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Police & Fire
Hudson Valley City Names New Police Chief Hudson Valley City Names New Police Chief
Hudson Valley City Names New Police Chief A Hudson Valley city has named a new police chief, a 16-year department veteran. Newburgh City Manager Todd Venning announced Monday, May 6, that Lt. Brandon Rola had been appointed the City's Chief of Police. Rola is a decorated 16-year department veteran who has risen through the ranks since beginning his policing career in 2008.  "Chief Brandon Rola represents the very best of the City of Newburgh Police Department: an officer who rose through the ranks with unimpeachable integrity, selfless acts of heroism, an unwavering commitment to our community, and innate …

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by Kathy Reakes
News
Hudson Valley Veteran Lies About Earning Purple Heart To Defraud Gov't, Charity Donors: Feds Hudson Valley Veteran Lies About Earning Purple Heart To Defraud Gov't, Charity Donors: Feds
Hudson Valley Veteran Lies About Earning Purple Heart To Defraud Gov't, Charity Donors: Feds An Army veteran from New York is accused of lying about earning one of the nation's highest military honors in order to rake in six figures from the government and donors to her charity. Orange County resident Sharon Toney-Finch, of Newburgh, was arrested by the FBI’s White Collar Crime Task Force on Wednesday, May 1, following a two-year investigation. According to federal prosecutors, Toney-Finch falsely claimed that she suffered combat-related injuries during a mortar attack and a separate vehicle rollover while serving in Iraq in 2010. Those claims reportedly led to her receiving hundr…

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by Michael Mashburn
Police & Fire
Hudson Valley Man Accused Of Trying To Kill Mom, Aunt In Fit Of Rage Hudson Valley Man Accused Of Trying To Kill Mom, Aunt In Fit Of Rage
Hudson Valley Man Accused Of Trying To Kill Mom, Aunt In Fit Of Rage A 32-year-old Hudson Valley man has been charged with allegedly attempting to kill his mother and aunt in a fit of rage by stabbing them numerous times.  Orange County resident Donnie Smith of Newburgh was charged on Tuesday, April 30, with two counts of first-degree attempted murder and two counts of second-degree attempted murder. As alleged in documents filed and statements made in court, on Sunday, March 31, Smith violently attacked his mother in a residence in the city of Newburgh, stabbing her repeatedly with a sharp object in the neck and back.  As Smith was leav…

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by Kathy Reakes
News
Mega Millions Player Wins $1 Million At Popular Hudson Valley Store Mega Millions Player Wins $1 Million At Popular Hudson Valley Store
Mega Millions Player Wins $1 Million At Popular Hudson Valley Store A Mega Millions player walked away with a cool $1 million cash after winning the second-place prize on a ticket purchased at a lucky Hudson Valley store. The winner picked all five numbers -- 10-18-27-37-61 and a Powerball of 5 -- but failed to pick the Powerball to win the large haul of cash for the Tuesday, April 30 game, said New York Lottery officials. The ticket was purchased in Orange County at the Smokes 4 Less store on Plank Road in Newburgh. No word yet on who the winner is. The winning numbers for the Mega Millions game are drawn from a field of one to 70, and the Mega Ball is d…

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by Kathy Reakes
News
Brothers Found Guilty In Killing Of Man Found Dead In Hudson Valley Driveway Brothers Found Guilty In Killing Of Man Found Dead In Hudson Valley Driveway
Brothers Found Guilty In Killing Of Man Found Dead In Hudson Valley Driveway Two brothers have been found guilty of killing a man found lying dead in his driveway in the region. Orange County resident Junando Dawkins, age 30, of Newburgh, and his brother, Juwaugh Dawkins, age 34, of Jacksonville, Florida, were convicted on Monday, April 29, in Ulster County Court of murder and two counts of criminal possession of a weapon. According to the Ulster County District Attorney Emmanuel C. Nneji, in January 2023, a homicide investigation was conducted by the New York State Police into the death of Daniel Spotards, a 41-year-old father of two, whose body was found at t…

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by Kathy Reakes
News
Drunk Driver Leaving Bar Admits Causing Deadly Hudson Valley Crash Drunk Driver Leaving Bar Admits Causing Deadly Hudson Valley Crash
Drunk Driver Leaving Bar Admits Causing Deadly Hudson Valley Crash An admitted drunk driver is facing years in prison for causing a fatal crash on a Hudson Valley highway that left another person injured. Nicholle Hoke, age 45, pleaded guilty to aggravated vehicular homicide in Orange County Court on Wednesday, April 24. Orange County prosecutors said Hoke, of Shawnee, Oklahoma, was leaving an Ulster County bar in New Paltz on the night of June 24, 2023, when she crashed into another car on Route 9W in Newburgh at around 10 p.m. The impact killed one passenger in the other car and seriously injured another. An admitted drunk driver is facing years …

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by Michael Mashburn
Police & Fire
6-Year-Old Airlifted To Westchester Medical Center Following Crash 6-Year-Old Airlifted To Westchester Medical Center Following Crash
6-Year-Old Airlifted To Westchester Medical Center Following Crash A 6-year-old boy was airlifted to a hospital with severe lacerations following a crash on I-87 in the Hudson Valley. The collision occurred around 10:30 a.m. Monday, April 22, on I-87 in Orange County in the town of Newburgh. According to Trooper Tara McCormick of the New York State Police, a preliminary investigation at the scene determined that a 2022 Toyota Tundra was parked on the right shoulder when the driver, Connecticut resident Peter W. Nugent, age 42, of the town of Sharon in Litchfield County, reentered the roadway into the path of a 2011 Toyota Venza.  The Venza overturned…

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by Kathy Reakes
Lifestyle
Grave Affair: Inaugural Cemetery Cleanup Day Seeking NY Volunteers Grave Affair: Inaugural Cemetery Cleanup Day Seeking NY Volunteers
Grave Affair: Inaugural Cemetery Cleanup Day Seeking NY Volunteers If you enjoy a quiet working environment and don’t mind rubbing elbows with a few ghosts, this could be the opportunity for you. The New York State Department of State is looking for volunteers to take part in the first annual “Caring for Your Cemetery Day,” on Saturday, April 27. Organizers said the idea is to raise awareness of the hard work and dedication that goes into caring for and preserving cemeteries, especially heading into the spring season. The department is also hoping to gin up more interest in cemeteries among younger people and recruit future volunteers or even officers and…

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by Michael Mashburn
Police & Fire
21-Year-Old Charged After SUV Crashes Into Hudson Valley Home 21-Year-Old Charged After SUV Crashes Into Hudson Valley Home
21-Year-Old Charged After SUV Crashes Into Hudson Valley Home A man is facing charges after an SUV crashed into a house in the Hudson Valley. The chain of events began around 2:10 a.m. Saturday, April 6 in Orange County. New York State Police troopers from the Montgomery barracks attempted to stop a 2018 Nissan Murano on Creek Run Road in the town of Newburgh for vehicle and traffic law violations.  The SUV failed to comply and fled from the troopers, state police said. While attempting to elude the troopers, the operator of the vehicle, identified as Hector Balbuena, age 21, of Newburgh, lost control of the car and struck a house at Woodlawn T…

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by Joe Lombardi
News
25-Year-Old Assaults Home Invasion Victim, Steals Car In Hudson Valley: Here's His Sentence 25-Year-Old Assaults Home Invasion Victim, Steals Car In Hudson Valley: Here's His Sentence
25-Year-Old Assaults Home Invasion Victim, Steals Car In Hudson Valley: Here's His Sentence A 25-year-old man will spend more than a decade in prison for stealing a car from a Hudson Valley home and assaulting a home invasion victim with a knife in the span of two weeks, officials announced. Dutchess County resident Emmanuel Gates of Poughkeepsie was sentenced to 13 years in prison in connection with two incidents that happened in Orange County in August 2023, Orange County District Attorney David Hoovler announced on Friday, April 5.  According to the Orange County DA's Office, the first of these incidents occurred on Friday, Aug. 4 around 11 p.m., when Gates was c…

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by Ben Crnic
Police & Fire
Hudson Valley Police Vehicle Involved In Rollover Crash, Officer Injured Hudson Valley Police Vehicle Involved In Rollover Crash, Officer Injured
Hudson Valley Police Vehicle Involved In Rollover Crash, Officer Injured A Hudson Valley police officer was injured when his vehicle hit a curb, and then a tree before rolling over while attempting to avoid another driver who allegedly cut him off in traffic. The crash occurred in Orange County around 8:15 p.m., Saturday, March 30 southbound on Route 300 in the town of Newburgh. According to Lt. Peter Talarico of the Newburgh Police, Officer William Fiordalisi was traveling southbound on Route 300 in the area of Yobo Restaurant when a 1995 Honda Civic being driven by a 48-year-old man attempting to make a left-hand turn into the Yobo parking lot, cutting of…

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by Kathy Reakes
Police & Fire
Hudson Valley 4-Alarm Fire Displaces 33, Injures 3 Hudson Valley 4-Alarm Fire Displaces 33, Injures 3
Hudson Valley 4-Alarm Fire Displaces 33, Injures 3 A 4-alarm fire that started at a Hudson Valley home and spread, displaced 33 people, including three infants, and injured three. The fire occurred in Orange County around 9:30 p.m., Sunday, March 31 on Lutheran Street in the city of Newburgh. According to Newburgh city officials, responding firefighters found a three-story building at 36 Lutheran St. consumed in fire, with occupants of the adjoining buildings exiting their homes.  A scene from the fire.  Rockland Video Productions Undetectable from the front of the structure, it was discovered that the fire had already spread…

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by Kathy Reakes