A judge convicted a Cedar Rapids man of first-degree murder Monday for fatally beating and stabbing his friend, Dennis First, in 2007. The bench trial was last month in Linn County.
Testimony started Thursday in a 2007 cold case of a Cedar Rapids man severely beaten and stabbed to death at his Hawthorne Hills apartment. His former neighbor is on trial for the crime.
Crime scene investigators testified Friday about oven mitts soaked in blood and the murder weapon found in Cedar Rapisd apartment of Dennis First, who was fatally stabbed in 2007. The ex-girlfriend of Curtis Padgett, on trial in the killing, also testified Friday that he denied being the killer but had a suicidal incident and held a knife to his neck in 2010.
A Coggon man said he deposited cash into a bitcoin machine and gave the bitcoin to a person who threatened him. Now, he wants his cash back after finding out it was a scam.
A judge will allow a statements, including a confession, made by a Cedar Rapids man who is accused of trying to kill his ex-wife in 2020. Judge says he voluntarily waived his rights and didn’t seemed confused or upset during the interview.