On 07/31/2015 at approximately 10:25 a.m. the Palo Alto County Sheriff’s Office was contacted in reference to an individual shooting at an aerial spray plane owned by Steier AG Aviation of Whittemore, Iowa, while it was conducting routine spraying of a field in Palo Alto County. Upon further investigation, it was determined that the incident took place in the south west corner of section 25 in Fairfield Township while the plane was spraying a farm field. The plane was struck on the right wing flap by a bullet and was able to return to the landing strip and land safely.
During the investigation a suspect was developed and a search warrant was obtained for a property located at 5719 390th Street. Several items were seized from the property and are in the process of being analyzed. There have been no arrests made in the case and the investigation is ongoing.
The Palo Alto County Sheriff’s Office was assisted in the investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Kossuth County Sheriff’s Office, and Algona Police Department.