A 43-year-old man who allegedly stole firearms and a pickup truck from a ranch was captured Friday night after a day-long manhunt in northwestern Colorado.

Officers and deputies took Valentin Velez into custody shortly after sunset. They were first notified of the burglary and theft almost 10 hours earlier. 

The Moffat County Sheriff’s Office responded to the initial call at 10:15 a.m. Dispatchers were told that at least one thief had taken several firearms from the ranch at Moffat County Roads 103 and 6, about 10 miles northwest of Craig. The suspect(s) fled in an older Dodge pickup with Wyoming plates. One deputy on his way to the scene encountered the truck and started to pursue it. The pickup truck eluded the deputy.

Then, a witness called 9-1-1 and described the pickup entering the Cedar Mountain Recreation Area about six miles south of the ranch. The day-use area is operated by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management and has one access road. 

“There is one way in and one way out,” said Moffat County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Nicholas Cordova, “and the truck never came out.”  

A shelter-in-place order was broadcast to the area at 11:30 a.m. Moffat deputies, accompanied by Craig Police Department officers, Colorado Parks and Wildlife personnel, BLM officers, and the county’s Combined Special Response Team, began searching for the truck and suspect(s). 

A drone located the truck. The stolen firearms were inside it, but no suspect was with it. 

At 3:30 p.m., the shelter-in-place order was lifted. The search effort was called off, although Craig and Moffat law officers stayed in the area and warned civilians to consider the suspect(s) to still be armed and dangerous.

It was at 8 p.m. that a suspicious man was reported walking along County Road 7 outside the recreation area. One Moffat deputy and one Craig officer approached the man and chased him when he started to run. The officers used a taser to take him into custody. 

A loaded handgun was found on Velez at the time of his arrest. 

Velez was booked into the Moffat County Jail on four felony charges — theft, auto theft, burglary and distribution of fentanyl — and five misdemeanors. 

Velez is an Omaha, Nebraska resident, according to online public records. He was released from the Iowa Department of Corrections last summer following a 2018 kidnapping arrest. Humboldt County deputies found the woman and arrested Velez in an apartment after she reached out to family and friends on a social media post, per local media reports.

The burglarized ranch was singled out by Velez, MCSO’s Cordova told CBS Colorado. “It appears this was not a targeted burglary but rather a crime of opportunity and random.”

The burglary and theft are still under investigation, Cordova added, and more leads are being pursued. Anyone with information is asked to contact the sheriff’s office at 970-824-6501.

A central Iowa high school teacher is in the running to become America’s next favorite teacher.

Matt Heston, a math teacher at Knoxville High School, has advanced to the group finals for the “America’s Favorite Teacher” contest, a national competition where teachers across the country compete for the title, a grand prize and a feature in Reader’s Digest.

Heston, a teacher at Knoxville for more than two decades, received the second most votes in his initial group of nearly 100 teachers. Now, he’s advancing to the group finals alongside the other top five vote-getters. The public will vote to select one preliminary winner who will move on to a quarterfinal among all groups.

Voting in the group finals began on March 27 and ends on April 3. The grand prize winner will be announced on May 31.

“I didn’t get in teaching for the honors, but it’s sure nice for people to notice you’ve been doing a good job,” Heston told GoKnoxvilleTV.

What does the winner of America’s Favorite Teacher get?

Besides the feature in Reader’s Digest, one teacher chosen as America’s Favorite Teacher will receive a $25,000 cash prize, a trip to Hawaii and an opportunity to speak at a school assembly with popular science educator Bill Nye.

How would Matt Heston spend America’s Favorite Teacher prize money?

If he wins the contest, Heston said he would allocate $10,000 of his winnings to his daughter’s college fund, $10,000 to start a scholarship for Knoxville High School students pursuing education careers and use the remaining $2,500 to treat his wife to a vacation.

To vote for Heston, visit his page at the America’s Favorite Teacher website.

Cooper Worth is a service/trending reporter for the Des Moines Register. Reach him at cworth@gannett.com or follow him on X @CooperAWorth.

The NFL Draft is one of the next big items on the agenda for the sports world. While no former Iowa State player is expected to hear his name called in the first round, a handful are predicted to be selected over the course of the event.

ESPN’s Matt Miller compiled not only a first round NFL Mock Draft recently, but an entire seven round one. Miller has the Tennessee Titans grabbing Cam Ward with the No. 1 overall pick, someone Cyclone faithful are familiar with.

Ward played the first half of the Pop-Tarts Bowl last year vs. Iowa State. He opted to sit out after halftime as the Cyclones mounted a thrilling comeback victory. 

Three former Big 12 standouts are tabbed for selection among the first 32 picks led by Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter. Arizona’s Tetairoa McMillan is the other from the league, as all three are off the board by pick No. 6.

The NFL Draft takes place April 24-26 from Green Bay, Wisconsin. It will air on NFL Network, NFL+, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN Deportes and ESPN+.

Here is where ESPN has former Iowa State players selected in the mock draft:

No. 47: Jaylin Noel, WR

Noel is picked here with an early second round selection by the Arizona Cardinals. Miller writes “Noel is a slippery route runner with excellent start-stop quickness and sure hands.” He notes that his performance at the Senior Bowl helped position him to be selected here, adding, “he ran a 4.39 in the 40 at the combine and moved even higher up my board.”

No. 59: Darien Porter, CB

Big, strong cornerbacks are always going to be of interest in the NFL Draft, especially with teams from the AFC North. The Baltimore Ravens grab one here, as Porter is 6-foot-3 and over 210 pounds. Add in his 4.3 speed and Miller writes, “he’s an immediate special teams asset who could develop into a promising man or zone defender.”

No. 62: Jayden Higgins, WR

Noel’s running mate gets to catch passes from Josh Allen, as the Buffalo Bills grab the 6-3, 215-pounder just before the second round concludes. Miller notes that Higgins is “a true X receiver and has the ability to consistently win on breaking routes underneath.” He would form a solid trio with Khalil Shakir and Keon Coleman.

No. 154: Jalen Travis, OT

The New York Giants, who have some newcomers stepping in at quarterback, will be happy to see the team draft Travis, a hulking offensive tackle. Travis checks all the boxes, coming in at 6-7 and almost 350 pounds.