Lakes area EV event brings vehicles into hands of curious residents

Detroit Lakes, Minn. (KDLM) – Lakes area utility providers hosted an electric vehicle event at First Lutheran Church in Detroit Lakes on Saturday.

Event attendees were able check out and ask questions about more than a half-dozen electric vehicles, including: an EV Hummer, Ford F-150 Lightning, Tesla Model Y, a Ford Mustang Mach-E, and a Chevrolet Bolt, among others.

Vernell Roberts, general manager for Detroit Lakes Public Utilities, said he was able to test a Ford F-150 Lightning this February over some of the coldest days of the winter to see how the pickup would react to frigid lakes area temperatures.

“I had this outside and it was 25-below and I brought it into my garage and warmed it up to about 40 degrees on ambience, so it was just above zero in my garage and I plugged it into a 110V outlet,” said Roberts, during a KDLM Facebook Live video. “I conditioned the batteries and I gained about 60 miles of range just by bringing it inside and plugging it into a 110V outlet. So once you understand that, you can kind of plan your trip and plan your day a little bit better and, if it’s pre-conditioned, you are going to be good to go.”

Roberts also said the range of the battery can vary depending on the driving conditions, location and other vehicle economy features being used.

“You will lose some mileage, there’s no doubt,” he said. “Right now, it says 317 (miles), in the real world, that’s probably 265-270 miles given you want to run air conditioning, wind and other things. And that’s going down the interstate at speed, 55-60 mph, I’m pretty sure we’ll get 300 miles.”

Roberts also demonstrated the acceleration of the Ford Lightning during a test drive with KDLM Morning Show Host Joel Koetke, who noticed the truck must’ve gotten to 70 mph in about 4 seconds.

Currently, there are two electric vehicle charging stations on Holmes Street, near Lakes Liquor, but the city has plans to add two additional charging stations at a proposed trailhead to the Heartland Trail, near East Shore Drive. 

Audubon man charged for posting explicit photos of a woman without consent

An Audubon man has been charged in Becker County District Court with felony nonconsensual dissemination of private sexual images.

According to the Detroit Lakes Tribune, on June 26, an investigator for the Becker County Sheriff’s Office was alerted that 55-year-old Michael William Kurkowski, of Audubon, posted an explicit photograph of a woman who was engaged in a sexual act on his social media page.

The victim alleges Kurkowski posted the photograph online because she is involved in a civil lawsuit with him.

She also said the photograph must have been taken while the two were dating and she did not give him consent to take the photograph or post it online.

Kurkowski is also involved in three other open criminal cases involving the same woman. Two of those cases involved alleged violations of an order-for-protection and the third involves a forgery charge.

Kurkowski also faces a separate fifth-degree controlled substance charge for reportedly attempting to bring drugs into the Becker County Jail.

A warrant was issued for his arrest on July 5 by Becker County District Court Judge Gretchen Thilmony.

Stella defends title, wins 12th annual wiener dog races at Looney Days

53 wiener dogs participated in the 12th annual Wiener Dog races in Vergas on Saturday morning.

The Looney Days staple-event brought in dogs and their owners from as far away as Florida, Texas and Nevada.

Digger Anderson, the master-of-ceremonies for the event, spoke to KVRR’s Hami Arain and said the competition has been growing every year.

“It started out with just a handful of dogs and about 75 or so spectators,” said Anderson. “And now, it’s grown year, after year, after year, where it’s kind of become the signature event of Looney Days on Saturday morning.”

Anderson said he has a 14-year-old wiener dog and, even as he, and his dog, keep getting older, he still loves to watch the excitement on the faces of all the young kids who get a kick out of watch these animals run through the grass.

“I’ve raced wiener dogs and I’ve owned a lot of wiener dogs over the years,” he said. “I own one wiener dog now and he’s 14 years old, but I’ve got a special place in my heart for wiener dogs. They are just a cool dog and I really enjoy them … and watching these little kids’ smiles light up, they love these races and I just enjoy having the opportunity to do that.”

At this year’s races, Stella, the wiener dog from Little Falls, and her owners Ashley Hastings and Tayler Murphy, successfully defended their championship from all competitors and repeated as back-to-back champions of the Looney Days Wiener Dog races.

A photo of Stella with her owners, the rest of the 52 competitors and video of the event can be found on our station’s website or embedded in the news story on the Lakes Area Radio app.

West Fargo man charged with murder in killing of his wife

 A West Fargo man has been charged with murder in the death of his wife.

31-year-old Spencer Moen was arrested last Thursday morning at the couple’s home in the 1100 block of Eaglewood Ave.

Charging documents indicate that Moen told responding officers that his wife, Sonja, decided to sleep in the bathtub and was unresponsive when he woke up.

Investigators said she 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 told investigators that 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 Sonja died of blunt force trauma to the head and had at least one broken rib. Moen is also charged with contributing to the deprivation or delinquency of a minor. At least two of the couple’s children were home at the time of her death.

Story by Paul Jurgens / KFGO

Frazee man sentenced in Lakeshirts lockdown incident

A Frazee man was sentenced to nearly a year in prison for gross misdemeanor harassment that sent Lakeshirts in Detroit Lakes into a temporary lockdown in January.

According to the Detroit Lakes Tribune, on Jan. 17, police received a report from a woman who said a disgruntled man threatened to shoot her and shoot-up her workplace at the local apparel manufacturer.

The man was identified as 64-year-old Robert Allen Pary, of rural Frazee. Officers also learned Pary held multiple firearms in a locked cabinet at a residence.

Officers recommended that Lakeshirts go into lockdown procedures until the situation was resolved.

Pary was stopped and arrested while he was driving his pickup truck. He also allegedly admitted to officers that he said he would shoot up the place.

A felony threats of violence charge and other misdemeanors were dismissed in a plea agreement with prosecutors and Becker County District Court Judge Michelle Lawson sentenced Pary to serve 364 days in prison with a two-year stay sentence for all but 10 days of the prison term, which Pary agreed to serve under home confinement at his own cost.

He was also fined nearly $1,000 and ordered by the court to not process firearms, ammunition or explosives. Pary was placed under two years of supervised probation and must also complete a domestic abuse assessment and follow its recommendations.

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