March 18, 2024 4:17 pm
NEW YORK (AP) — Fabric and crafts retailer Joann has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, as consumers continue to cut back on discretionary spending and pandemic-era hobbies. The Hudson, Ohio-based company said that it expected to emerge from bankruptcy as early as the end of next month. Following this process, Joann will likley become privately-owned by certain lenders and industry parties, the company added — meaning its shares would no longer be listed on stock exchanges. Joann’s more than 800 stores and its website will continue to operate normally during the bankruptcy process, the company said, pointing to a deal it had struck with most of its shareholders for financial support.
March 18, 2024 3:45 pm
(WPXI) – A player is facing charges alongside two Rivers Casino employees after what investigators are calling a “complex cheating conspiracy” that took place at a Roulette table. Robin Schnepp, a table games dealer, and supervisor Anthony Laush helped at least two players cheat on several occasions and win thousands of dollars. State police said the casino lost more than $10,000 because of the cheating. Investigators were tipped off by an anonymous letter sent to Rivers Casino earlier this year about Interblock Roulette, which requires the dealer to manually spin the ball in the opposite direction of the wheel. When that does not happen, sensors do not identify that the wheel has been spun, allowing players to continue to place bets, even after the ball lands on a number and the outcome has been determined. State police said on more than one occasion, surveillance video shows Schnepp spinning the roulette ball incorrectly, and a man and a woman increasing their bets after the ball landed. Laush then comes over and validates the spin, with both players each walking away with more than $2,000 in fraudulent winnings. Laush is also accused of loading fraudulent comps onto that same man’s account. One of the players, Jack Daniel Mars III, is also facing charges in the incident. State police are trying to identify one other person in the theft by deception. Anyone with information is asked to call 412-770-9107.
March 18, 2024 5:17 am
President Vladimir Putin is basking in a victory early that was never in doubt, as officials said he won reelection with an overwhelming number of votes. After facing only token challengers and harshly suppressing opposition voices, Putin was set to extend his nearly quarter-century rule for six more years. Even with little margin for protest, Russians crowded outside polling stations at noon on Sunday, apparently heeding an opposition call to express their displeasure with the president. Putin hailed the overwhelming early results early Monday as an indication of “trust” and “hope” in him. Critics saw them as another reflection of the preordained nature of the election.
March 18, 2024 5:15 am
Israeli forces have launched another raid on the Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, accusing Hamas militants of using it as a base. Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, the chief military spokesman, said the army had launched a “high-precision operation” in parts of the medical complex. He said senior Hamas militants had regrouped there and were directing attacks from the compound, without providing evidence. The military said militants had opened fire from within the hospital. Gaza’s Health Ministry said the army attacked the hospital early Monday, directing gun and missile fire at a building used for specialized surgeries. It says a fire broke out at the hospital’s gate.
March 18, 2024 5:13 am
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea has fired multiple short-range ballistic missiles toward its eastern waters, days after the end of the South Korean-U.S. military drills that the North views as an invasion rehearsal. The launches were North Korea’s first known missile testing activities in about a month. Japan, South Korea and the U.S. condemned the launches as threats to regional peace. Observers say the missiles’ fight distances indicate they are weapons targeting major facilities in South Korea, such as its military headquarters in the central region. The U.S. and South Korea recently concluded 11 days of joint drills that involved computer simulations and a variety of field exercises.
March 18, 2024 5:08 am
PITTSBURGH — (WPXI) – A 3-year-old was hit by a police motorcycle after the St. Patrick’s Day Parade in Downtown Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh police said the girl was hit at Stanwix Street and Boulevard of the Allies just before 1:30 p.m. Witnesses said the child jumped out of her stroller and into the bike’s path. Police said the girl had some bruises, but she was alert and oriented when medics arrived. She was taken to UPMC Children’s Hospital in stable condition to be evaluated for any other injuries. Witnesses said the officer was in shock and distraught. In the video, the officer is seen driving down the street past the stage and bleachers where witnesses said the girl was in her stroller moments before jumping out into the bike’s path. Boulevard of the Allies between Market Street and Stanwix Street was closed while the Collision Investigation Unit was on scene, police said. The investigation is ongoing.
March 18, 2024 5:03 am
LEVITTOWN, Pa. (AP) — Authorities say a man faces murder charges in Pennsylvania and carjacking and weapons charges in New Jersey after allegedly killing three family members and evading law enforcement for hours as police mobilized in two states. Court documents indicate that 26-year-old Andre Gordon Jr. has been charged in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, with three counts of first- and second-degree murder, aggravated assault, robbery and other charges. In New Jersey, the attorney general says Gordon is charged with first-degree carjacking and weapons offenses. The shootings on Saturday forced the cancellation of a St. Patrick’s Day parade and shut down a Sesame Street-themed amusement park.
March 17, 2024 7:24 am
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — Want to cash in on some of that St. Patrick’s Day luck? You may want to buy a lottery ticket. The Mega Millions jackpot is already estimated at $875 million for Tuesday night’s drawing after no tickets matched all six numbers drawn on Friday night. And Saturday night’s Powerball jackpot is a whopping $600 million. Just keep in mind that the odds of winning any lottery jackpot are very slim. Mega Millions players have a 1 in 302.6 million chance of taking home the top prize. And it’s not much easier to win a Powerball jackpot with the odds near 1 in 292.2 million. But the excitement remains.
March 17, 2024 7:22 am
CAIRO (AP) — Stalled talks aimed at securing a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war are expected to resume in earnest in Qatar as soon as Sunday. That’s according to two Egyptian officials who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity. Hamas has given mediators a new proposal for a three-stage plan that would end the fighting. Israel is sending negotiators to Qatar for the new talks. Warnings are growing about Israel’s planned military attack on Rafah in southern Gaza where more than half of the territory’s population now shelters. And thousands have rallied in Tel Aviv to protest against the government.
March 17, 2024 7:20 am
(AP) – Russian President Vladimir Putin is poised to extend his near-quarter-century rule for six more years in a vote that follows a relentless Kremlin crackdown on dissent. The three-day presidential election that wraps up Sunday has taken place in a tightly controlled environment where no public criticism of Putin and his war in Ukraine is allowed. Putin’s fiercest political foe, Alexei Navalny, died in an Arctic penal colony last month and other critics are either in jail or in exile. The 71-year-old Russian leader faces three token rivals from Kremlin-friendly parties, who have refrained from any criticism of his 24-year rule or his invasion of Ukraine.
