State briefs: Leads sought in college student's disappearance

A college student's newfound enthusiasm for his religious beliefs may have something to do with him being missing for three weeks, according to authorities in Rochester.

William "Harry" Hempy, 21, was on spring break and within weeks of graduating from the University of Illinois, but has not been heard from since March 25, when he called his father to say he had "gone for a run" and would be late coming home for a family event in Rochester.

Cellphone records show the call came from 55th Street NW. and W. River Road, about 3 miles from the family's home, police said.

Police said that friends and family revealed that Hempy experienced a rediscovery of his religious beliefs "and has been eager to share those beliefs with others." Police are asking faith-based organizations that may have had contact with Hempy to call Rochester police investigator Anne Swenson at 507-328-6921. Hempy is white, 6 feet tall, 160 pounds, with hazel eyes and short brown hair.

Paul Walsh

Shooting sports enthusiasts in northern Minnesota got a boost last week when the state Department of Natural Resources (DNR) announced grants for trapshooting facilities around the state, with more than half the money going to a park northwest of Bemidji.

The Northland Regional Shooting Sports Park was awarded $419,732 as part of a second round of "trap range grants" that distributed $823,000 to 29 clubs and ranges.

Construction on the $1.7 million, 200 acre shooting park near Bemidji — part of the developing Northland Regional Sports Park — could begin this year or next, after formal approval from Beltrami County.

Pam Louwagie @pamlouwagie

Motorcycle season kicked off in Minnesota on Saturday with a roar of 30,000 engines during the 50th annual spring Flood Run.

Tens of thousands of motorcycles traced the route between the Twin Cities and Winona, along the Mississippi and St. Croix Valley. An unseasonably warm spring has meant that most riders have already been out on the roads. Already this year, two motorcyclists have been killed.

The Department of Public Safety had officers out in force along the Flood Run route, warning motorcyclists to be wary of spring hazards like uneven pavement.