CRIME & SAFETY
Morning Roundup: 1 injured after shooting in Penn Hills
Here are some of the latest news items from this morning, Wednesday, May 1. One person was injured in a shooting Wednesday morning in Penn Hills, according to police. Penn Hills officers were dispatched at about 1:30 p.m. to the 400 block of Arbor Lane, according to TribLive news partner WTAE.
Former firefighter pleads guilty to arsons in Arnold, New Kensington
Marilyn Bischof said she still doesn’t understand why her grandson burned down her Arnold home last fall. “I just want my grandson to know I am fine and I will get through this. I want him to get help, and I am glad he came forward and took the blame for this,” she testified Wednesday during a hearing in which her grandson pleaded guilty to the Oct. 1 arson of her Leishman Avenue home.
Police chase on Route 22 ends with driver in custody
A man was taken into custody Wednesday afternoon at the conclusion of a police chase on Route 22, according to police sources. The suspect took off from a traffic stop in Salem and fled west into Murrysville around 1:30 p.m. At points during the chase, which ended near Tarr Hollow Road, the man veered into oncoming traffic, the source said.
Tarentum man gets probation for 145-mph Route 28 crash that killed best friend
A Tarentum man who claimed that a heart condition caused him to pass out and hit 145 mph before he crashed his sports car on Route 28, killing his passenger, was sentenced Monday to five years of probation. Frederick Fattman, 79, could have been sentenced to incarceration, but Allegheny County...
Penn Hills man convicted on drug trafficking, firearms offenses
After deliberating for less than two hours, a federal jury found Harry E. Duncan, 36 of Penn Hills, guilty of three counts of violating federal drug and firearms laws on Monday. According to a press release, the verdict included one count each of possession with intent to distribute fentanyl, cocaine and crack cocaine; possession of firearms and ammunition by a convicted felon; aiding and abetting the straw purchase of three firearms. Evidence that was presented at trial showed that in the fall of 2022, Duncan was the subject of an investigation by Allegheny County Police narcotics detectives. In November of 2022, detectives served a search warrant on Duncan’s home. Detectives found over 1,000 stamp bags of fentanyl, significant amounts of unpackaged fentanyl powder, powder cocaine and crack cocaine hidden in the ceiling. Detectives also found a large amount of drug packaging materials, scales, cash and 11 different cell phones in Duncan’s basement.
Judge moves Pittsburgh teen's homicide trial to juvenile court, angering victim's family
A boy who was 14 when police said he fatally shot a 17-year-old will have his criminal charges handled in juvenile court, a judge announced Monday. As a result, if Nigel Thompson is found to have killed Damonte Hardrick, he could remain in custody only up to age 21. Hardrick’s...
Retired Greensburg police officer Regina McAtee pleads guilty to methamphetamine distribution
A retired Greensburg police officer on Wednesday became a lawbreaker in the eyes of the criminal justice system she once upheld. Regina McAtee, 51, of New Kensington, who had been with the city force for more than 19 years, pleaded guilty in federal court to conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute methamphetamine.
Pittsburgh police trying to find missing 12-year-old boy last seen on Tuesday night
Pittsburgh police are asking for the public’s help in locating a missing 12-year-old boy who was last seen at around 7:30 p.m. Tuesday. Frederic Rectenwald was last seen at his grandmother’s house in Pittsburgh’s Allentown neighborhood Pittsburgh Public Safety described his as being five-foot-three and 100 pounds with brown eyes and black hair. He was last seen wearing a baby blue shirt, tan pants, and a black hat with white letters.
Man accused of kidnapping Pittsburgh-area woman, killing her in Nevada desert found guilty
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- A man accused of driving a Pittsburgh-area woman out to the Nevada desert, tying her to a signpost and killing her was found guilty of kidnapping resulting in death after a federal jury trial.The jury returned a guilty verdict against John Chapman from Oakland, Maryland, in the death of 33-year-old Jaime Feden on Wednesday, Bethel Park police announced. Police in Bethel Park launched an investigation into Feden's disappearance in November of 2019 after friends and family became concerned. Feden was found dead and unidentified in the desert of Lincoln County, Nevada, a few weeks later and Chapman was charged in connection...
Florida man charged with manslaughter in brother's death arrested in Pittsburgh area
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) — A Florida man charged with manslaughter in connection with the death of his brother was arrested in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania. The Cape Coral Police Department said in a post on Facebook that John Tolbert was arrested on Tuesday after a traffic stop by Pennsylvania State Police troopers. He faces a manslaughter with a weapon charge out of Cape Coral. Cape Coral police said in the Facebook post that officers with the department were called to a home in Northwest Cape Coral for reports of a patient in cardiac arrest on April 16. When first responders arrived at the home, they found Francis Tolbert with a "very faint pulse." He was bleeding from the back of his head from "unknown causes at that point," the police's Facebook post said. He was pronounced dead shortly after. Investigating officers found a shell case near the victim, leading police to believe "the victim's injuries were not from a medical event," according to the Facebook post. The medical examiner found a bullet fragment in the victim's head, and John Tolbert was named a "person of interest" in his brother's death, police said on Facebook. He will be extradited to Florida to face charges.
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