Natasha Lindstrom stories, Page 30
Beaver County man pleads guilty to producing, sharing child porn
A Beaver County man admitted to producing child pornography in 2014 and sharing it online in 2015, U.S. Attorney Scott W. Brady said Monday. Randolph Guy Gum, 25, a former resident of Rochester, Pa., pleaded guilty to three counts related to the sexual exploitation of a minor stemming from videos...
Possible measles exposure at 3 more Pa. locations, including National Aviary, Squirrel Hill
Visitors and workers at the National Aviary in Pittsburgh’s North Side, a Squirrel Hill restaurant and an Avalon thrift shop may have been exposed to measles last month, health officials said Monday. The Allegheny County Health Department confirmed last week four new cases of measles, all from members of the...
Police dog, GPS trackers help FBI nab trio accused in Harrisburg-Pittsburgh heroin ring
A police dog, cellphone location data and GPS tracking devices covertly planted on vehicles helped authorities apprehend two men and one woman from Western Pennsylvania accused of trafficking large amounts of heroin and cocaine from Harrisburg into Pittsburgh, court records show. Harvey Hicks, 48, of Penn Hills faces drug, conspiracy...
Man shot multiple times in Wilkinsburg
A man is in critical condition Thursday evening after getting shot multiple times in Wilkinsburg, police said. Officials received a 911 call regarding the shooting about 5:20 p.m. near Stoner Way and Swissvale Avenue, Allegheny County Police Inspector Andrew Schurman said. First responders arrived to find a man with multiple...
UPMC: Highmark patients won’t lose access to Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh
UPMC has no intention to sever access to Highmark-insured patients seeking care at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh nor impose a prepay rule on any patients who are treated there, regardless of their insurance cards, UPMC Chief Financial Officer Robert DeMichiei said Thursday. “There’s never been any indication of any...
Police offer $12K reward in Penn Hills fatal hit-and-run case
Police announced on Wednesday a $12,000 reward for tips that lead to the prosecution of individuals wanted in connection to a hit-and-run incident that killed a Pittsburgh man earlier this week. Joseph Morris, 51, was found dead by police along Universal Road in Penn Hills after Allegheny County 911 received...
Police hunt for East End fugitive brothers linked to burglary, drug charges
Police are seeking the public’s help to find a pair of fugitive brothers from Pittsburgh’s East End accused of burglary and drug charges, officials said Wednesday. Dasonte White, 23, faces charges of receiving stolen property and is wanted for several burglaries, according to Allegheny County Police. He is 6 feet...
Police: Wilkinsburg teen shot, killed intruder in fear of his family’s safety
A 17-year-old boy feared for the safety of his family when he shot and killed an unarmed 19-year-old man trying to force his way into their Wilkinsburg home early Wednesday, police said. Jakeem Booker, 19, of Braddock was pronounced dead soon after police found him with a gunshot wound to...
UPMC defends controversial prepay rule for seniors
UPMC is imposing a controversial prepay rule on Highmark-insured Medicare Advantage patients this summer because its leaders have no trust in Highmark to pay bills or honor contracts, UPMC’s attorneys said Wednesday in state Supreme Court. Starting July 1 — when UPMC and Highmark’s insurance networks are set to officially...
Washington Pike (Route 50) shut down in both directions after water pipe bursts
A mainline water pipe burst Friday night in Scott Township, prompting officials to shut down a stretch of Washington Pike (Route 50) in both directions, officials said. The South Hills thoroughfare could remain closed between Raceway Plaza Drive to Thoms Run roads until as late as 6 p.m. Saturday, emergency...
2 injured in Allegheny Township head-on collision
Two people were injured when their car was struck Friday afternoon by a pickup head-on along a windy road in Allegheny Township, officials said. According to the initial investigation, a man and his wife were traveling in a silver four-door car along Markle Road near the Markle Fire Hall when...
Boy critical after being shot in McKeesport
A boy was listed in critical condition after he was shot Thursday night in McKeesport, officials said. Police responded to the incident near Dinsmore and Pirl streets about 6:40 p.m., an Allegheny County 911 shift commander said. Medics took the unidentified boy to a nearby hospital, the shift commander said....
Why Pittsburgh is mentioned in the Mueller report
Embedded within the Mueller report is an image of an online poster advertising a “Miners for Trump” rally at the Steel Plaza in Pittsburgh. Whether the Russian-promoted event actually happened remains unclear. In the months leading up to the 2016 presidential election, pro-Trump and anti-Hillary Clinton rallies publicized by Russian...
Uniontown man accused of striking state trooper with car, fleeing police in 100 mph chase
A Fayette County man wanted on forgery charges is accused of hitting a Pennsylvania state trooper with his car early Tuesday, then leading police on a high-speed car chase that ended when he took off on foot into the woods, officials said. Pete Robert Lancaster, 28, of Uniontown is being...
Thrice-convicted Jefferson Hills cocaine dealer gets 8-plus years in prison
A Jefferson Hills man convicted of his third cocaine-dealing offense will spend more than eight years behind bars, federal prosecutors said Wednesday. Deon Webb, 45, pleaded guilty last August to attempting to sell more than 4 ounces of cocaine to an informant with the federal Drug Enforcement Administration in fall...
Pa. Supreme Court to take up AG Shapiro’s case against UPMC
The Pennsylvania Supreme Court has agreed to take up Attorney General Josh Shapiro’s case against health giant UPMC, setting the stage for a showdown next month in Harrisburg. The high court is scheduled to meet next on May 14, 15 and 16. Shapiro spokesman Joe Grace described the court’s willingness...
Police: Man impersonated UPMC worker, tried to steal car
An Altoona man is accused of posing as a UPMC Mercy hospital worker, threatening a woman and climbing into her car as she tried to exit a parking garage, then assaulting another man who tried to intervene, police said. Byron Lamont Leverette, 28, was arrested on robbery, public drunkenness and...
UPMC says Highmark is to blame for spurring confusion, prompting prepay rule
Highmark, not UPMC, is to blame for hindering access to health care, spurring confusion among seniors and forcing tens of thousands of Western Pennsylvania patients to choose sides or pay a hefty cost to keep their doctors and hospitals, UPMC’s attorneys argued Monday in court. Highmark has engaged in “aggressive...
Free Pittsburgh lawn-mowing service for available for seniors, veterans
The city of Pittsburgh began taking applications Monday for a twice-a-month lawn-mowing service available to seniors, veterans and low-income people with disabilities this summer through fall. Mayor Bill Peduto said Monday that the city has enough money and contractors to provide the free service to about 1,000 households between May...
Pittsburgh shootout leads to 1 injured in car crash over Stowe hillside
A shootout between vehicles that began Monday afternoon in McKees Rocks and continued into Pittsburgh’s West End culminated with one car plummeting over a hillside in Stowe, police said. One person who was injured in the wreck remains in “critical but stable condition” Monday night, Allegheny County Police Sgt. Venerando...
Trial postponed for ex-Pitt soccer player accused of murdering father
A judge has postponed a bench trial until early September for the former Plum youth soccer coach accused of killing her father by stabbing him to death while her parents tried to get her to check in to a mental health hospital. Christina Nicassio, 29, a former Pitt Panther and...
Police: 26 bullets fired in Fairywood, striking 3 parked cars
Police are investigating why more than two dozen gunshots were fired Friday in Pittsburgh’s Fairywood neighborhood, striking at least three parked cars. No injuries were reported, police said. Shortly before 6 p.m., Pittsburgh Zone 1 police officers responded to a ShotSpotter notification near West Prospect Avenue and Broadhead Fording Road,...
Brookline man who says he’s ‘addicted’ to child porn gets 10 years in prison
A man who lived with a toddler in Pittsburgh’s Brookline neighborhood has been sentenced to 10 years in prison after police found him in possession of nearly 1,000 images and videos depicting child pornography, federal prosecutors said Friday. Jeffrey Goehring, 46, was arrested after Yahoo alerted authorities on July 3,...
UPMC says state attorney general has no legal grounds to delay Highmark divorce
UPMC on Friday asked the state Supreme Court to deny Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro’s push to delay its contractual breakup with rival Highmark this summer, when thousands of Highmark-insured patients are set to lose access to most UPMC hospitals and doctors. UPMC further derided Shapiro’s last-ditch effort to halt...
Highmark’s IT company axes 132 positions in Pittsburgh
Highmark’s IT company “continues to be on a growth path” in spite of eliminating 239 positions across Pennsylvania and Delaware, including 132 jobs in Pittsburgh, Highmark officials said Friday. People who received layoff notices this week worked for HM Health Solutions in the areas of platform and technology, portfolio management...
