Overcast 47°
Police & Fire
Bucks Man Arrested By FBI In Philly Drag Race Once Threatened To Shoot Up NJ Wawa: Reports Bucks Man Arrested By FBI In Philly Drag Race Once Threatened To Shoot Up NJ Wawa: Reports
Bucks Man Arrested By FBI In Philly Drag Race Once Threatened To Shoot Up NJ Wawa: Reports A Bucks County man was in custody after authorities said he used a bullhorn to turn a crowd against police officers in Philadelphia on Oct. 2 — and reports indicate he'd previously been charged with threatening to terrorize a New Jersey Wawa.  Joseph Vannauker, 18, of Levittown, was arrested by FBI agents and Philadelphia police on Friday, Oct. 14 for his alleged role in the Oct. 2 incident on the 1900 block of East Sedgley Street, Fox 29 reports.  While drivers raced and performed car tricks for a crowd of dozens, authorities said Vannauker wielded a megaphone…

SHARE

by Mac Bullock
News
'Disturbing Details' Of Trafficked Children Forced Into Labor By PA Woman, Dead Ex-BF, AG Says 'Disturbing Details' Of Trafficked Children Forced Into Labor By PA Woman, Dead Ex-BF, AG Says
'Disturbing Details' Of Trafficked Children Forced Into Labor By PA Woman, Dead Ex-BF, AG Says A woman and her now deceased ex-boyfriend forced minors— including their foster children— into "forced labor" at their car detailing business, Attorney General Josh Shapiro alleges.  Ellen Cummings, 44, of Meadville ran Tip Top Resources/Go2Detailing, a car detailing business located at 500 East Walnut Street in Lewistown, with her boyfriend, Scott Mogel—  he died in 2020— according to a release by the Attorney General's office on August 31.  “The details of this case are disturbing. These individuals took advantage of vulnerable young people, some of which were under their …

SHARE

by Jillian Pikora
News
Raid Of Pagans Motorcycle Gang Members' PA Home Turns Up Weapons Of Mass Destruction: Police Raid Of Pagans Motorcycle Gang Members' PA Home Turns Up Weapons Of Mass Destruction: Police
Raid Of Pagans Motorcycle Gang Members' PA Home Turns Up Weapons Of Mass Destruction: Police Nearly a dozen "Weapons of Mass Destruction" were found in a home where three members of the Pagans Outlaw Motorcycle Gang lived, Bethel Park police say. The homeowner, Joseph Roberts, 36— who is a known member of OMG— along with his girlfriend, Christine Niedermeyer, 26, were arrested with Steven Albertson, 38, according to a criminal complaint filed by police and obtained by WPXI.  The Allegheny County Bomb Squad and ATF, along with police, raided the home at 2544 Highland Circle in Pittsburgh, executing a warranted search for supposed narcotics activity on April 12, police said in a…

SHARE

by Jillian Pikora
Police & Fire
Arrest Made In Drive-By Shooting That Killed Baby In Pittsburgh Arrest Made In Drive-By Shooting That Killed Baby In Pittsburgh
Arrest Made In Drive-By Shooting That Killed Baby In Pittsburgh A 26-year-old gunman has been arrested in a drive-by shooting that killed an 18-month-old baby in Pittsburgh Memorial Day Weekend. Londell Falconer struck De’Avry Thomas in a vehicle on the 100 block of Fourth Avenue around 2:45 p.m. Sunday, May 29, police in Pittsburgh said Monday.  Falconer apparently shot through the the rear passenger-side window of a gray Jeep, killing the boy. Falconer was charged with Homicide and Criminal Conspiracy, and held in the Allegheny County Jail. The investigation is ongoing. Anyone with information is asked to contact police.

SHARE

by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
5 Arrested In Eastern PA Drug Bust: AG 5 Arrested In Eastern PA Drug Bust: AG
5 Arrested In Eastern PA Drug Bust: AG A drug bust in Eastern Pennsylvania resulted in five arrests, including an alleged ring leader, authorities said. Said Rivera, along with his alleged dealers Christopher Hall, Amanda Tice, Donalea Turolis, and Joseph Weikel, were accused of distributing and trafficking fentanyl and methamphetamine in Schuylkill County and the surrounding area, PA Attorney General Josh Shapiro said Tuesday, April 19. The ring apparently sold more than 1,000 fentanyl pills and one pound of methamphetamine per week in the region in a one-year period. The following items were seized during multiple warran…

SHARE

by Nicole Acosta
News
Undercover Detective Nabs 14 'Johns' In PA Prostitution Ring Undercover Detective Nabs 14 'Johns' In PA Prostitution Ring
Undercover Detective Nabs 14 'Johns' In PA Prostitution Ring An online ad and a local hotel helped lay a thirst trap for police to capture 14 so-called "Johns" who participated in a sex trafficking ring in Pennsylvania. The Lancaster County Human Trafficking Task Force, launched on January 11, but in less than 2 months it has successfully completed it's operation, Lancaster County media specialist Sean McBryan says in a statement released on Thursday, Mar. 24. After the task placed the ad online, the undercover female detective answered over 100 "Johns" who replied to the online ad— all in about eight hours on Mar. 10, McBryan says. Some of the res…

SHARE

by Jillian Pikora
News
'Magician' Had Accomplice Distract Roulette Dealer To Steal $10K From PA Casino: Police 'Magician' Had Accomplice Distract Roulette Dealer To Steal $10K From PA Casino: Police
'Magician' Had Accomplice Distract Roulette Dealer To Steal $10K From PA Casino: Police "Artist. Magician. Creator. Illusionist."  That's how Shaun Benward describes himself on social media pages. Police have a descriptive for Benward of their own: Thief. Benward — who was placed on the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board's exclusion list in 2015 — has been accused of using the art of distraction with help from accomplice Denile Derohan to defraud a casino in Pennsylvania, according to multiple media outlets citing an affidavit filed by the state police. Benward, 35, had Derohan, 42, distract the dealers while playing roulette at Pittsburgh's River Casino, …

SHARE

by Jillian Pikora
News
PA Dad Who Brought Gun To Fistfight Over Snapchat Post Heading To Prison: DA PA Dad Who Brought Gun To Fistfight Over Snapchat Post Heading To Prison: DA
PA Dad Who Brought Gun To Fistfight Over Snapchat Post Heading To Prison: DA A Pennsylvania father has been sentenced to serve up to seven years in prison for his role– of bring a gun to a fistfight, turned shooting– that all started as an argument on Snapchat, authorities announced on Friday. Mark Ivie Sr., 44, of Ephrata, pleaded nolo contendre, meaning he has accepted conviction but is not admitted guilt, to a felony charge of criminal conspiracy to commit aggravated assault and a misdemeanor of simple assault in a negotiated guilty plea, leading to a three-and-a-half to seven-year sentence, according to a release by the Lancaster County district attorney’s office…

SHARE

by Jillian Pikora
Police & Fire
PA Man Sentenced In July 4th Snapchat Shooting That Injured 4 PA Man Sentenced In July 4th Snapchat Shooting That Injured 4
PA Man Sentenced In July 4th Snapchat Shooting That Injured 4 A 21-year-old Pennsylvania man was sentenced to 24 to 50 years behind bars for a Fourth of July shooting over a fight that began on Snapchat in 2020, authorities announced Thursday. Mark Ivie Jr., of Ephrata, was convicted of five counts of aggravated assault and multiple other charges after opening fire at a group of men with an AR-15 at his family's home on July 5, the Lancaster County DA said. Sentencing Judge Donald Totaro said he was not giving a “volume discount” due to there being multiple victims in the shooting, and ordered consecutive sentences for each victim.  A …

SHARE

by Cecilia Levine
Police & Fire
FBI Offers $25K Reward For Capture Of Philly Man Wanted For Murder Of Pregnant DelCo GF FBI Offers $25K Reward For Capture Of Philly Man Wanted For Murder Of Pregnant DelCo GF
FBI Offers $25K Reward For Capture Of Philly Man Wanted For Murder Of Pregnant DelCo GF The FBI is offering a reward of up to $25,000 for information leading to the arrest of a Philadelphia man wanted in the murder of his 21-year-old pregnant girlfriend from Delaware County. Investigators have been looking for Justin Smith, 23, since an arrest warrant was issued in April following the death of Dianna Brice, 21, and her unborn child, according to the FBI. Brice, of Upper Darby, went missing on March 30 and was discovered dead on April 5 in a wooded area near 58th Street and Eastwick Avenue in Southwest Philadelphia, authorities said. Authorities believe Smith shot Brice in the…

SHARE

by Nicole Acosta
Police & Fire
Bucks Corrections Officer Sentenced For Role In Drug Smuggling Ring Inside Jail Bucks Corrections Officer Sentenced For Role In Drug Smuggling Ring Inside Jail
Bucks Corrections Officer Sentenced For Role In Drug Smuggling Ring Inside Jail A corrections officer was sentenced to two to four years in state prison for his role in a drug-smuggling ring inside the Bucks County Correctional Facility, authorities announced Friday. Joseph J. Jennings, 33, of Warminster, entered guilty pleas to contraband and criminal conspiracy on Wednesday, according to the Bucks County District Attorney's Office. He was among nine men charged in June 2020 with the scheme to smuggle Suboxone strips into the jail to distribute among inmates, authorities said. Investigators found that Jennings smuggled Suboxone into the jail on multiple occasion…

SHARE

by Nicole Acosta
Police & Fire
Vulgar PA Stalker Who Called Victims 50X Per Day For Months Gets Prison Time Vulgar PA Stalker Who Called Victims 50X Per Day For Months Gets Prison Time
Vulgar PA Stalker Who Called Victims 50X Per Day For Months Gets Prison Time A stalker who repeated called people threatening to rape and murder them and their children has been sentenced, according to a release by the Dauphin County coroner's office. Christopher Kling, 48, was sentenced to a term of 3 to 15 years in a state correctional institution by Judge Scott Arthur Evans on Nov. 12, according to the release.  O’Connor was charged with stalking, harassment, terroristic threats, tampering with evidence, and criminal conspiracy for repeatedly calling and texting three victims over a three-year period, according to the release. The victims reported to polic…

SHARE

by Jillian Pikora