Star Tribune
Minneapolis and St. Paul begin street sweeping. Don’t get towed.
Minneapolis and St. Paul have begun fall street sweeping, and residents need to move their vehicles when their street is being swept.
Street sweeping cleans dirt and leaves from streets to reduce the amount in storm sewers and waterways. The sweeping must be completed before snow or ice inhibits the equipment, according to Lisa Hiebert, public information officer for St. Paul Public Works.
“It’s always a tough challenge when the leaves fall and the snow comes,” Hiebert said. “It’s a very delicate balance.”
In both cities, signs indicating when to move vehicles are posted on the streets 24 hours in advance of the sweep. If residents do not move their vehicles during the sweep, they could be ticketed or towed.
In Minneapolis, residents cannot park on the street being swept from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. or until “No Parking” signs have been removed. Residents in St. Paul should not park on streets from 8 a.m. until 6 p.m. on days when they are being swept.
Residents should not sweep leaves or debris into the street for the city to clean up, as the equipment cannot handle an excess of material, Hiebert said. Garbage and recycling carts need to be stored in their proper locations and not on the street.
St. Paul began its fall street sweeping last week, and the process will take at least six weeks to complete. The city may sweep streets again later this fall, depending on the weather, according to Hiebert. A map detailing when streets will be swept is posted on St. Paul’s website.
Minneapolis street sweeping should be finished after the week of Nov. 11, according to the city’s website. The city posted a street sweeping schedule map online.
Star Tribune
Twin Cities man gets 5 years in prison for romance scheme that raked in more than $2M million
A Brooklyn Park man received more than five years in prison Tuesday for perpetrating with others a nationwide romance fraud scheme for four years and pulling in more than $2.1 million.
Dodzi K. Kordorwu, 38, was sentenced in U.S. District Court in St. Paul to a 5¼-year term after pleading guilty to the online ruse that targeted dozens of primarily older people.
Judge Eric Tostrud also ordered Kordorwu to be under court supervision for three years after his release and to make full restitution of the money he stole.
The FBI says about 24,000 victims in the United States reported losing about $1 billion to romance scams in 2021. Researchers say romance scammers prey specifically on seniors, some capitalizing on the isolation of the COVID-19 pandemic to find lonely victims.
Ahead of sentencing, prosecutors argued in a court filing for Kordowu to be given a sentence of nearly seven years in prison.
While taking on the persona of “Dr. Carmen Williams” to interact with one victim, Kordowu “directly expressed his love [and] promised to never leave them,” the prosecution filing read.
Upon receiving a monetary shipment, Kordorwu followed up with “‘thank you so much my sweet and beautiful wife. I love you, and I will always love you,’” the filing continued. “The deeply personal connections forged by these overtures is what made the fraud scheme so potent.”
The defense proposed in writing to the court for a sentence of probation, contended that he had a limited role in the scam, the crime was nonviolent in nature, and “Mr. Kordorwu is the sole person being held responsible for the offense.”
The Brooklyn Park City Council has extended its censure of Council Member Boyd Morson in response to claims that he continues to disrespect staff and display inappropriate behavior online.
The council at its meeting last week declined to remove the censure, Morson’s second in the past couple years, which was put in place this spring after a staff member filed a complaint. Fellow council members say Morson, who is seeking reelection on Nov. 5, violated city code, citing concerns that he has posted disparaging messages on social media criticizing the city manager and council members, including calling a fellow member “corrupt.”
In next month’s election, Morson faces a challenge from Amanda Cheng Xiong to represent the city’s eastern district.
Morson isn’t the only Brooklyn Park council member under censure, a usually rare, official reprimand by a governing body. Earlier this year, the council censured Council Member Maria Tran for violating the code of conduct. And last week, council members said they want Tran to receive a mental health evaluation, claiming she had made several concerning comments, including that city leaders were plotting to have her killed and expressing an interest in bringing a gun to meetings.
That means one-third of the six-member council is now censured.
Morson did not immediately return a call for comment Tuesday.
When the council censured Morson this past spring, members agreed to evaluate the decision every three months and determine whether to remove the action. But last week, the council agreed Morson had failed to follow the conditions imposed, which include having no communication with staff other than the city manager and economic development director.
Minneapolis police and SWAT negotiators are on the scene in contact with a man reported to have fired shots from an apartment building in the heart of the Lyn-Lake neighborhood.
Police were called shortly before 1 p.m. to the building at 2904 Lyndale Ave. S., where the man fired shots from the balcony and had threatened to shoot himself and others. The person remained in the apartment as police shuttered the busy intersection and surrounding blocks from 28th to Lake streets in the commercial and residential neighborhood. A SWAT vehicle was on scene and negotiators were in contact with the man.
In a statement posted to X shortly after the incident unfolded, Minneapolis police said no one was hurt and encouraged people to stay away from the area.
This is a breaking news story. Come back to Startribune.com for more details.
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FBI investigating classified documents leak on Israel’s Iran attack plan
Twin Cities man gets 5 years in prison for romance scheme that raked in more than $2M million