Western PA Local News category, Page 2956
Fire in Penn Hills under investigation
Penn Hills firefighters are investigating a fire at a two-story building Wednesday night. Allegheny County dispatchers said calls for the fire at 529 Penn Vista Drive came in around 9:50 p.m. Authorities said flames were coming out of the side of the home. Emergency responders were still on scene as...
Man gets 6-plus years for $2M counterfeit Darknet scheme that hit Pittsburgh, Uganda stores
The former head of an international counterfeit operation will spend more than six years behind bars for a scheme that used the so-called “Darknet” to flood Uganda and the Pittsburgh region with more than $2 million in fake U.S. currency, prosecutors said Wednesday. Ryan Andrew Gustafson, 31, also must pay...
Woman gets up to 6 years for hit-and-run crash that killed North Hills man
A Ross woman was sentenced Wednesday to three to six years in prison for fleeing a fatal car crash that killed a North Hills man crossing the street the week before Christmas in 2017, prosecutors said. Melinda Gregor, 30, was convicted last year for striking a pedestrian, Michael Menner, with...
Oakmont Summer Street Sale set for Saturday
One of Oakmont Chamber of Commerce’s biggest events of the year is set for Saturday. Allegheny River Boulevard from Pennsylvania to Washington Avenues will be shut down from at least 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. for the borough’s Summer Street Sale. “This year’s event is going to be more of...
Murrysville Council approves GetGo near Giant Eagle on Old William Penn Highway
Murrysville residents will get a GetGo convenience store and gas station off Old William Penn Highway, but they’ll have to get their cars washed elsewhere. Council gave unanimous approval Wednesday night for development of a 4,900-square-foot store alongside a dozen fuel pumps near the existing Giant Eagle. Giant Eagle officials...
Pittsburgh man sentenced to nearly 5 years in federal prison for gun violations
A Pittsburgh felon who fired a gun in the air during a neighborhood dispute two years ago was ordered to serve nearly five years in federal prison. Ambrose Sample II, 39, was sentenced in federal court to four years and seven months imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release,...
Disabled Pirates fan gets trip to game courtesy of Twilight Wish
Samuel Nania has two hopes for his Thursday trip to PNC Park. “To have a day of something different than my usual days, and to see the Pirates win,” he said. Nania, 58, has been confined to a wheelchair since suffering two strokes about eight years ago. He lives at...
Franklin Regional will break ground on Sloan school project
Franklin Regional officials will hold a groundbreaking for the new Franklin Regional Intermediate Elementary School on Wednesday, July 31. The $49 million project, which has generated debate, controversy and a legal appeal, includes the renovation of the existing Sloan Elementary — which will be converted into a school for children...
Theft, DUI cases among recent Monroeville police investigations
Monroeville police filed the following charges July 17-23 in District Judge Jeffrey L. Herbst’s office: • Cody Yakel, 25, of Wall with possession of drug paraphernalia and public drunkenness. Charges were filed July 18 in connection with an incident along the 4300 block of Broadway Boulevard. • Neko Haas, 19,...
Murrysville library ice cream social will focus on ‘cozy mystery’ authors
When it comes to murder mysteries, not everyone wants theirs steeped in noir, hard-boiled in violence and splashed with sex. Enter the “cozy mystery” genre, where the emphasis is primarily on the detective work. “I always think of (the Angela Lansbury television show) ‘Murder She Wrote,’” said Murrysville librarian Emma...
Pittsburgh man accused of plotting to bomb church to support ISIS pleads not guilty
The 21-year-old Northview Heights man accused of plotting to blow up a North Side church pleaded not guilty to terrorism charges Wednesday in federal court in Pittsburgh. Mustafa Mousab Alowemer, a Syrian native admitted to the United States as a refugee three years ago, was arraigned at the federal courthouse...
Assault, theft cases recently handled by Judge Herbst in Monroeville
Monroeville District Court Judge Jeffrey Herbst handled these cases recently. Defendants will have court dates set in the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas. Charges were filed by Monroeville police unless otherwise noted. Held for court • Juwane Dunn, 21, of Braddock on charges of theft by unlawful taking. Charges...
East Hills DUI Task Force to conduct roving patrols this weekend – Jul. 24, 2019
East Hills DUI Task Force will conduct roving patrols and other educational enforcement activities this weekend. The task force consists of Plum, Monroeville, White Oak, North Versailles Township, Oakmont, Penn Hills and Edgewood police departments. Project director is Plum police Lt. Lanny Conley. The enforcement/educational details will occur within the...
DUI, drug cases among those recently handled by Judge Zucco in Plum – Jul. 24, 2019
District Judge Linda Zucco recently handled the following cases. Charges were filed by Plum police unless otherwise noted. Waived preliminary hearings • Stephen Kavanshansky, 20, of Swissvale on charges of driving under the influence, failure to keep right, careless driving and minor prohibited from operating a vehicle with alcohol. Oakmont...
Primanti Bros, East End Brewing to unveil pickle beer for Picklesburgh
Pickle beer? What will they think of next? Primanti Bros. Restaurant and Bar has partnered with East End Brewing to create the city’s first pickle-flavored craft beer. “Almost Famous” Pickle Beer is being unveiled Thursday morning at the Primanti Bros. location in Market Square. It's a pretty big dill. We...
Norwin area police, fire, ambulance plan Night Out
Police, firefighters and ambulance personnel in the Norwin area — Irwin, North Huntingdon and North Irwin — will join forces for National Night Out from 7 to 9 p.m. Aug. 6 at Excela Square at Norwin, Route 30, North Huntingdon. Fire trucks from all seven of North Huntingdon’s volunteer fire...
Port Authority approved for $1.9 million grant to purchase electric buses
The Federal Transit Administration has approved a $1.9 million grant for the Port Authority of Allegheny County that will be used to purchase electric buses, according to U.S. Sen. Bob Casey’s Office and the authority. Authority spokesman Adam Brandolph said two electric buses are now on order and should arrive...
Allegheny County Health Department to disperse rabies vaccine bait for raccoons
The Allegheny County Health Department and U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Wildlife Services has issued an alert that it plans to distribute rabies vaccine bait across the county — including in many parks — between Aug. 5 and 9. The raccoon baiting program is in its 18th year. This year, the...
Judge denies Hempfield man’s claim of ineffective counsel
A Westmoreland County judge has denied the appeal of a Hempfield man who claimed he received an inadequate defense during his 2012 trial in which he was accused of the attempted murder of his girlfriend. Common Pleas Judge Christopher Feliciani issued a 10-page opinion in which said there was no...
California man sentenced for participation in tri-county drug ring
One of a dozen people indicted as part of a Western Pennsylvania drug ring last November has been sentenced to a decade in prison. Nikia Perkins, 44, of Bloomington, Calif., was sentenced on charges he conspired to distribute just over a kilogram of fentanyl, U.S. Attorney Scott Brady said in...
Trafford zoning board OKs medical marijuana testing lab site
A Michigan company has moved one step closer to opening a medical marijuana testing laboratory in Trafford after borough officials approved the firm’s request to operate out of a building used by the town’s ambulance service. The Trafford Zoning Board this week granted Lansing-based ACT Laboratories Inc. a variance to...
Man gets prison term for assault in Penn Township
An Allegheny County man was sentenced to serve up to two years in prison for the assault of his girlfriend earlier this year in Penn Township. Eric Damien Thomas, 41, formerly of North Versailles and Aspinwall, pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of simple assault and summary harassment. As part...
Carnegie Science Center to close on Tuesdays
The Carnegie Science Center on Pittsburgh’s North Shore is reducing its hours of operation. Beginning Tuesday, Sept. 3, the Science Center will be closed to the public every Tuesday through the last Tuesday in April, except for December 31 and April 7. The Science Center will continue to be open...
Jeannette company becomes leader in recycling biopharmaceutical waste
Triumvirate Environmental has a new way to help the pharmaceutical industry recycle plastic waste. The Jeannette waste-management company serves clients in the life sciences, health care, education and industrial markets. Biopharmaceutical waste — estimated to be about 30,000 tons per year and either incinerated or sent to landfills — is...
Nabbed Mt. Pleasant fugitive tells sheriff’s deputies he was ‘tired of running’
A Mt. Pleasant fugitive on the run since May told Westmoreland County sheriff’s deputies who caught up with him this week at a South Huntingdon truck stop that he was glad to finally get caught. Joseph R. Taylor, 36, was arrested about 10:15 a.m. Tuesday by members of the sheriff’s...
