January 18, 2025 1:38 am
Washington County’s Recorder of Deeds has announced plans to seek re-election. Republican Carrie Perrell of Nottingham Township says she plans to seek the nomination in the May Primary Election. This is the fourth year of her first term. Perrell says she is honored to have served as an elected official these past few years and if re-elected, she will continue to serve Washington County taxpayers with integrity while seeking additional ways to modernize and improve services. Perrell says key improvements made during her first term include: direct deposit of local real estate transfer taxes for all municipalities and school districts, increased hours for recording documents, new public computers, a dedicated backup server, and a completed pilot project for indexing historical documents.
January 18, 2025 1:46 am
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — When Democrat John Fetterman got elected to the U.S. Senate from Pennsylvania, many backers had hoped he’d challenge the status quo. He has — just not in the way many had expected. Fetterman has warmed to President-elect Donald Trump, a man he bashed on the 2024 campaign trail, and recently became the first Senate Democrat to meet with Trump since the election. Fetterman has also met with many of Trump’s Cabinet picks and staked out positions on policy and legislation that break with his party. Fetterman says his meeting with Trump “was a positive experience,” while Trump has called it “fascinating.”
January 17, 2025 4:48 am
MCKEESPORT, Pa. — (WPXI) – Skimmers were found at two local Giant Eagle locations. According to a Giant Eagle spokesperson, the skimmers were found at the Greenfield and McKeesport locations in late December and were removed the same day that they were installed. Giant Eagle tells Channel 11 they contacted customers who potentially had their information stolen. Giant Eagle didn’t say if the skimmers were placed on self-checkout lanes or full-service lanes. It’s also unclear if they think the same person installed the skimmers. If anyone swiped their card into the pin pad, a spokesperson said it potentially captured the customer’s information and code via the magnetic strip. Giant Eagle also said they have multiple security measures in place to limit the risk of customers having their identities stolen.
January 17, 2025 4:56 am
PETUSHKI, Russia (AP) — Three lawyers who once represented the late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny have been jailed in Russia as part of the Kremlin’s crackdown on dissent that has reached levels unseen since Soviet times. Vadim Kobzev, Igor Sergunin and Alexei Liptser were jailed on Friday from 3 1/2 to five years. They were arrested in October 2023 on charges of involvement with extremist groups, as Navalny’s networks were deemed by authorities. The case was widely seen as a way to increase pressure on the opposition to discourage defense lawyers from taking political cases. At the time, Navalny was serving a 19-year prison term on several criminal convictions, including extremism. He died in a Russian prison camp in February 2023.
January 17, 2025 4:58 am
LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Los Angeles wildfires have forced thousands of students to relocate to other schools. Students from two elementary schools that burned down in the Palisades Fire arrived Wednesday for their first day of class at two other Los Angeles campuses where their classes are being held temporarily. Seven other Los Angeles Unified School District schools in evacuation zones that have been closed since the fire are also relocating. Meanwhile, Palisades Charter High School has asked the community for help finding temporary classrooms for its 3,000 students. And in the nearby Pasadena Unified School District, thousands of other students are still home from school. Five school sites there were severely impacted by the Eaton Fire.
January 17, 2025 4:51 am
SEWICKLEY HEIGHTS, Pa. — Penguins star Evgeni Malkin’s Stanley Cup Championship rings that were reported stolen in a burglary were found inside his house, police said. The team confirmed that Malkin’s house was burglarized during Saturday’s game at PPG Paints Arena. Initial reports indicated that Malkin’s championship rings were among the items stolen from his home, but Allegheny County police said Thursday that they were found inside the house. The investigation into the burglary is still ongoing, police said. Anyone with information is asked to contact the County Police Tip Line at 1-833-ALL-TIPS.
January 15, 2025 4:46 am
PITTSBURGH — Snow showers could slow down your plans on Thursday. Light snow develops early in the morning causing delays during the morning commute with a period of steady snow showers continuing from mid-morning through noon. Scattered off and on snow showers will also be falling during the evening commute making it tough for road crews to keep up. A Winter Weather Advisory has been issued for Allegheny, Butler, Washington, Beaver, Westmoreland, Fayette, Armstrong, Lawrence, Greene, Indiana, Clarion, Venango and Forest counties and a Winter Storm Warning has been issued for the ridges of Westmoreland & Fayette counties and for Somerset, Preston, Tucker, and Garrett, MD. The next big system is expected this holiday weekend. A brief wintry mix is possible early Saturday morning before warmer temperatures change the mix to rain.
January 16, 2025 4:53 am
MONESSEN, Pa. — (WPXI) – The president of the Monessen volunteer fire department is facing a number of charges. Stephen Gaydos III is accused of stealing more than $30,000 from the organization over the course of several years. According to the criminal complaint, Gaydos had access to the bank account and began taking money from it in December 2020. Police say the theft was only discovered when the department board of directors asked Gaydos to close the account and found it only contained about $7. Gaydos allegedly admitted to taking the money. “It’s a shame this stuff occurs, but it does, unfortunately […] sometimes things like this go unmonitored and squeeze through the cracks. It’s an absolute shame,” neighbor Paul Kucera said. Neighbors say they hope this doesn’t hurt the public’s confidence in the department. Gaydos is due in court on Jan. 24.
January 16, 2025 4:56 am
SPRINGFIELD TOWNSHIP, Pa. — Police believe a cat was stolen from a porch in Fayette County. Pennsylvania State Police issued a press release on Jan. 15 saying the crime happened on Dec. 17. Troopers were called to a house on Stewarton Road in Springfield Township for reports of a cat stolen on that date. The victim told police an unidentified woman rang the house doorbell and stayed on the front porch for around 10 minutes before leaving. Troopers said the cat may have been stolen in those 10 minutes. The cat is a 3-year-old Maine Coon female. Troopers said it is worth $2,500. A Red Dodge Avenger with aftermarket wheels and a license plate reading: MHM1845 is believed to be involved in the incident.
January 16, 2025 5:01 am
TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says that a last-minute dispute with Hamas was holding up Israeli approval of a long-awaited ceasefire that would pause the fighting in the Gaza Strip and release dozens of hostages. Netanyahu signaled complications with the deal shortly after U.S. President Joe Biden and key mediator Qatar announced it was complete. It was not yet clear if Netanyahu’s statements merely reflected jockeying to keep his fractious coalition together or whether the deal was at risk. The Israeli Cabinet is expected to vote on the deal Thursday. But Netanyahu’s office said they won’t meet until Hamas backs down, accusing it of reneging on parts of the agreement, without elaborating. Meanwhile, Israeli airstrikes killed at least 72 people in the war-ravaged territory.
