Smash-&-Grab Robbers Hit Del. Jewelry Store

Broken glass was practically all that was left in the cases after four men with hammers and a handgun robbed the Stuart Kingston Jewelry Store in Wilmington, Del. Tuesday afternoon.

The robbery happened at the Pennsylvania Avenue store around 1:30.

“Obviously they had cased the place -- either had someone come in and look around, see where all of the valuable things were,” said owner Jim Stein. “They ended up going into the vault.”

The men got into the store by hiding behind one of the alleged thieves and then all four men bursted in after an employee buzzed in the man thinking he was a customer.

 

The robbers demanded Stein’s 38-year-old son show them the valuables in the vault before duct-taping his hands behind his back -- as they did to the other three co-workers, Stein said.

Stein, who was in the back of the store as the robbery happened, managed to escape through another door and ran outside looking for help.

“I knew these guys were still here and I was out there a couple of minutes trying to find somebody – I couldn’t find anybody and I said ‘I’m going back in.’

“When I came back in, that’s when they came at me with raised hammers,” Stein said.

The men smashed the glass counters grabbing jewelry and cash before leaving the store.

 

They took off in a rental van and a Good Samaritan tried to follow, according to Stein.

“He followed them all the way on 95 to the Pennsylvania line and he said, ‘I think they went off on the Blue Route,’” Stein said. 

Luckily none of the employees in the store was hurt.

Police wouldn't say how much jewelry was taken but Stein called it a significant loss.

 

Stein had installed surveillance cameras at his family business after it was hit by robbers 15 years ago. Police were reviewing the tapes for possible leads.

Anyone with information should contact Wilmington Police Det. Shane Sowden at 302-576-3606 or Delaware Crime Stoppers at 1-800-TIP-3333.

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Man Allegedly Sends Sexual Texts to Girl

A 25-year-old Chester County man was arrested last month accused of sexting a 12-year-old girl.

Michael Petrash of Coatesville, Pa. was arrested Oct. 25 after sending hundreds of texts to the girl, authorities said.

He allegedly casually texted the girl after the two met at a martial arts school, according to court records.

The texts reportedly changed from casual to sexual, according to authorities.

Petrash allegedly sent sexually explicit messages -- some of which instructed the girl to participate in sexual activities, according to West Goshen Police.

Police began investigating Petrash after receiving a report that the child had the elicit texts on her phone, police said.

Petrash is charged with corruption of a minor, obscene communication with a minor and related charges.

He was arraigned and jailed on $70,000 cash bail.

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Annual Toy Run a Go

The Delaware Valley Alliance of Bikers Aimed Toward Education’s 31st annual motorcycle toy run is back on and will take place this Sunday but with a different route that should ease traffic at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.

The run, which features thousands of motorcycle riders, was in jeopardy after officials from CHOP said the amount of traffic and toys was too much to handle.

The groups reached a compromise that allows the bikers to go on the run but now the toys will be collected by Drexel University Students at Citizens Bank Park and used towards the University’s annual holiday toy drive.

A smaller group of bikers will then take the remaining toys to CHOP where they will be presented to patients.

“Spending time and effort to put a smile on a sick child’s face is the best part of my job,” said Congressman Bob Brady who was instrumental in helping the groups reach a compromise. “I want to thank all the parties for coming together and developing a plan for the Toy Drive that keeps toys flowing to these kids at CHOP without compromising CHOP’s ability to handle medical emergency vehicles at all times.”

The folks at CHOP were glad to see toys continuing to be delivered to sick kids.

“(Congressman Brady’s) ability to bring all the parties together to find a way to keep the Toy Run while preserving CHOP’s ability to serve the needs of our patients will make this Sunday a great day for the children and families we serve,” CHOP President and CEO Dr. Steven Altschuler said.

The bikers from A.B.A.T.E. were glad that the toy run, though different, will continue.

“A week ago there was no Toy Drive,” said A.B.A.T.E. spokesman Denny Waldman. “Today, it is bigger and better than ever. Thank you Congressman Bob Brady, CHOP and Drexel University for providing the volunteer support and distribution infrastructure to deal with the thousands of new unwrapped toys that our Toy Drive will deliver to Citizens Bank Park. This could not have happened without the Phillies stepping up to the plate to provide a staging area for our toy drop-off and without the leadership of Mayor Michael Nutter, the Managing Director’s Office and the Philadelphia Police Department. We greatly appreciate all of their efforts.”

No More Texting and Driving in Pa.?

Pennsylvania is getting set to join more than 30 other states (including New Jersey and Delaware) that ban all motorists from texting while driving.

The state Senate on Tuesday voted 45-5 to approve an amended version of a bill it easily passed in June. The state House of Representatives overwhelmingly approved the bill on Monday.

Gov. Tom Corbett is expected to sign the bill. The bill would make texting behind the wheel a primary offense so that police can pull over motorists for that violation alone. The penalty is $50 but police may not seize the cell phone or other device.

However, talking on a cell phone without a hands-free device remains legal for motorists after the House removed a provision that would ban the activity. Nine states have such bans.

Thieves Steal From Firehouse While Crew Out on Call

Trenton firefighters say they returned from a Halloween-morning alarm to find their firehouse had been broken into and personal items stolen.

The thieves got into Engine Co. 1 through an unlocked window sometime between 10:30 and 11 a.m. Monday, Fire Director Qareeb Bashir tells the Times of Trenton.

Bashir wouldn't say how much the thieves made off with nor estimate a dollar amount in losses because he doesn't want firehouses to become targets.

“We were just fortunate that they didn’t take more,” he told the Times.

The break-in wasn't the only time in October that the city's firefighters were crime victims, reports the Times.

On Oct. 15, a group tried to steal equipment from an engine and on Oct. 21, a teen was accused of hurling a concrete block at firefighters. No injuries were reported.

Despite the crimes, Bashir does not think that firefighters are being purposely targeted.

“I don’t really look at it that we’re being specifically targeted,” Bashir told the Times. “I think we do have the respect of the community.”

Tug Boat Pilot Sentenced to a Year and a Day in Duck Boat Crash

The tug boat pilot who was on his cell phone for a family emergency when the barge he was steering crashed into a stalled duck boat filled with tourists was sentenced Tuesday to one year and a day in prison.

Matthew Devlin of Catskill, N.Y., pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter in August.

The guilty plea and the sentencing stem from the death of two Hungarian students, 16-year-old Dora Schwendtner and 20-year-old Szabolcs Prem, who were on the duck boat, and killed in the July 7, 2010 crash.

Prem’s father told the court Tuesday that he plays Bruce Springsteen’s song “Streets of Philadelphia” often and cries.

“I wish that I could take it all back,” Matt Devlin said in court when he pleaded guilty in August this year. “I just wasn’t thinking clearly after getting the news.”

“The news” Devlin was referring to was that his 5-year-old son went eight minutes without oxygen during routine eye surgery that day, and Devlin, while acting as pilot, was on his cell phone with family after learning the news.

The 35-year-old Devlin was charged with misconduct of a ship operator causing death, a maritime offense that authorities describe as the equivalent of involuntary manslaughter.

The deadly crash occurred after the duck boat stalled in the busy shipping channel. As it sat anchored, awaiting help, the barge began bearing down, and its tug operator didn't respond to distress calls, authorities said.

In the minutes before the crash, Devlin repeatedly made and received calls on his cellphone, surfed the Internet for medical information and moved to a lower wheelhouse for more privacy -- putting the stalled duck boat in his blind spot, according to a report by the National Transportation Safety Board.

The crash sent all 37 people on the duck boat into the river, but 16-year-old Dora Schwendtner and 20-year-old Szabolcs Prem did not resurface. The Hungarians were visiting the United States through a church exchange program.

Alleged Philly Mobsters Busted in Extortion, Takeover of Public Company: Feds

Reputed “associates” of the Lucchese organized crime family are facing federal charges stemming from the takeover of a Texas mortgage company, the U.S. Attorney for New Jersey announced Tuesday.

The U.S. Attorney's Office says Nicodemo Scarfo Jr., the son of imprisoned former Philadelphia-area mob boss Nicodemo Scarfo Sr. who was known as “Little Nicky," was among the 13 people under federal indictment.

USA LOCAL NEWS’s Ted Greenberg was the only reporter on scene Tuesday morning as Scarfo Jr. was escorted by federal authorities.

Salvatore Palullo, the other alleged “associate” of the Lucchese crime family, was also among the 13 under indictment on racketeering and other charges connected with the takeover of FirstPlus Financial Group.

According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the 13 arrested were all involved in the “alleged extortionate takeover of a publicly traded company.” 

The takeover began in 2007, authorities say.

The indictment alleges the suspects funneled money into shell companies in New Jersey and Pennsylvania and used the funds for their own benefit.

Some of the suspects were not yet arrested by Tuesday morning, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

Rutgers Rates As One of Top Colleges for Veterans

A military magazine has ranked Rutgers University as the No. 3 school for veterans.

Military Times Edge ranked only West Virginia's Concord University and Eastern Kentucky University ahead of New Jersey's flagship public school in the ratings, which were published Monday. Criteria included the cost of tuition and whether academic help is available to veterans, graduation rates and student loan default rates.

Rutgers says it has 926 military veterans among its students, twice as many as it had two years ago.

The school says one reason for the increase is the school's Office of Veterans Services, which was established last year to help veterans deal with government and academic bureaucracies.

Historic Double Hand Transplant Performed in Philly

A woman in need of two hands received a double hand transplant at the University of Pennsylvania in September – a surgery that has happened only five times worldwide.

Doctors at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania completed the double hand transplant on the quadruple amputee last month, and so far her body is reacting well.

The more than 11-hour surgery was performed and it was the first such procedure performed in Philadelphia. Only five bilateral hand transplants have been done since the first single hand transplant was performed in France in 1998.

The surgery required more than two dozen doctors and nurses, including 12 surgeons.

Hospital officials planned to discuss the surgery at a news conference Tuesday.

      

 

FEMA Deadline Approaching Fast

Did severe summer storms leave your property severely damaged?

The good news is, there’s help.

The bad news? You only have two weeks left to get it.

Survivors of the storms and flooding that ravaged our area this summer (We all remember Hurricane Irene), can register for disaster assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency or FEMA.

People who live, work, or own a business in the following Pennsylvania counties designated under the disaster declarations for Hurricane Irene and Tropical Strom Lee are eligible. The counties are Adams, Berks, Bradford, Bucks, Chester, Columbia, Cumberland, Dauphin, Delaware, Huntingdon, Lancaster, Lebanon, Lehigh, Luzerne, Lycoming, Monroe, Montgomery, Montour, Northampton, Northumberland, Perry, Philadelphia, Schuylkill, Snyder, Sullivan, Susquehanna, Union, Wyoming, and York

The deadline to register is November 14, 2011.

To register, call 1-800-621-FEMA from 7 a.m. until 10 p.m. You can also register online at > or by smartphone or tablet at m.fema.gov.

Donations to Cover Stables for Police Horses

Donations are expected to cover the $1.2 million cost of building new stables to house the horses that will be party of the re-established Philadelphia Police Mounted Unit.

The new stables for about 40 horses will be built in Fairmount Park near an existing stable facility.

Last year police officials announced plans for the mounted unit's return. It was disbanded in 2004 because of funding problems.

Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey says the mounted unit will be able to patrol in areas not accessible by car and would be used for crowd control.

The Philadelphia Police Foundation is running a fundraiser to cover costs. About $400,000 will be saved through the donation of construction services.

The mounted unit currently has 12 horses.

 

New Contract for Atlantic City Union?

Beverage servers, room cleaners and other service workers will vote Tuesday on whether to approve a new contract with four Atlantic City casinos.

Local 54 of the Unite-HERE union reached a tentative agreement with Caesars Entertainment last week on a new three-year deal.

Both sides say terms will not be released until after the vote.

The pact would cover Caesars, Bally's, Harrah's and the Showboat.

The casinos had sought steep pay cuts and also wanted workers to contribute for the first time to their health insurance and pension costs.

Results are expected to be tallied around 8 p.m.

ShopRite Dumps, Bleaches Food

A local supermarket says it was forced to get rid of perishable foods, rather than hand them out due to a power loss in the area.

The ShopRite on Island Avenue in SouthWest Philly disposed of at least two dumpsters full of food on Monday.

“When I came in I saw piles and piles of cheese, milk, juices, ice cream, everything was just piled up in different carts and they were actually disposing of it,” said Jason Williams of South Philadelphia.

Byron Daniels and other shoppers ran outside the store while the disposal was taking place.

“Sure enough they were dumping the food out, just shopping carts of it,” said Daniels. “Then when cars showed up that’s when I guess the manager said ‘okay start pouring bleach on it,’ they came out with bleach and started spraying bleach on the food.”

Jeff Brown, the President and CEO of Brown’s Super Stores, released the following statement to NBC 10 explaining the decision:

Today, Monday October 31, 2011, a number of business along Island Avenue lost power due to a malfunction of a transformer, including the ShopRite of Island Avenue. The ShopRite has a backup generator, but it does not operate our refrigerated cases. This resulted in our refrigerated merchandise being out of proper temperature for more than the allowable time frame.

For the safety of our customers, we disposed of all affected merchandise and fresh merchandise will be re-stocked tomorrow morning.

Our mission at Brown’s is to bring joy to the lives of the people we serve, making this action the only appropriate response.

We appreciate our community’s concern.

Regardless, some local residents were still upset by the store’s actions.

“It didn’t look spoiled,” said Angela Thompson, a local shopper. “What really shocked me is they threw bleach all over it, none of it was expired. There was food that was still good, it was shelf-safe, vacuum-sealed food.

“When I was in the supermarket, the cheese was still cold,” said Daniels.  “I had a 10 pound ham, still good, fresh, heavy, nice and cold.”

Management at the store insists that they poured bleach on spoiled food to disinfect trash containers and keep rodents away.

Thompson still wishes some of the items could have been salvaged for a local food pantry or shelter.

“There are people all over the tri-state area that are hungry and they were just throwing bleach all over the food,” she said. “It was just terrible, it was a sad sight to see on this Halloween evening.”

 

October Snow Brings Power Outages, Deaths

More than 100,000 Pennsylvania utility customers remain without power following a rare late-October snow storm that authorities say contributed to at least eight deaths in the state.

Some areas saw more than a foot of heavy, wet snow that brought down tree branches and power lines across a large part of Pennsylvania.

A slew of weekend crashes were attributed to slippery conditions, including collisions that killed six people.

A Berks County man was killed Saturday when a tree fell on his house. Another man is believed to have died of carbon monoxide poisoning after burning charcoal to keep warm at his home in Lehigh County, where some could be without power until the end of the week.

PPL Corp. reported about 60,000 without power and Met-Ed reported about 57,000 as of early Tuesday. A handful of school districts also closed.

 

Man Shoots Himself in the Leg On Train

One man is in the hospital after police say he shot himself on a Northbound SEPTA train.

It happened on Monday on the Market-Frankford line near Frankford Avenue and Church Street.

Police say the man shot himself in the right leg. He was taken into custody where he was questioned by police.

Authorities are currently investigating whether the man had a license to carry the weapon.

No word yet on the identity of the man or his condition.

 

Police Search for Escaped Prisoner

Police are searching for a man who they say escaped from a local prison.

Lenwood Burell Douglas, 28, was last seen in the Philadelphia area around 12:55 a.m. on Monday.

Police say Douglas failed to report to a new facility in Philadelphia which he was being assigned to. They also say he failed to return to Wernersville Community Corrections Center in South Heidelberg Township, Berks County, where he was previously staying.

Police describe Douglas as a black male standing 5-foot-8 and weighing 168 pounds.

If you have any information on his whereabouts, please call Pennsylvania State Police at 610-378-4011.

 

Mortgage Schemers Plead Guilty

Three women pleaded guilty on Monday for a mortgage fraud scheme that cost mortgage lenders more than $1.9 million in fake loans.

Patricia Smith and daughter Jamilah Smith of Irvington, NJ pleaded guilty to counts of the Superseding Indictment, which charged them and the third women, Carol Ashley, with wire fraud.

According to the statements made in court both Patricia and Jamilah Smith served as “straw buyers” for condominiums in North Wildwood. However, when they lacked  financial resources they turned to creating false bank statements, W-2 forms and pay stubs from Carol Ashley’s company, Exclusive Entertainment Production in the Los Angeles area.

Ollie Thaxton, the fourth defendant in the scheme has also pleaded guilty for wire fraud and is scheduled to be sentenced in January.

The charges could sentence all three women with 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine.

 

Robbers Target Teen Girl: Cops

New Castle County Police in Delaware are currently investigating a strong arm robbery that happened Sunday night in Phillip Heights.

Police say the victim, a 15-year-old girl from Wilmington, was walking around Phillip Heights when she was approached from behind by two men who stole her belongings.

According to the victim, one man held her while the other began to take items from her pockets on the 700 block of Phillips Road and then fled toward Marion Avenue.

Police are still searching for the suspects.

Anyone with information regarding this robbery should contact the New Castle Police Department at (302)-395-8110.

 

NJ: Tropicana Allowed 14-Year-Old to Play Slots

New Jersey casino regulators are considering fines against several gambling halls for allowing people to gamble who shouldn't have, including a 14-year-old boy who played slots at the Tropicana.

The state Division of Gaming Enforcement is preparing to act on complaints filed by the state Attorney General's Office against several casinos for allowing underage or self-excluded gamblers to play. They also involve other violations of casino regulations.

The Tropicana is accused of letting a 14-year-old boy play slots in August. According to the state, a casino security guard walked right past him without doing anything.

The boy was questioned by DGE investigators and admitted he was just 14. The state didn't reveal how much he lost or won.

Gamblers must be 21 to wager in New Jersey casinos.

 

Powerball Jackpot Rises High

Dreams of one day becoming a millionaire may not be too far off this upcoming Wednesday night for local residents.

So far one person in Pennsylvania and one in New Jersey have only matched the Powerball numbers, each winning $200,000.

There has been no such luck so far however in matching all the numbers and winning the grand prize of up to $245 million.

That current amount is the largest prize since February of 2006.

So get up and get playing. Your chances of winning a prize this time around are 1 in 35.