Author: KIFI

News Release

The following is a press release from Make-A-Wish® Idaho:

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) — Make-A-Wish® Idaho will hold its annual Walk For Wishes East Idaho fundraiser on Saturday, June 21 at Russ Freeman Park at 1280 Science Center Drive in Idaho Falls. Day-of registration begins at 9 a.m. with the walk starting at 10. There is no entry fee for the event, but walk participants are encouraged to raise a minimum of $100 to earn an official event T-shirt. Funds will go to grant wishes for children with critical illnesses.  

There are currently 19 wish kids in East Idaho who are waiting for wishes. Many of these kids have wished to go to Disney World but others have wished for a hot tub, college tuition, to go to a resort as well as several wishes to go to Hawaii. The average cash cost of a wish is $7,500 and Make-A-Wish Idaho hopes to raise $19,500 from the walk, enough money to fully fund two wishes. Participants can sign-up as an individual or team at idaho.wish.org/events.

“Having a child who has a life-threatening illness can be isolating. Idaho is a rural and small state, population-wise, so a lot of these kids and families leave the state for treatment. This splits families up during a tough time. One parent journeys with their sick child, while the other stays behind, holding down the fort – caring for siblings and managing the household. Meanwhile, the world keeps moving on, seemingly indifferent to their plight. Well, people aren’t indifferent. They want to help, and this walk is the community coming together in support of those families,” said Janie Best President and CEO of Make-A-Wish Idaho.

The walk route is approximately one mile in length and is appropriate for all ages and fitness levels. The event will also have wish family testimonies, a wish reveal, a DJ, family-friendly activities, and refreshments. This year’s Walk For Wishes East Idaho is presented by the Startups With Stu Podcast and sponsored by the Bank of Commerce, Wood Funeral Home, TitleOne, Kiewit, and the East Idaho Regional Medical Center.

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Noah Farley

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) — Several people in Idaho Falls say they are angry and horrified after someone posted on Facebook saying a man threw two kittens out of his moving truck.

The initial poster says their friend saw a man in a white Chevy truck throw two kittens out of his window. They say one kitten had a seizure on the road before both kittens were hit by cars and died.

“[My friend] wrapped these poor lifeless babies in her work uniform, and I gave her a box to bury them in,” the post says.

The post goes on to say the kittens will be buried in the person’s backyard “with dignity and love, surrounded with the prettiest flowers.” 

Many people on the Life in Idaho Falls Facebook group have commented on the post, expressing their disgust at the man who threw the kittens out on the road. They’ve also praised and thanked the woman who plans to respectfully bury the kittens.

Local News 8 has reached out to the person who made the post to verify the claim. We are waiting to hear back.

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News Team

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) — The friend of a family who lost everything in a house fire Monday night, June 9th, has organized a GoFundMe on behalf of the family.

The fire tore through a home on Lorna Avenue in Bonneville County Monday afternoon, destroying the garage and back deck. Dawn Barber of Blackfoot, who created the fundraiser, says the home belonged to a single father and his young son, who were not home at the time.

For more information on the fire and efforts to put it out, click HERE.

The fire caused an estimated $200,000 in damages. Barber says the father and son had insurance, but are facing a “pretty hefty deductible.”

“They are displaced but able to stay with family right now, so the immediate needs will be personal/hygiene items like clothes, as well as the deductible. Plenty of worries right now, money shouldn’t be another,” said Dawn Barber of Idaho Falls in the fundraiser.

Barber asks for prayers and help on behalf of the father and son.

For more information on the GoFundMe, click HERE.

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Kailey Galaviz

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) – Saddle up for a night of country fun at Snake River Landing with the Waterfront Round Up with Farmer Wants a Wife Reality TV Star Jay Woods.

He will be there to teach roping lessons, plus meet and greet fans.

Those who attend can also experience a live DJ with line dancing, food trucks, a mechanical bull and more.

The free event kicks off at 7 p.m. at the Waterfront at Snake River Landing.

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Kailey Galaviz

IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) – A local jump rope team from Idaho Falls is looking to journey to Japan to compete in the World Championships representing Team USA. But they need your help.

The team is hosting a fundraising event raising money to help get them to the championship competition.

On June 14, everyone is invited to come support and watch performances starting at 6 p.m. at Black Canyon Middle School.

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Phillip Willis

BINGHAM COUNTY, Idaho (KIFI) — A shooting range will not be built after 3 to 5 decision by Bingham County commissioners.

The proposed shooting range in Bingham County was up for discussion in the Planning and Zoning Commission meeting on Wednesday night. The decision was made based on concerns of lead leaching from bullets and casings into nearby farmland due to water run off and flooding on the property, as well as the distress of local neighbors at the prospect of the shooting range being built.

During discussions which lasted three hours, Jeff Krueger made several arguments to the safety, environmental mindset, and community benefit of this shooting range. Krueger boasts a sound level of 70 – 80 decibels in weapons fire testing, and showed video evidence of local horses unbothered, or “if anything, curious” by the firing of the weapons.

Jeff Krueger was supported by, among others, Stan Pate, the Vice Chair of the State Range Association of Oregon. He spoke to Krueger’s character, the benefit of the range, and how lead leaching is mitigated through strategies that Krueger intended for this range.

Many people from neighboring properties came out in opposition to the range being built. They cited concerns of increased traffic and noise to the quiet area, hooliganism, and bullets flying beyond the berms despite other safety measures.

The Kruegers shared the following official statement with Local News 8:

“We’re grateful for the opportunity to present our proposal and for the time the Planning & Zoning Commission and community members invested in the hearing.  We also appreciate the local residents who showed up to share their thoughts. While we disagree with some of the concerns raised, we understand and respect that people want to feel safe and informed.

We were disappointed by the Commissioner’s decision and are currently reviewing our options. In the meantime, we hope to connect directly with our neighbors to clarify aspects of our plan that may not have come through clearly during the hearing.  We’re also hopeful that by continuing these conversations, we can find common ground and explore workable solutions that respect the needs and concerns of all involved.” – Jeff and Julie Krueger

Local News 8 is committed to telling both sides of each story. We interviewed Jason Cook prior to the meeting. He provided us details on the situation from his perspective. The Kruegers shared what they believe to be important clarifications. They claim that:

The planned range was small in scale, and was intended to be a private training range, not a commercial or public facility.

While initial reports describe a 150-acre gun complex, only a portion of this land would have been designated for the range itself, the remaining land for personal use including the future building of a home.

The range is not just outside of Blackfoot, but is 25 minutes away from Blackfoot at the end of a 2-mile dead-end road in a rural agricultural area.

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Noah Farley

BINGHAM COUNTY, Idaho (KIFI) — The criminal trial of Brandon Cook, a local contractor accused of defrauding homeowners out of hundreds of thousands of dollars through his company, Re-Lived Construction, has been declared a mistrial. Cook was charged with grand theft by failed promise and being a persistent violator.

Local News 8 viewers may remember Cook from a multi-week investigation we aired last year. The outcome of Cook’s trial, which began just yesterday, June 12, reportedly shocked homeowner and witness Jennifer Bennett, who was also featured in Local News 8’s exclusive investigation.

Local News 8’s reporting revealed claims by Bennett and homeowner Cody Hawker, both of whom hired Cook in 2023, and were left with significant damage. Bennett’s home had gutted walls and damaged support beams, while Hawker’s property featured a large, exposed hole in his backyard leading to his basement. Hawker previously described boarding up this hole and needing a pump to run 24/7 during winter to prevent his home from flooding.

Collectively, Hawker and Bennett paid Cook $43,000, only for him to allegedly destroy parts of their homes. They are, however, only two of at least 10 homeowners who allegedly hired Cook and lost money to the contractor.

Life a Center for Independent Living, a local non-profit, reportedly lost $200,000 to Cook.

Cook admitted to Local News 8 in an exclusive interview that he had become overwhelmed by trying to take “competitive” jobs. He’d also told us he was in a snowmobile wreck in 2020, three years before being hired by Hakwer or Bennett, which he says left him with injuries that limited his ability to work even years after the accident. Cook told us he had been unable to keep up with the work after his brother and employee left Re-Lived Construction to work for a different contractor, and admitted he’d started using deposits from previous jobs to finish other jobs.

While another criminal trial is a possibility, Jennifer Bennett tells Local News 8 that, as Cook has declared bankruptcy, there is little chance she or anyone else will get their money back. Last year, Bonneville County Prosecutor Randy Neal told Local News 8 that malicious parties or contractors would sometimes close their business or declare bankruptcy as a way of “avoiding civil liability.” In those cases, Neal said victims were left with few options.

The simplest answer is “don’t get in this situation in the first place.” For what we learned on how to vet a contractor, click HERE.

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Ariel Jensen

BONNEVILLE COUNTY, Idaho (KIFI) – Dozens visited the Bonneville County Courthouse this afternoon for a ribbon-cutting to celebrate the completion of its newest courtroom.

Courthouse employees and community members were the first to fill the benches of the new Bonneville County Courtroom 11.

This courtroom will provide space for the new District and Magistrate Judge positions recently created by the Idaho legislature to be chambered in Bonneville County.

This courtroom was designed to accommodate bigger and complex trials by providing space for more attorneys and jurors.

Following the ribbon-cutting ceremony, the public was invited to tour the new courtroom for an open house tour. Attendees learned that the courtroom is 100% ADA accessible (Americans with Disabilities Act). 

“The county has grown. It’s just that we are the fourth largest county in the state of Idaho, and it’s just grown. And we have more judges than we have court facilities. It’s just hard to schedule trials as well as the ADA compliance. This courtroom makes it more accessible as the needs of the community grow,” said Penny Manning, Bonneville County Clerk.

Manning tells Local News 8 that this project was conceived around the time the Idaho Falls Police Department was moving out of the building. This left a lot of space to decide what to do with the facility.

While plans to bring in a new courtroom took several years in the making, the renovation timeline exceeded expectations.

The actual project itself started in September, and thanks to construction engineers, they completed the remodel in less than a year. 

“We were just trying to get it up and running, knowing that we had been approved for a new district judge and a new magistrate judge, and not having chambers that we could house them in. So we were trying to figure out a path forward, and this seemed like the best choice,” said Manning.

Manning says there are still a few things that need to be done before the new courtroom can be put into action. They anticipate it’ll have its first trial in a few months. 

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Seth Ratliff

JACKSON, WYO (KIFI) — The Teton County Sheriff’s Office has issued an urgent “be on the lookout” (BOLO) alert for a man suspected of stealing a 2006 dark gray Nissan Frontier. The vehicle was last seen yesterday, June 11, at approximately 6:30 PM. Details of the theft and photos of the suspect were shared via the agency’s Facebook page.

In photos released by the Sheriff’s Office, the suspect appears to be a white male with a short, well-kept beard. He appears to be wearing a dark hoodie and a baseball cap with sunglasses on top, and carrying a backpack.

The stolen Nissan Frontier is easily identifiable with its Wyoming truck plate 22-1713, a gray bumper sticker reading “Backcountry Sports,” and a large bike rack attached to the hitch.

The Teton County Sheriff’s Office is urging anyone with information about the suspect or the vehicle to contact Deputy Erik Elizondo directly at (307) 231-5900. Details of the theft and suspect description were shared via the agency’s Facebook page.

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