Regional category, Page 346
9 suspects in southwestern Pa. gambling ring waive hearings, head to trial
Nine alleged bookmakers in an illegal multi-county sports gambling ring in southwestern Pennsylvania on Tuesday waived preliminary hearings before North Huntingdon District Judge Wayne Gongaware on charges of conducting illegal sports betting and numbers lotteries. Robert “Bobby I.” Iannelli, 88, of Wexford, and his son, Rodney “Rusty” Iannelli, 58, of...
$500K winning Cash 5 ticket sold in Ambridge
Someone who stopped at a Beaver County convenience store and bought a lottery ticket is $500,000 richer. A winning Pennsylvania Lottery Cash 5 ticket was sold at the Circle K on Duss Avenue in Ambridge. The ticket matched the all five winning numbers that were drawn on Friday — 02-33-37-41-43...
Police: Arson destroyed Indiana County church
A state police fire marshal has ruled that a Tuesday morning fire that destroyed an Indiana County church was deliberately set. Firefighters responded to the fire at Harmony Grove Lutheran Church on Five Points Road in Washington Township shortly after 4 a.m. Flames were reportedly through the roof. Officials told...
Thousands remain without power in wake of high winds
Power outages caused by Sunday’s high winds continued into Tuesday. As of 8 p.m. Tuesday, Duquesne Light was reporting just under 11,000 customers without electricity. West Penn Power was reporting a little more than 9,800 customers affected in Allegheny, Armstrong, Butler, Washington and Westmoreland counties. Duquesne Light was reporting the...
Transportation secretary on Real ID backlog: ‘We’re ramping up’
Pennsylvania Transportation Secretary Leslie Richards told a state senate committee Monday she’s not concerned about a backlog of requests for Real ID cards that many residents plan to use for domestic air travel next year. “We’re ramping up and we feel very comfortable where we are right now,” Richards told...
Sled tracks lead Erie police to burglary suspect
Erie police said sled tracks left in the snow led officers to items stolen in a burglary at a westside residence on Monday morning. Matthew S. McClure, 28, was arraigned late Monday night on charges including burglary, criminal trespass, theft and receiving stolen property in the burglary at a residence...
Indiana inmate hanged himself, coroner says
An inmate died Sunday after hanging himself at the Indiana County Jail, officials said Monday. Robert Taylor, 31, of Black Lick Township was pronounced dead at UPMC Mercy hospital at 7:50 p.m. Sunday, the Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office said. Taylor was taken to the hospital after he was found...
Indiana County jail inmate dies of injuries in Pittsburgh hospital
An inmate at the Indiana County Jail who was hospitalized Thursday after he was found unresponsive in his cell has died, according to the Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s office. Robert S. Taylor, 31, of Blacklick, was pronounced dead 7:50 p.m. Sunday at UPMC Mercy in Pittsburgh, the medical examiner’s office...
Cedar Point says it will allow cellphones on Steel Vengeance roller coaster
SANDUSKY, Ohio — Ohio’s Cedar Point amusement park has reversed a policy that banned visitors waiting in line for the roller coaster Steel Vengeance from carrying cellphones. The Sandusky-area park is adding zippered pouches to the bottom of the roller coaster seats, to hold phones and other loose items. Cleveland.com...
Rostraver Township police seek Duquesne man for alleged Feb. 15 shooting
Rostraver Township police obtained an arrest warrant for an Allegheny County man who allegedly shot a man during a robbery inside an apartment earlier this month. Solomon Reddick-Barker, 18, of Duquesne, is charged with aggravated assault, robbery, terroristic threats, reckless endangerment and carrying a firearm without a license in connection...
Gasoline prices see biggest jump of 2019 as oil prices continue to rise
Gas prices in Pittsburgh have gone up 4.6 cents per gallon in the past week to an average of $2.62, according to GasBuddy. The national average has also gone up, by 6.1 cents per gallon, to $2.39. “Gasoline prices saw their biggest weekly jump of 2019 with the national average...
Thousands could remain without power in Western Pa. until Wednesday night
Tens of thousands of Western Pennsylvania households who lost power during Sunday’s wind storms could be waiting until Wednesday night for their electricity to be restored. Nearly 30,000 Duquesne Light customers and more than 28,000 West Penn Power customers in the region remained dark Monday night, the utility companies reported....
Backlog of REAL ID applications hits Pennsylvania
The first wave of Real ID seekers produced a backlog of more than 30,000 unprocessed PennDOT applications, raising concerns about wait times for the new identification cards people will need to get on an airplane next year. In the past two weeks, the logjam has been reduced to 14,000 pending...
Red Cross, ‘Game of Thrones’ team up for blood donor giveaway
The characters in the violent world of “Game of Thrones” bleed plenty, but they’re not usually given a T-shirt or a cookie for their trouble. HBO and the American Red Cross have teamed up to make giving blood a little more rewarding with the “Bleed for the Throne” campaign, which...
2 men ordered to trial in deaths of men discovered in Somerset County woods
SOMERSET, Pa. — Two men have been ordered to stand trial in the slayings of two western Pennsylvania men reported missing almost two years ago. A Somerset County district judge on Friday held 24-year-old Devon Wyrick of Columbus, Ohio, and 26-year-old Samson Washington, of Johnstown, for trial in county court...
Thousands without power, trees block roads as high winds strike Pittsburgh region
Thousands of people are without power across the Pittsburgh region Sunday night as high winds continue to bring down trees and power lines — and the numbers worsened as the day turned to night. West Penn Power reported about nearly 80,000 customers without power at about 8 p.m. That was...
‘Festival’ category added for 2019 Laurel Highlands photo contest
Camera or smartphone owners who are inspired by the area’s scenery, citizens, flora or fauna have until July 31 to enter such images in the Laurel Highlands Visitors Bureau 15th annual photo contest. In addition to those longstanding photo categories — people; plants and animals (nature); places (attractions and landscapes),...
Man takes stand to deny flipping woman to her death in a Pennsylvania river
SCRANTON, Pa. — A man accused of hurling a woman to her death in a northeastern Pennsylvania river two years ago took the stand to deny that he was responsible and accuse police of lying about an alleged confession. Ryan Taylor, 26, said Friday he blacked out after smoking synthetic...
Westmoreland, Butler, Washington flagged for accepting gifts from voting machine vendors
Elections officials in Western Pennsylvania say they’re rethinking accepting even small gifts like coffee and doughnuts from potential vendors after state Auditor General Eugene DePasquale flagged counties around the state for behavior that “smacks of impropriety.” Westmoreland, Butler and Washington counties were among those cited for accepting gifts from voting...
High wind watch issued for Sunday; gusts up to 55 mph forecast
Strong winds forecast for Sunday could bring down trees, limbs and power lines, leading to scattered power outages. A high wind watch will start Sunday morning and run until Monday morning, National Weather Service meteorologist Rich Redmond said Friday. Sustained winds of 15-to-30 mph are expected, with gusts up to...
Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District claims it prevented $1 billion-plus in flood damage
With record-breaking rain in 2018, the Army Corps of Engineers claimed its dams, reservoirs and other projects prevented $1.1 billion in flood damage in Upper Ohio River Basin. The $1.1 billion in damage prevented substantially exceeded the Pittsburgh District’s 10-year average of $310.3 million a year, according to data released...
New Brighton woman charged after child tests positive for fentanyl
A Beaver County woman was charged this week after her 11-month-old son was rushed to the hospital and tested positive for fentanyl and three other drugs, Aliquippa police said. Michelle Bradley, 30, of New Brighton called 911 on Feb. 6 because her boy was unresponsive and barely breathing, according to...
Black lung screening slated in Armstrong County
Area miners who may be affected by black lung disease, a respiratory disease caused by inhaling coal mine dust, are invited to sign up for an April 4 screening and outreach session in East Franklin Township, Armstrong County. The session is set for 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at American...
Bradys Bend man dies in Armstrong County wreck
An Armstrong County man was killed when his SUV struck a tree Wednesday night in Bradys Bend Township. Kevin James Bowser, 27, of Bradys Bend was killed in the wreck just before midnight, Armstrong County Coroner Brian K. Myers said. Bowser was driving north along Seybertown Road when his SUV...
Uniontown woman charged with stealing, injuring 9-week-old Chihuahua
A Chihuahua returned home with a broken leg after it was allegedly stolen from a North Union Township home, state police said. Kizzy Smith, 18, of Uniontown, was arrested in connection to the incident. Police said Smith took the 9-week-old puppy from a Johnston Avenue house, went to work, and...
