Regional News category, Page 332
Maryland man pleads guilty to abducting, raping Somerset County girl in 1999
A Maryland man pleaded guilty Thursday in federal court to abducting and raping a 10-year-old Somerset County girl in 1999. Timothy D. Nelson Jr., 50, of Cumberland, Md., entered the plea before U.S. District Judge Kim R. Gibson in Johnstown on charges of kidnapping and aggravated sexual abuse of a...
Police: Washington County man flees traffic stop, crashes into 2 houses
A Washington man caught driving without a license plate fled state police for about a mile early Thursday, hitting multiple parked vehicles and two houses, according to police. Troopers were on patrol on Fayette Street and Baird Avenue in Washington County’s Canton Township when a white GMC Sierra Denali without...
How to get your share of $700M settlement from Equifax data breach
People whose Social Security numbers and other private information were exposed in a 2017 data breach by the Equifax credit reporting agency can apply online for a share of the $425 million available through a $700 million settlement reached between the government and the company. The data breach — considered...
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...
Driver cited after metal spill flattens hundreds of tires
CLEVELAND — Police say they’ve cited the driver of a dump truck who lost a load of scrap metal on a Cleveland freeway, flattening the tires of about 100 vehicles. Authorities had to shut down Interstate 77 in Cleveland for about four hours Tuesday to clean up the mess and...
Man expected to plead guilty in 1999 abduction, rape of Somerset girl
A 50-year-old Maryland man is expected to plead guilty Thursday in federal court to abducting and raping a Somerset County girl in 1999. Timothy D. Nelson Jr. of Cumberland, Md., is scheduled to appear before U.S. District Judge Kim Gibson in Johnstown, according to the court docket. Pennsylvania State Police...
PennDOT survey seeks input from drivers about road safety, driving behavior
Motorists have until Aug. 12 to participate in an online survey being conducted by PennDOT to gather input on traffic safety and driving behavior on state roads. “Safety remains our top priority and we are grateful for the public’s continued engagement in making our roadways safer,” said PennDOT Secretary Leslie...
Police say Beaver County man confessed to killing boy who smoked pot with his daughter
Family and friends plan to pay their respects Wednesday to a 17-year-old Ellwood City boy shot to death last week outside a New Castle pizza shop by his girlfriend’s father — a Beaver County man who police say confessed to killing the teen because he believed the boy had gotten...
Man leaving bar in Washington County accused by police of abusing dog, DUI
A Jefferson Hills man was arrested by police in Washington County on Friday after witnesses reported they saw him retrieve a cocker spaniel that jumped out of his pickup by grabbing its neck and “throwing it back into the bed” of the truck at a gas station. Robert P. Kelley...
CVS installs time-delay safes in stores across Pennsylvania
CVS Pharmacy officials are hoping to prevent pharmacy robberies and increase safety in stores across the state thanks to new time-delay safes. The safes, which were placed in all CVS locations in Pennsylvania — including pharmacies located in Target stores — electronically delay the time it takes for pharmacy employees...
Lake Erie beach closed after 2nd swimmer goes missing
HURON, Ohio — Authorities in Ohio have shut down a Lake Erie beach after a second swimmer went missing in less than a month. Officials in Huron say Nickel Plate Beach will be closed until further notice while the city looks at ways to improve safety at the beach, about...
Amber Alert issued for 4-year-old West Virginia girl
West Virginia State Police issued an Amber Alert for a 4-year-old girl last seen in Fairmont who authorities say may be in extreme danger. Gracelynn June Scritchfield is believed to have been abducted by her biological father, who was driving a gold 2001 Subaru Forester with West Virginia license plate...
Game Commission continues investigating after bear bites staffer at Nemacolin
The Pennsylvania Game Commission continued its investigation Monday into a Nemacolin Woodlands Resort employee being bitten by a Himalayan Bear over the weekend during a “Safari Tour.” The agency’s Southwestern Pennsylvania office near Ligonier confirmed a game commission officer has been assigned the case. Attempts to reach the officer for...
Uniontown police looking for donations to reinstate K9 unit
The Uniontown City Police Department is hoping to add new members to its force, and these ones will have four paws and a tail. Originally implemented in 2008, the department’s K9 unit lasted until its last two dogs — Leonidas and Xavier — both died earlier this year. “Once we...
Gas prices drift lower, but Iran tensions could cause impacts, analyst says
Gas prices have come down slightly in Pittsburgh, with a bigger decrease nationally. In Pittsburgh, prices are down 0.9 cents per gallon in the past week, averaging $2.97, according to GasBuddy. That’s 7.5 cents per gallon higher than a month ago, but 11.2 cents per gallon lower than a year...
Police: Antique bathtub reported missing in Elizabeth
A bathtub is missing in Elizabeth Borough, according to police. A 1920s antique cast iron bathtub with four claw feet and a brass soap dish was taken from Seventh Avenue sometime overnight between Saturday and Sunday by a person in a pickup truck, borough police said in a Facebook post....
Back-to-back storms pound Allegheny County, prompt emergency rescues
Heavy rain storms that pounded the region Sunday through Monday afternoon caused widespread flooding and damage, and emergency responders in several communities had to use boats to rescue residents from vehicles and homes. Eastern suburbs, including Penn Hills and Plum, appeared to be among the hardest-hit communities in storms that...
DirecTV drops KDKA due to contract stalemate with CBS
DirecTV customers across the region on Saturday found KDKA-TV, the CBS local affiliate, was no longer available through their subscription service. They were among some 6.5 million DirecTV subscribers across the nation affected by the blackout, the result of a stalemate in talks between CBS and AT&T over the cost...
Bear bites staffer during safari tour at Nemacolin Woodlands Resort
A guided safari tour through Nemacolin Woodlands Resort took a dangerous turn Saturday morning when a Himalayan bear reached through a wire fence and bit a Nemacolin employee’s arm. A spokesman for Nemacolin said resort associates had to engage the bear to get it to release the employee’s arm. The...
Man charged in apparent drive-by shooting that wounded Reading boy
Authorities say a man has been arrested in an apparent drive-by shooting that wounded an 11-year-old boy sitting in a car in eastern Pennsylvania. Reading police say the boy was sitting in a parked car at about 3 p.m. Friday when shots were fired into the car from another vehicle....
50 years after moon landing, Western Pennsylvania sets sight on return to space
Like many American baby boomers, Randa Relich Milliron has vivid memories of the Apollo 11 moon landing on July 20, 1969. The Belle Vernon native was in her early teens as she sat glued to a television set throughout the day and well into the night that culminated in the...
Keep pets cool during heat wave, vet says
With the heat index expected to top 100 degrees Saturday, keeping the family’s four-legged companion cool is as important as keep the two-legged humans from boiling in the summer sun. “You don’t ever want to get them overheated. The only way dogs have to remove heat is by panting,” said...
Man wanted in Pennsylvania drug case arrested in Connecticut
VERNON, Conn. — Police in Vernon say they’ve arrested a man wanted in Pennsylvania for allegedly distributing drugs that led to the death of a child last year. Vernon Police and the East Central Narcotics Task Force arrested Thomas Keogh, of Vernon, Friday and charged him as a fugitive from...
Blairsville karate instructor welcomes martial arts master from Japan
Tetsuhiro Hokama, known to his students as “Hokama Sensei,” using the Japanese honorific for “teacher,” has taught old-style Okinawan karate in his home country of Japan as well as Europe, Africa and South America. Last week, Hokama Sensei was in Blairsville, Indiana County, supervising trainees at Matt Kohler’s Torii Dojo...
Authorities to discuss whether charges will be filed in toddlers’ drowning deaths, funds being raised
A Uniontown police investigator plans to meet with the Fayette County District Attorney next week to review the results of his investigation to determine whether any charges will be filed in connection with the death of two young boys who drowned in their family’s swimming pool this week. Lt. Thomas...
