The U.S. has said it is not cooperating with President Bashar Assad’s government in the battle against the Islamic State group. But it says it usually gives Damascus a heads-up on operations within its borders.

The U.S. did not provide the full name of the militant identified as Abu Sayyaf. There was no information immediately available on jihadist websites.

A statement from the U.S. National Security Council said Abu Sayyaf was a “senior ISIL leader who, among other things, had a senior role in overseeing ISIL’s illicit oil and gas operations — a key source of revenue that enables the terrorist organization to carry out their brutal tactics and oppress thousands of innocent civilians.”

“He was also involved with the group’s military operations,” it said.

A U.S. defense official said the leader killed was a Tunisian national designated by IS as the organization’s “emir of oil and gas.” The official said Abu Sayyaf had “associations” with Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of the Islamic State group, and was thought to have knowledge about a wide range of IS operations.

A senior Iraqi intelligence official said Abu Sayyaf is a former follower of Osama bin Laden who later joined the IS group. The official said Iraqi authorities had given the Americans information about him, saying he was in charge of IS finances. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to brief reporters.

The U.S. defense official said the raid was conducted overnight Friday (Friday evening Washington time) by a team of Army Delta commandos who flew from Iraq into eastern Syria aboard V-22 Osprey aircraft and Blackhawk helicopters.

Upon arrival at the target, which was a multi-story building, the Americans met stiff resistance. A “fairly intense firefight” ensued, including hand-to-hand combat, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss details of the raid by name.

The U.S. estimates that about a dozen IS fighters were killed but no civilians were wounded, even though women and children were present. The Americans returned to their base unharmed by about midnight Washington time.

The official said the woman, identified as Umm Sayyaf, is an Iraqi citizen and is in U.S. custody in Iraq.

A senior Obama administration official said Umm Sayyaf was being debriefed to obtain intelligence about IS operations. The official was not authorized to discuss details of the operation by name and spoke on condition of anonymity. The NSC said the wife is suspected of having played an important role in IS operations, including possibly the enslavement of the Yazidi woman.

The National Security Council statement said President Barack Obama authorized the operation upon the “unanimous recommendation” of his national security team.

Asked about the timing of Syrian announcement, National Security Council spokeswoman Bernadette Meehan said the U.S. government did not coordinate with the Syrian government or advise it in advance of the operation.

“We have warned the Assad regime not to interfere with our ongoing efforts against ISIL inside of Syria,” she said, using another acronym for the IS group.  “As we have said before, the Assad regime is not and cannot be a partner in the fight against ISIL.  In fact, the brutal actions of the regime have aided and abetted the rise of ISIL and other extremists in Syria.”

The statement said the commandos rescued a young Yazidi woman “who appears to have been held as a slave” by the slain militant and his wife. IS militants captured hundreds of members of the Yazidi religious minority in northern Iraq during their rampage across the country last summer.

The extremist group controls much of northern and eastern Syria as well as northern and western Iraq. It holds most of the oil fields in Syria, which are a key source of its funding, and has declared a caliphate governed by a harsh version of Islamic law.

The special operation was announced as IS fighters were advancing in central and northeastern Syria. The militants are nearing the historic city of Palmyra, in the central province of Homs, and have seized a water facility and an oil field on the city’s eastern outskirts, activists said.

The advances in the Palmyra countryside were coupled with an announcement Saturday by the IS group that its fighters have seized full control of Saker Island in the Euphrates River near Deir el-Zour, a provincial capital in eastern Syria split between IS and government forces.

LA CROSSE, Wis. (AP) – Re-electing Ron Johnson to the U.S. Senate and praising Gov. Scott Walker as he eyes a run for the White House is the focus of the Wisconsin Republican convention.

Hundreds of Republicans gathered in La Crosse for the annual meeting on Saturday. Walker, Johnson and other Republicans were scheduled to speak throughout the day.

State party chairman Brad Courtney calls Walker “America’s governor” and says this is the “golden age of conservative politics in our state.”

Johnson is being challenged by Democrat Russ Feingold in next year’s election. Johnson beat Feingold in 2010.

Walker is headed to Iowa later Saturday for fundraisers and a Republican dinner that’s attracting other presidential hopefuls.

LA CROSSE, Wis. (AP) – Gov. Scott Walker is defending the quasi-private economic development agency he created four years ago, despite his call this week to reform it in the wake of a critical audit.

Walker spoke with reporters Saturday at the Wisconsin Republican Party convention.

Walker says the “broader vision” for the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation has been “highly effective.” Walker had called for merging WEDC with an agency that handles low interest housing loans, but scrapped that idea.

And on Friday Walker called for restructuring WEDC to phase out direct loans to businesses and put those dollars instead toward tax incentives.

Walker also took no position on a new idea to model the private school voucher program like open enrollment, which could cost public schools about $48 million over the next two years.

BERLIN (AP) – Police say two people have been killed and at least 20 injured in a train accident in western Germany when a train hit a truck on a road crossing.

Police in the town of Ibbenbueren said a train coming from the city of Osnabrueck collided Saturday with a truck loaded with manure.

Police said they did not have any further details immediately. Ambulance and rescue teams from the region were rushing to the scene of the accident.

ASHWAUBENON – Today’s highs reach up into the mid 70s. Partly cloudy skies could be marred by a couple isolated showers and thunderstorms, but most of us will stay dry.

Sunday will be even warmer and more humid with a high near 78. Scattered showers and thunderstorms are likely; right now it looks more likely for the afternoon than the morning. Some of these storms may be strong or severe late in the day as a cold front pushes through the state.

The best chance for severe weather will likely come after 3 PM and last into the evening. The main threats are severe hail (1” or more in diameter) and winds (58 mph or more). An isolated tornado cannot be ruled out with any severe thunderstorm, but they are not one of the main threats Sunday.

The Storm Prediction Center has most of Northeast Wisconsin under a “Slight” risk for severe weather, meaning there’s a 15% chance for severe weather within 25 miles of any given location in our area.

This situation will partially dependent on what Sunday morning’s weather conditions are like, so we will be closely monitoring the weather all weekend.

GREEN BAY – National Safe Boating Week is May 16-23.

There are plenty of events going on in our area for people to attend.

Chief Austin Olmstead and Mary Capelle with the U.S. Coast Guard AuxOp Station joined FOX 11’s Emily Deem on Good Day Wisconsin to talk more about the event.

The open house will take place on Saturday from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

People are encouraged to come out to the U.S. Coast Guard AuxOp Station in Green Bay to enjoy the event.

The local Neenah/Menasha and Fond du Lac US Coast Guard Auxiliary and Power Squadron teams will also be hosting events for people.

They will be conducting complimentary Vessel Exams on Saturday and Sunday at various locations on Lake Winnebago.

FROM ORGANIZERS:

The free Vessel Exams provide boat owners with an opportunity to ensure they meet both Federal and State boating requirements.  Vessel owners that have all of the requirements are issued a 2015 Vessel Exam sticker.  Vessel Exams normally take only 15-20 minutes to complete.

The Neenah/Menasha flotilla will also be hosting an Public Affairs event at the Whiting Boat House (next to Doty Park) on May 16 from 9:00 a.m. To 1:00 p.m.  Booths hosted by the Auxiliary, Winnebago Sheriff, Winnebago County and Scheels will provide information on Recreational Boating safety and Paddle sport safety.  Short tours of the Whiting Boat House will also be available.

On May 16, members from the Neenah/Menasha Flotilla will be at the following public launch sites to perform vessel exams:
• Jefferson Park lauch
• Whiting Boat House Launch – Neenah

On May 17, the Fond du Lac and Neenah/Menasha flotilla members dwill be at the following public launch sites: May 17 from 9:00 a.m to 1:00 p.m.
• Rainbow Park launch – Oshkosh
• Black Wolf Launch – Oshkosh

APPLETON – The ‘Insongniacs’ are ready to perform for you!

The a capella group joined FOX 11’s Emily Deem and Phil DeCastro on Good Day Wisconsin to perform.

The group will host a concert on Wednesday, May 27.

Click here for the details about the concert.

ASHWAUBENON – Our Cooking With You guest is sharing some recipes that are food allergy friendly.

Kara Schneider and her daughter Adel joined FOX 11’s Emily Deem on Good Day Wisconsin on Saturday morning to talk about food allergies.

Click here to learn more about food allergies.

Click the video to see the recipes being made.

CAIRO (AP) – An Egyptian court on Saturday sentenced ousted President Mohammed Morsi to death over his part in a mass prison break that took place during the 2011 uprising that toppled Hosni Mubarak.

As is customary in passing capital punishment, Judge Shaaban el-Shami referred his death sentence on Morsi and others to the nation’s top Muslim theologian, or mufti, for his non-binding opinion. He set June 2 for the next hearing.

Morsi, Egypt’s first freely elected president, was ousted by the military in July 2013 following days of mass street protests by Egyptians demanding that he be removed because of his divisive policies.

The ousted leader already is serving a 20-year sentence following his conviction on April 21 on charges linked to the killing of protesters outside a Cairo presidential palace in December 2012.

Morsi escaped a death sentence in a separate case before el-Shami related to allegations that Morsi, several of his aides and leaders of his now-outlawed Muslim Brotherhood allegedly passed state secrets to foreign groups, including the Palestinian militant Hamas group and Lebanon’s Hezbollah, during his one year in office.

DE PERE – Six designers are showcasing their talents in one home and the public is invited to check it out while supporting a good cause.

The second Designers for Hope showcase will open for public viewing this weekend.

The designers spent about a month transforming the rooms and landscape of the De Pere home. The event raises funds for House of Hope, a shelter for women ages 18 to 24 and their children.

Admission is $20/person at the door.

The home is located at 1559 Fox Ridge Circle in De Pere and is open for public view from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

FOX 11’s Pauleen Le spent the morning exploring the Designers for Hope showcase.

For more information on Designers for Hope, click here.

For more information on House of Hope, click here.

OSHKOSH – A UW-Oshkosh student is enjoying the thrill of victory. This after a phone app he created with two friends wins a big business pitch competition.

After a disappointing night out in Chicago, UW-Oshkosh senior Dan Brosman had an idea. That idea became the Sizzle app.

“It is an application that uses real-time data and location-based services to show you the hottest places to go out in a local area,” Brosman told FOX 11.

Brosman created the app with two of his fellow UW-Oshkosh students.

The app has you sign in using Facebook and accesses your smart phone’s GPS location. From there it rates area bars and clubs on a one to five flame system.

“Based on the number of people that are there, the number of singles, the male to female ratio and even the average cost of a drink,” Brosman explained.

Thursday night Brosman and his business partners pitched the idea to a panel at the Fox Cities Performing Arts Center Thursday. The pitch was one of many during a contest called “America’s Pitch Tank.”

One of the judges was Kevin Harrington, an original judge from the show “Shark Tank.”

“Kevin Harrington has seen a lot out there and he’s very knowledgeable. He’s someone I look up to. So it was exciting to see he was supportive of the idea,” Brosman told us.

The Sizzle App took first place, winning $2,500.

“I’m excited to be able to place and be able to be first place in that contest and the additional $2,500 they provided for funding is really gonna be an added boost for this summer of perfecting the app,” said Brosman.

Brosman and his fellow creators had already won $10,000 in the past to help develop Sizzle. That’s thanks to competitions they’ve done through UW-Oshkosh’s Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation.

Brosman told FOX 11 the center has helped in other ways.

“I’ve been connected with two great mentors that have really helped, provided really valuable advice to help shape the future of Sizzle,” he said.

Now Brosman told us the plan is to perfect Sizzle over the summer and relaunch the app in fall.

The Sizzle app is available for free in both the Google Play and iPhone App stores.

Brosman graduates from UW-Oshkosh on Saturday.

Xavier visited Freedom in a Eastern Valley Conference softball game on Friday.

Xavier’s Anna Loken hit two home runs in the Hawks’ 15-8 win over Freedom on Friday.

FREEDOM — On Thursday, the Freedom softball team had to work extra innings to keep its perfect conference season intact when it beat Winneconne in 11 innings.

Despite the win, the Irish had little time to enjoy it because Friday another quality Eastern Valley Conference team was looking to knock the Irish off in Xavier.

It was evident Thursday’s effort drained the Irish because Friday it made mistakes early on and Xavier took advantage, smacking four home runs en route to a 15-8 win.

“It’s awesome, Freedom’s a great team and our conference is tight this year,” said Xavier’s Anna Loken, who had two home runs. “Freedom’s a great team and I love playing them; great atmosphere today.”

Loken’s home runs were no-doubters and gave her six for the season. She said there was nothing special with her approach.

“I went up there confident,” Loken said. “I said, ‘Wait for my pitch, wait for it in my zone and the rest will take care of itself.’”

Peyton Ufi hit a grand slam and Karly Weycker followed with a solo shot in the fourth inning. It seemed every time Xavier hit a ball — in the air or on the ground — it was being pummeled.

“We were stringing our hits together,” Loken said. “We were feeding off each other. It was awesome, fun to be a part of.”

“What I told the girls after the game, they wanted to hit, not make too much contact, do the simple things,” Xavier coach Lori England said. “Everything just kind of fell together.”

Freedom was without ace Taylor Hanus (injury) so Cassidy Schuh started for the Irish, less than 24 hours after Thursday’s win. Schuh was solid but Xavier took advantage when she left a ball in the hitting zone.

You don’t expect four home runs against Freedom,” England said. “It gets contagious. They weren’t trying to crush it, they were just trying to hit it. To come away with this win is absolutely phenomenal. I’m proud of the girls.

“The conference isn’t over, feels like it is. It’ll be interesting to see how it falls for us. I’m excited about being in second place.”

Loken thinks Friday’s win was an attention-grabber.

“People can turn their heads, looking at Xavier now,” Loken said. “We made a nice run last year and we’re hoping to make a great run this year.”

Follow Doug Ritchay on Twitter @dougritchay

NEW YORK (AP) – Ryan Braun homered twice and made a marvelous catch, leading Kyle Lohse and the Milwaukee Brewers to a 7-0 victory over the slumping New York Mets on Friday night.

Lohse (3-4) allowed two harmless hits in eight crisp innings. Gerardo Parra also homered and hit an RBI double for the last-place Brewers, who battered Bartolo Colon (6-2) to win their first road game under new manager Craig Counsell.

Aramis Ramirez had three hits in his return to the lineup, including an RBI double that put Milwaukee in front.

Lohse struck out eight, walked one and used the large dimensions in center field to his advantage. Michael Blazek completed a three-hitter that took only 2 hours, 18 minutes.

Back home after getting swept by the Chicago Cubs in four games at Wrigley Field, the NL East-leading Mets dropped their season-worst fifth straight.

(Copyright 2015 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

GREEN BAY – Whether from right here in Green Bay, or all the way from Atlanta.

“I’m doing the marathon, my husband and my oldest who is almost ten is going to run the 5k, and my five and eight year olds are going to be running the kids run,” said Kellie Carlson from Green Bay.

“I’m a huge Packers fan, and this is my first marathon!” said Jenny Klemm, of Atlanta.

Nearly 13 thousand runners have made the trek to Green Bay ahead of the Cellcom Marathon this weekend.

“It’s always so exciting at the start of the expo. Everyone is so excited and happy it’s just a constant stream of energy coming through,” said Larry Lueck, the Cellcom Marathon Race Director.

After the packets are picked up and the gear is picked out, runners say there’s really just one thing to do-watch the forecast.

“If there’s lightning it would impact it. But we have a contingency plan in place whether it be rain, thunder lightning heat, anything that comes up,” said Lueck.

The only time the Cellcom Marathon had been cancelled was in 2012, due to heat. Organizers don’t expect that this year.

“Living in Wisconsin, we all know that in about four hours the forecast can change to something different. So, right now, we’re not too worried about it,” said Lueck.

Each runner we spoke to seems to have their own preference and concerns when it comes to the types of conditions.

“Nervous about the heat and the humidity we haven’t really trained in that weather so it’ll be tough but not that bad,” said Carlson.

“Clouds would be nice,” said Klemm.

“If we could have a really light mist maybe even just a bit of a shower to run through it’d be awesome. It cools you off,” said Lueck.

But runners say as long as the race goes on, nothing will rain on their victory parade at the finish line.

“I think I’ll just cry, and can’t believe I actually did it,” said Klemm.

Conditions for Saturday’s 5-K and kids’ run are supposed to be ideal, with registration for the kids’ fun run still open.

LAKE MARY, Fla. (AP) – A man who shot at George Zimmerman during a confrontation earlier this week along a busy central Florida road has been arrested.

Matthew Apperson was charged Friday with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and firing a missile into an occupied conveyance, Lake Mary police reported in a news release. Apperson turned himself in at the police department Friday evening.

Zimmerman’s attorney, Don West, has said the former neighborhood watch volunteer had recently moved to another state but came back to the Orlando suburb of Lake Mary for Mother’s Day. He was driving to a doctor’s appointment Monday when Apperson intentionally fired his gun into Zimmerman’s truck without provocation, detectives said.

Police recovered two guns from Apperson and one from Zimmerman.

Both men had their guns legally. The passenger window of Zimmerman’s pickup had a bullet hole in it, and Zimmerman suffered minor injuries from flying glass and debris.

Apperson’s attorney, Mark NeJame, said earlier this week that the shooting was “a good, old-fashioned self-defense case.” He said their encounter on Monday was pure “happenstance.”

Zimmerman and Apperson were involved in a road-rage episode last September. Apperson said Zimmerman had threatened to kill him after Apperson made a U-turn that put him in an adjacent lane, asking “Do you know who I am?”

Apperson decided not to pursue charges.

Two days later, Apperson called police to report that Zimmerman’s truck was parked near the disability-benefits office where he works. Zimmerman told police officers he had an appointment in the same office park, and no charges were filed.

Zimmerman was acquitted in the February 2012 shooting death of Trayvon Martin, an unarmed black teenager, in a case that sparked protests and a national debate about race relations. The Justice Department later decided not to bring a civil rights case against Zimmerman.

Since then, Zimmerman was charged with assault based on complaints from two girlfriends. In both cases, the girlfriends refused to cooperate and charges were dropped. His estranged wife also accused him of smashing her iPad during an argument days after she filed divorce papers. No charges were filed because of lack of evidence.