Friday, May 29, 2026
A two vehicle accident Thursday morning around 6:40am in Pierz injured three people and also damaged the liquor store on the north end of town. A Chevy Suburban driven by 34-year-old Lucas Nickaboine from Onamia reportedly ran through a stop sign at 3rd Avenue North at Highway 25 and collided with a Rav4 driven by 53-year-old Robert Matlock of Pierz. The Suburban came to rest on the sidewalk along Highway 25 while the Rav4 ended up going through the front of the Lloyd's Liquor Store in Pierz. The Liquor Store was able to reopen yesterday afternoon. Matlock was taken to St. Gabriel's Hospital for non life threatening injuries. Nickaboine and his passenger, 31-year-old Matthew Mitchell of Onamia had injuries but were not hospitalized. The State Patrol investigated the accident and cited Nickaboine for running the stop sign.
Minnesota Department of Transportation reported that the exit ramp to Little Falls has reopened. The Minnesota Department of Transportation has completed repairs on the bridge over Highway 10 at the Haven Road exit. The bridge was damaged late last year when a semi-truck struck the overpass. The damage prompted MnDOT to close the Highway 10 exit ramp on the south end of Little Falls until repairs could be completed. Crews were able to use heat to straighten the damaged steel frame earlier this spring and have now finished installing custom-fabricated steel plates. The plates are used to reinforce the damaged girder and diaphragms. The completed repairs mean drivers can return to using the westbound Highway 10 exit to Haven Road.
On May 23, 2026, at 10:40am., the Stearns County Sheriff’s Office Emergency Communications Center received a call reporting a single vehicle rollover with injuries near the address of 35733 County Road 10 in Albany Township. Deputies identified the driver of the vehicle as, Michael Edward Ninow Jr., 43 of Randall. Ninow reported swerving to miss a deer and struck the ditch, then struck a driveway and rolled his vehicle. Ninow sustained minor injuries.
A St. Cloud resident has been charged with several felony counts of allegedly possessing dozens of pornographic files on his computer, as well as numerous other charges of assault and fleeing the scene of an accident. 21-year-old Dawson James Pawluk is facing 11 felony counts of possessing child pornography on electronic media, and an additional four felony counts of possession with a prior conviction as a registered predatory offender involving a minor under the age of 14. Pawluk is also facing a felony charge of first-degree damage to property and a gross misdemeanor charge of fifth-degree assault in Stearns County. He is also facing felony charges of fleeing a peace officer in a motor vehicle, a gross misdemeanor charge of criminal vehicular operation resulting in bodily harm and leaving the scene of a collision, and a misdemeanor charge of failure to stop for a traffic control signal in Crow Wing County. The case originated from a tip provided by the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC), which indicated that a specific account on the social platform X contained several illicit images. After an investigation, law enforcement determined the account belonged to Pawluk. Investigators executed a search warrant on May 12, 2025, at Pawluk’s residence in the 2200 block of Veterans Drive in St. Cloud. Upon seizing his laptop and extracting its data, authorities discovered 38 videos and 12 images containing illicit material. The data also revealed text conversations in which Pawluk discussed previously attempting to have sexual relations with a minor, during which he referred to himself as a “pedo.” On the same day as the warrant, at around 12:04 p.m., officers from the St. Cloud Police Department were dispatched to St. Cloud Technical College regarding an assault. Upon arrival, officers spoke to the victim, who said Pawluk had assaulted him on campus before carving a derogatory word into the side of his car with a key. Pawluk then fled the scene at a speed officers were unable to match. Officers then returned to his residence to execute a search warrant on a separate matter; Pawluk, however, was not found at home. On May 14, Pawluk was involved in a hit-and-run accident at the intersection of State Highways 210 and 371 in Crow Wing County. Pawluk reportedly fled at speeds up to 120 mph before crashing, at which point he was taken into custody. When asked by an officer why he did not stop, Pawluk replied that he already had charges pending and expressed indifference toward having more added. Pawluk is currently being held at Stearns County Jail. He is set to appear for a pretrial hearing in Stearns County on Thursday, June 4, and for an omnibus hearing in Crow Wing County on Thursday, July 23.
The case against an International Falls man accused of kidnapping and raping a seven-year-old Zimmerman girl in January is now much bigger than that single crime. A federal indictment unsealed Thursday alleges 28-year-old Joseph Andrew Bragg also produced child pornography involving a second child, and investigators say they believe there may be even more victims. A federal grand jury indicted Bragg on counts of kidnapping and attempted transportation of a minor, along with the production and possession of child pornography involving the second victim. Investigators say a cell phone Bragg was carrying the night of the January kidnapping contained multiple videos and images of child sexual abuse, and that a second minor was positively identified in several of those files. Authorities are urging anyone with information to come forward. According to prosecutors, on Wednesday, January 21st, the girl’s mother reported her missing around 6:30 p.m. after she didn’t come home from school. The mother learned the child wasn’t with her father or grandmother, and no one else had permission to be with her. Police say the girl had been dropped off by her school bus around 3:40 p.m. Neighbor surveillance footage showed her walking toward her home at 3:53 p.m. before turning back toward the bus stop and disappearing from view. During the investigation, the mother told authorities about an unusual online interaction in December with a Facebook user identified as Bragg. She accepted a friend request because she thought she knew him. The mother said Bragg asked whether she had children and expressed interest in working with children and childcare services in the Zimmerman-Princeton area. She ultimately realized she didn’t know him and blocked him. Investigators tracked Bragg using cell phone location data and identified him traveling southbound toward Iowa in a white 2025 Dodge Ram rental with Tennessee plates. Prosecutors say location data confirmed the rental vehicle was near the victim’s home on January 21st around the time she would have gotten off the school bus. An Amber Alert went out after the information was shared with multiple agencies. Bragg was taken into custody around 12:34 a.m. on January 22nd after an Albert Lea Police Department sergeant stopped the pickup near the Trails Travel Center and Love’s Truck Stop, about 140 miles south of Zimmerman and 12 miles from the Iowa border. Officers say the truck was packed with belongings, and they spotted a young girl with blonde hair in the backseat, partially hidden by items including a large red suitcase that appeared to be empty. The girl was recovered safely and identified as the missing Zimmerman child. Bragg was arrested and declined to speak with police. Court documents reveal Bragg had laid the groundwork ahead of the abduction. He parked a car at a Hamel home and asked the homeowner if he could leave it there because he was going out of state. He then used Lyft to take himself and the girl from the Hamel-Corcoran area to a Ramada Inn in Plymouth, where he had reserved a room from December 27th, 2025, through January 21st, 2026. Surveillance video showed him entering alone but carrying a large red suitcase, big enough to fit a child, that appeared heavy and difficult to lift. Investigators believe he abused the girl at the hotel. A forensic interview and examination determined the Zimmerman girl had been sexually assaulted. In January, Bragg was charged in Sherburne County District Court with one felony count of kidnapping to facilitate a felony or flight and one felony count of 1st-degree criminal sexual conduct. He remains in federal custody. Investigators believe there may be more victims. Anyone with information about Bragg is asked to contact the FBI Tip Line at 1-800-CALL-FBI or tips.fbi.gov.
More graduation ceremonies are tonight in the area. Royalton graduates the Class of 2026 at 7pm at the Royalton High School. Holdingford graduates tonight also Class of 2026 at 7pm at the high school. There are some other schools around the state graduating tonight and Saturday including Sartell-St. Stephen High School at 7:30pm on Saturday night. Also many schools have already gone to summer vacations as others including Little Falls public schools, Royalton and Upsala wrap up the school year today for the students.
The Morrison County Fair is June 25th through the 28th at the Fairgrounds east of Little Falls. The Entertainment and Exhibitors guides have been released are available at some area businesses. Details also at morrisonfair.com and on their Facebook page. IV Play on the 25th Hairball on 26th, Stone Road Saturday night and James Wedgwood a comedy ventriloquist on Sunday the 28th. Grandstand shows include the 4x4 Truck and Tractor Pull on Saturday and Autocross racing on Sunday at the 2026 edition of the Morrison County Fair, a link to all fair events is also on the homepage at fallsradio.com.
Weather: partly sunny and warm today, high 89, mostly cloudy tonight, isolated T-storm possible in areas, low around 59, cloudy skies Saturday high 83, cloudy Saturday night low 55. Sunday, partly sunny, high near 80, clear Sunday night low around 55. Monday sunny start, rain in late afternoon, high 86, rain Monday night low around 52, Tuesday sunny, high 83, clear Tuesday night low 52, rain likely Wednesday, high of 85.
Sports: White Sox beat the Twins 6-2 on Thursday to take 3 of 4 in that series. Twins (27-30) are at Pittsburgh Friday 5:45pm, Saturday 3:05pm and Sunday at 12:35pm. The Minnesota Lynx are at Chicago tonight then off until Monday when at Phoenix. Softball Thursday New York Mills 5-3 over Swanville in 9 innings ending the Bulldog season. Baseball: Little Falls 5-2 over Sauk Rapids-Rice, Little Falls at Sartell 1pm on Saturday on AM960 KLTF. Cathedral 10-0 over Pierz, Pierz vs. Eden Valley Watkins in elimination game in St. Cloud Monday at 4:30pm on AM960 KLTF. Upsala-Swanville wins 2-1 over Mayer Lutheran and plays Heritage Christian Academy in St. Paul on Saturday. Foley 2-1 over Holdingford, both teams play again on Monday, Staples-Motley was eliminated in baseball Thursday. Congratulations to Kobi Cameron of Little Falls qualifying for State Track Tournament next week in the pole vault, more track athletes of Little Falls will try to qualify for state on Saturday at Rocori High School. Pierz qualified 17 for the State Tournament next week, 4x800 - Caden Lucking, Davin Willis, Zack Welty, Wyatt Betsinger (new school record) 4x800- Sophie Leidenfrost, Morgan Litke, Quinn Gruber, Chloe Lochner 4x100- Paul Nieman, Brandon Solinger, Tyler Kimman, Brayden Faust (set the meet record) High Jump- Kora Toop, High Jump- Brandon Solinger, Pole Vault- Garrett Seelen, Discus- Beverly Rentz, Shot Put - Elsa Gray 300M Hurdles- Kaleb Poser Triple Jump- Paul Nieman 100M- Brayden Faust 200M- Brayden Faust and 1600m- Wyatt Betsinger. Royalton had 2 qualifiers Lydia Prokott in 100M and Max Vannurden in the long jump and also in the triple jump, Upsala-Swanville had 3 qualifiers in the high jump Lucas Gerads, Caleb Guthrie and Olivia Klasen. The State Tournament begins next Thursday at St. Michael Albertville High School. The Little Falls and Pierz track coaches are guests on the Saturday Morning Sports Wrap Saturday morning at 9:05am on AM960 KLTF and fallsradio.com. Royalton at Upsala is the Victory League Game of the Week Sunday at 1:30pm on AM960 KLTF and fallsradio.com.