Afternoon News Brief - Milwaukee County sheriff's sergeant, Philip Wentzel, facing federal child pornography charge

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A Milwaukee County sheriff’s sergeant is facing a federal charge of producing child pornography. Investigators said Philip Wentzel took photos of young girls at a campsite he reserved in Campbellsport in Fond du Lac County. He then allegedly shared the images on an Internet file sharing network. A search warrant was executed last year in Denver – and investigators said GPS data led them to the Campbellsport campground, and Wentzel’s cellphone and Internet IP address.

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The Green Bay Packers have scored a major business for their new retail and entertainment complex west of Lambeau Field. It was announced today that the Cabela’s outdoor recreation chain will build a new super store on 21 acres at Lombardi Avenue and Highway 41. Construction will begin this fall, and the store is scheduled to open next summer with up to 200 employees. The site has 11 acres of wetlands, and the Packers have a state permit to build on three of those acres. That permit had generated controversy, after the Wisconsin Wetlands Association challenged it. The case was supposed to go to an administrative law judge, but Packers’ executive committee member John Bergstrom asked Republican Governor Scott Walker to step in last January. The GOP majority in both houses approved an exception allowing Bass Pro Shops to build a store there but that chain pulled out, saying it would refuse to build on wetlands. Cabela’s said its new store would fit in perfectly. Among other things, it will have a mountain replica with game animals in a recreated natural habitat. And there will be a Wisconsin sportsmen’s Hall of Fame which features trophy mounts of animals. It will be Cabela’s third store in Wisconsin, with the others being in Prairie du Chien and near West Bend. Packers’ president Mark Murphy says Cabela’s will be the first major tenant in what’s called the “Titletown District.” All told, the Packers own about 28 acres west of the stadium, dedicated for future business development.

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An email sent to students at Marquette University says a student at the Milwaukee school suffered serious injuries this morning when he fell of a balcony. The accident happened at an off campus apartment building. Witnesses say the victim fell when a railing he was leaning on gave way. The injured student is being treated at Froedtert Hospital. An afternoon prayer service for the student was held in the Chapel of the Holy Family in the Alumni Memorial Union, according to the email.

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The president of the Wisconsin Technical College System says graduates of tech schools get jobs in the state and contribute to its economic recovery. A survey of those graduates shows 88 percent were hired within six months and 86 percent found their job in Wisconsin. Graduates will associate degrees are reportedly earning an average of $36,000 dollars a year to start.

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Investigators in Vernon County hope casting a wider net will help them solve a 28 year old murder. The body of the female victim, about 50 to 63 years old, was dumped along a road on May 4th, 1984. She had been beaten, her hands cut off, and all labels removed from her clothing. Jim Hanson was the first officer on the scene where a woman’s body was found. He believes the killer was interrupted in an earlier attempt to dump the body when a local resident drove by. It’s hoped improved forensic techniques and social media may help to resolve the case. The sheriff says the woman was a living, breathing human being, who was dumped like a piece of garbage. He is asking for a continued effort. Anyone with information is being asked to contact the Vernon County Sheriff’s Department. The state Department of Justice is also working with the department on the effort.

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UW Milwaukee economics professor John Heywood says calls the nation’s job growth in April positive but “tepid.” The Labor Department said 130,000 private sector jobs were created last month, the lowest number since last August. And while the nation’s unemployment rate dropped, it was because 342,000 Americans stopped looking for work. They left the labor force, and reduced the total number of present and potential workers on which the employment percentages are based. The percentage of working age Americans either with jobs or actively looking fell to 63.6 percent last month. Sal Guatieri of the BMO Financial Group called it the lowest percentage in 30 years. Heywood said the ratio needs to be reversed if the country’s going to add jobs.

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A man suffered hypothermia today, after high waves pushed him out of a fishing boat on the Bay of Green Bay. It happened just before eight this morning on the east end of the city of Green Bay. Police said the man was trying to restart a stalled boat engine when he fell out. A second man in the boat called 911 from a cell phone and rescuers use GPS to track the call and find the boat. It was about 45 minutes later when the victim was rescued and sent to the hospital. Officials then towed the boat, along with the other person inside, to Green Bay’s Metropolitan Boat Launch. The US Coast Guard helped local rescuers with the effort. They’re urging people to stay off the bay right now, because of the high winds and cooler temperatures.

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