Level 99 gaming arcade coming to Ultima Gaming in Washington Square Mall
Detroit Lakes, Minn. (KDLM) – A new modern gaming arcade is coming to the Washington Square Mall in Detroit Lakes this holiday season.
Level 99 will feature modern and classic arcade games and will located inside Ultima Gaming, which completes a dream of Ultima Gaming Owner David Jopp.
“We’re renovating our current space,” said Jopp. “We’re still keeping our traditional offerings, but it’s something we’ve wanted to do for a long time and it just kind of lined up … and folks that were familiar when Pirate’s Den used to be in this space, they’ll kind of get a nice little nostalgic kick because we’re bringing the whole offering in.”
Jopp said he wants the new arcade area of the store to be a place kids want to come and have a birthday party. Adding, he is working out a partnership with Pizza Hut, his Washington Square Mall neighbor, to provide more amenities for any space rental.
“Families have been looking for more entertainment options as well as places to hold your birthday parties,” he said. “We’re really fortunate, we’ve got a great relationship with Pizza Hut, so we’ll be able to offer great birthday packages.”
He also said the arcade games will be coinless and instead rely on a scannable card that can be loaded up with credits online. But that doesn’t mean the new arcade will be completely modern. Jopp said he plans on having plenty of retro offerings for the parents and grandparents who remember the classics, and yes, there will be ski-ball with tickets to win cute little prizes.
“Part of me wants to bring in a couple of the retro ones because I’m a retro Nintendo guy,” said Jopp. “I think it’d be really cool for the parents and grandparents who had it at that time, but to start right now, we’re just focusing on your core family entertainment center type offering. Gaming is my passion. It’s my friends and customers’ passion, so it’s always going to be changing. It’ll be a bunch of different games, whenever we can get our hands on them, and swap them in, rotate them out.”
Jopp also stressed that even though their initial grand opening for Level 99 this holiday season won’t have 30 gaming cabinets, that is the end goal, and they plan on adding continuously to their library in the weeks and months following the opening.
“I always like to say, ‘everybody is a nerd for something,'” he said. “And mine happens to be Nintendo, guitar and football. So, that whole Nintendo love has translated to I was there when the 90s arcade was prevalent. And I want the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, I want WWF, but hoping to get to that. First, we want to make sure we’re taking care of the kids and the parents.”
For more information about the new Level 99 modern gaming arcade, visit the Ultima Gaming website and Facebook page for updates.
4 Minnesotans charged with multi-million dollar catalytic converter theft scheme
Four Minnesota men have been indicted for their roles in a multi-million dollar scheme to transport stolen catalytic converters across state lines.
According to documents filed in federal court, 34-year-old James Dillon Jensen of Minneapolis, 32-year-old Justin Tyme Johnson of St. Paul, 41-year-old John Charles Kotten of Hutchinson, and 31-year-old Soe Nye Moo of St. Paul are among several suspects who participated in a scheme to get their hands on stolen catalytic converters and sell them for huge amounts of money in other states.
Catalytic converters use precious metals in their center, or “core,” and are regularly targeted for theft due to the high value of these metals. The black-market price for catalytic converters can be above $1,000 each. The theft of catalytic converters has become increasingly popular because of their value, relative ease of stealing, and lack of identifying markings.
Prosecutors allege the ring leaders would send out street level cutters to steal the parts from around the state and bring them to Johnson or Kotten, who would buy the converters. Sometimes, they would steer the cutters to buyers acting on their behalf, such as Jensen and Moo. The items would then be packed into U-Haul trailers or personal vehicles and driven elsewhere for payment through cash, wire transfer or both.
To conceal their scheme, Kotten and others purchased scrap or junk cars from individual sellers or at auction to make it appear as though they were involved in a legitimate automotive scrapping and recycling business in the event they were audited or investigated.
In total, the conspiracy netted approximately $21 million from a small number of high volume buyers in Colorado, New Jersey, New York and Oklahoma.
The four are charged with conspiracy to transport stolen property interstate. Johnson and Kotten are charged with interstate transportation of stolen property, conspiracy to commit money laundering, and false statements to a financial institution. Johnson was also charged with conspiracy to commit money laundering – concealment, and Moo was charged with possession of a machine gun.
Otter Tail County hires new assistance human services director
Otter Tail County has hired a new assistant human services director.
In a news release, the county announced the hiring of Jess Steinbrenner, who will serve as assistant to the long-time director of human services, Deb Sjostrom.
During her introduction to county board members, Sjostrom said: “The role of the Assistant Human Services Director focuses on business operations, integrated service delivery, and provides for capacity building. Jess brings a wealth of experience to accomplish this, and we are fortunate and grateful she has joined the Otter Tail County Human Services team.”
From 2008-2012, Steinbrenner served as the Public Information and Education Officer in Otter Tail County’s Solid Waste Department. Since then, she has spent much of her career in various social work roles.
Recently, she served as the Regional Clinical Manager for the State of Minnesota Direct Care and Treatment program, providing clinical oversight and support at four treatment settings, including two inpatient psychiatric hospitals, a residential chemical dependency program, and an intensive residential treatment setting.
Before that role, she worked as a therapist and clinical supervisor at the Fergus Falls Community Behavioral Health Hospital, working with individuals civilly committed to treatment.
Steinbrenner lives in Fergus Falls with her husband, Jon and their three children.
In a news release, she said: “I feel privileged to serve alongside the Otter Tail County Human Services team. I look forward to supporting increased collaboration and integration of services both within the department and beyond.”
TV3 releases series to promote domestic violence awareness
Detroit Lakes’ TV3 released a new series to promote domestic violence prevention last week in an effort to get more victims of domestic violence to reach out for help before it’s too late.
The series was sponsored by Stellher Human Services and Sanford Health.
Anna Sellin, executive director of the Lakes Crisis and Resource Center, said it’s really important for family and friends know the signs of domestic violence so they can offer support to a loved one, who may not even realize what they are experiencing is domestic abuse.
“Clinginess, but also kind of possessiveness, heightened jealousy, maybe sending a lot of expensive gifts that are unexpected, unwanted,” said Sellin. “Showing up at your place of work, maybe even sabotaging your work to the point of getting you fired. Being there constantly. Repeated calling and harassing, which can then grow to being financially controlling … so then there’s the financial control. Maybe taking care of all of the bills so you don’t know what’s going in or what’s going out. It can start almost too good to be true where they are so infatuated with you, but it turns into a lot of control.”
She also said another sign of an abuser is someone who acts one way with their domestic partner and a completely different way with family and friends around. She also said to be wary of people isolating themselves.
“If someone can be one way around you and a completely different way around your friends and family, so you know they can control their behavior because they do it around other people,” she said. “As far as signs on the outside, looking in, are they isolating? Are they no longer hanging out with their family or friends? An abuser may want to limit your supports because that makes it harder to get out if you are estranging yourself from your family and friends.
Sellin also said she encourages abuse victims to have a safety plan in place before they leave the abusive relationship because that can be the most lethal time for a victim.
“Deciding to leave someone can be the most lethal time in a relationship,” said Sellin. “So we really want to encourage people not to do it alone. Please reach out. Just because you reach out to us, we aren’t going to force you to do anything, to leave if you are not ready, but we are going to try to be sure that we can get a safety plan in place. So you do have resources, people you can contact, a place you can stay, but sometimes people just want to say, ‘this is happening. What do you think?’ So just reach out to talk it though.”
To watch both episodes of the TV3 domestic violence series, check out their YouTube page.
And if you have any questions about domestic violence or are seeking to leave an abusive relationship, reach out to the Lakes Crisis and Resource Center or Stellher Human Services to speak with a counselor directly.
Woman shot in Fargo Wednesday morning; suspect arrested
Police officers were dispatched on a report of shots fired at approximately 1:30 a.m. Wednesday on 7th Street North in downtown Fargo.
Officers found a 28-year-old woman with gunshot wounds in an apartment. The woman was taken by ambulance to a hospital with serious injuries.
Police arrested Kyle Ochoa, a 30-year-old Fargo resident, for the shooting. Officers located Ochoa outside of the apartment building and took him into custody without incident. He is being held at the Cass County Jail on suspicion of attempted murder.
A preliminary investigation indicates that Ochoa and the victim were acquaintances. The case remains under investigation. Police say there is no known threat to the public.
Investigators were on the scene for several hours. A large area was cordoned off by police tape in and around a large parking lot to the west side of the Gardner Apartments and around the Billmeyer Apartments on 7th Street North, near the Plains Art Museum.
West Fargo man pleads not guilty to wife’s killing
A West Fargo man charged with murdering his wife has pleaded not guilty and will remain in jail on $1 million cash bail.
Spencer Moen, 31, was arrested in August after calling to report that his wife, Sonja, fell asleep in their bathtub and was unresponsive when he checked on her.
Investigators said Sonja Moen had significant bruising on the left side of her face and forehead and that her eyes appeared to be swollen shut. They also noticed bruising on the back of her hands, consistent with defensive injuries.
Spencer Moen said an argument started after she picked him up from golfing in Mapleton. He said they were both intoxicated and she tripped coming up the steps from the garage into the house, and “face planted.”
An autopsy showed that she died of blunt force trauma to the head and had at least one broken rib. At least two of the couple’s children were home at the time of her death.
Moen remains in the Cass County Jail. His attorney asked the judge to reduce the $1 million bail. That request was denied.
Moen’s next hearing is scheduled for Jan. 10.
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