Afternoon News Update: Thursday September 25
- Unemployment in 12 Illinois metro areas including Rockford declined for the fifth consecutive month. A steep drops was also seen in the Rockford area where unemployment fell from 11.4 percent a year earlier to 9.4 percent. Officials say many employers will be adding seasonal workers in the next few months.
- O'Hare Airport in Chicago is reclaiming the title as the world's busiest. Federal officials say more than 580,000 flights departed or landed at O'Hare from January to August. The mayor's office also says international passenger volume was up eight percent in the first half of 2014.
- A Peoria man has been sentenced to more than three years in prison after pleading guilty to his 13th count of driving with a revoked license. Sixty-year-old Willie Drummer pleaded guilty Wednesday to aggravated driving while license revoked in Fulton County. The sentence includes one year of supervised release.
- Autopsy results show a woman found in a burned car died from injuries suffered in the fire. Public works employees discovered a car engulfed in flames in a remote area of Janesville Tuesday. Authorities plan to use dental records to make positive identification of the woman.
- Governor Pat Quinn announced a capital investment of more than $3.9 million for a construction project in Boone County. Illinois Route 76 will receive 15 miles of milling and resurfacing from the Wisconsin State Line to U.S. Business 20 north of Belvidere.
- A DeKalb County man in behind bars after being accused of molesting a child over a 9 year period. DeKalb County Sheriff's Investigators arrested 70-year-old Ival Miles after they say they the victim came forward to report the alleged abuse on Sunday. Miles was found in Hinckley and taken into custody on Wednesday. He faces 12 counts of Predatory Criminal Sexual Abuse of a Child.
- Rockford is bringing a popular vacation activity to the area. Zip Rockford opening a brand new Stateline adventure park at Alpine Hills that features fully guided zip line tours. The tour has five zip lines ranging from 175 feet to 1,000 feet long. The Rockford Park District has teamed up with Zip Rockford, and believe this state of the art facility will become one of the areas biggest attractions.
- Nearly $9,000 is expected to be returned to the Illinois tollway after multiple investigations found instances of theft. A report by the Illinois Tollway investigation revealed theft by toll collectors and two involved questionable business transactions by Tollway customer service representatives. Based on these findings, all six employees involved in theft and misconduct have either resigned or been terminated by the Tollway.
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