WJPA News

Prior to Peters Township Council conducting their regular meeting, Peters Township Police Chief Joseph Glover read a prepared statement about the arrest of a Peters Township High School student. The statement described how police became aware of a large scale criminal enterprise involving “catfishing” and “sextortion” in December of 2025. It detailed how 30 juvenile males between 14-17 were interviewed and how they were victimized on media platforms Tik Tok and Telegram. A search warrant was executed at the residence of 18 year old Zachariah Myers on February 20. The investigation resulted in 304 felony charges to Meyers who was sent to the county jail without bond. The statement reminded parents to be vigilant in monitoring their children’s online activity. It also stated that no further statements are forthcoming as the investigation is ongoing and involves numerous juvenile victims.

Peters Township Council approved two measures that will bring upgrades to a traffic signal and add a scoreboard to Peterswood Park. The township will make use of a $219,996 grant from the PennDot Automated Red Light Enforcement Transportation Enhancements Grant Program. The township is required to provide a dollar for dollar match. The township will shoulder a $22,589 shortfall due to bids exceeding the grant request. The total for the new traffic signal is $462,582 and will be installed at the intersection of Rt. 19 and Gallery Drive. That signal was installed in 1988. Council also approved the purchase of a scoreboard to replace a scoreboard at Joe Maize Field in Peterswood Park. The Daktronics scoreboard will cost $36,365 and replace the current non-functioning scoreboard.

The State Police Fire Marshal has been called in to investigate the cause of a fatal house fire Monday morning on Smith Street in Fallowfield Township. Authorities say 66-year-old George Steven Milliken had to be rescued from the home and was taken to Penn Highlands Monongahela Valley Hospital where he was pronounced dead a short time later. Multiple fire departments were called in to assist.

NFL Films sent seven crews to Pittsburgh in October to chronicle a typical football weekend in Pittsburgh. The crews used advanced technology to grasp spirals on thrown footballs on Friday Nights and capture the laughter of a Peters Township Termite on the gridiron Saturday morning. Ambitious and efficient crews captured the excitement of a Pitt Panthers game on Saturday afternoon, and staffers preparing for a Sunday contest between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Green Bay Packers. It’s all shown in “The Football Town,” a 52-minute documentary sponsored by U.S. Steel and will be shown exclusively at the 71-foot by 41-feet movie screen at the Kamin Science Center in Pittsburgh. Western Pennsylvania native Pat McAfee narrates the film, which details how the Three Rivers and the people that thrive around them have football ingrained in their livelihoods, and how retired Steelers often stay in the region after their playing days are over. “The Football Town” debuts this Saturday and will run until after the NFL Draft from April 23-26.

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump will use his State of the Union address to argue that his whirlwind first year back has made America stronger and that Republicans deserve to keep control of Congress after the midterms. The president is expected in Tuesday’s speech to proclaim the economy booming while endorsing increased military funding and tighter voter ID rules. Authors of past State of the Union speeches say Trump sometimes sounds more restrained when giving the address, though exaggerations and forays into old grievances are also likely. Trump points to rising stock prices and job growth, but many Americans are worried about the economy and tariffs may yet slow growth.

NEW YORK (AP) — Neighbors, government workers and a powerful railroad snow-clearing machine nicknamed “Darth Vader” are scrambling to dig out the northeastern United States from a brutal snow storm. But as the snow moves northward and tapers off in other areas Tuesday, forecasters warn that another storm could be right around the corner. Meteorologists are calling Monday’s storm the strongest in a decade. It dumped more than 2 feet of snow in parts of the Northeast. Thousands of flights have been canceled. By Tuesday, roads were beginning to reopen, mass transportation was coming back online and power had returned for some of the hundreds of thousands who had lost electricity.

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — More than a dozen senior European officials are visiting arrived Kyiv in a show of support on the fourth anniversary of Russia’s all-out invasion of Ukraine. The war has killed tens of thousands of people and put European leaders on edge about the scale of Moscow’s ambitions on the continent. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said his country has withstood the onslaught by Russia’s bigger and better equipped army, which over the past year of fighting captured just 0.79% of Ukraine’s territory. That’s according to the Institute for the Study of War, a Washington-based think tank.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court has agreed to hear from oil and gas companies trying to block lawsuits seeking to hold the industry liable for billions of dollars in damage linked to climate change. The conservative-majority court took up the case Monday. The companies went to the Supreme Court after Colorado’s highest court allowed a lawsuit from Boulder to proceed. The companies say the lawsuits present a serious threat to the industry. President Donald Trump’s Republican administration also urged the high court to block the case. The industry is facing dozens of lawsuits from state and local governments that argue the companies deceived the public about fossil fuels’ contribution to climate change.

(AP) – Actor Robert Carradine has died at 71. His family says he died by suicide. In a statement shared on Tuesday, his family said he lived with bipolar disorder for two decades. His brother Keith Carradine says there is no shame in mental illness. Carradine works for more than 40 years in film and TV. He appeared in “Bonanza,” “The Cowboys,” and films like “Mean Streets” and “Coming Home.” His biggest hit comes in 1984 as nerd leader Lewis Skolnick in “Revenge of the Nerds.” He also plays Lizzie McGuire’s dad. He leaves three children.