Today’s Local Stories

A Buffalo woman recently pleaded guilty to conspiring to steal mail from mailboxes in Hamburg, a scheme that involved the theft of checks totaling more than $369,000. On Friday, Alexandria Duncan, 23, entered a guilty plea for conspiracy to commit mail theft, a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a $250,000 fine. Prosecutors said Duncan conspired with co-defendant Timothee S. Tidwell, A sentencing date has not yet been scheduled.
Horse riders from Western New York gathered Saturday for this year’s Equifest, where fans of horseback riding got the chance to share their love for horses.The event kicked off at at the Hamburg Fairgrounds, where attendees were treated to several demonstrations, educational seminars and nearly 100 vendors selling western apparel.
According to NYSP, Wednesday morning Trooper Maryam Ibrahim from SP Albany saw a Great Horned Owl on the side of the NYS Thruway on I-87 in the town of Coeymans. State Police say that the owl appeared injured, and may have been struck by a vehicle on the highway. After securing the owl, it was taken to Capital District Veterinary Referral Hospital to be assessed for injuries. A big thank you to Trooper Ibrahim

Multiple shipments of counterfeit designer merchandise were seized by local U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers over the past 30 days after determining the items bore fraudulent trademarks. The seizures made at Buffalo and Rochester followed inspections by CBP officers and import specialists who examined shipments containing watches, jewelry, handbags and clothing believed to be inauthentic.

As the conflict with Iran war approaches its third week the Pentagon announced 5,000 more U.S. Marines and Sailors will be sent to the Middle East. This comes on the heels of the loss of six members of the military who died on Thursday when their refueling plane crashed in western Iraq. The type of refueling plane that went down is actually the same kind of plane flown by Air Force reservists at the Niagara Falls Air Reserve Station.

New York State Attorney General Letitia James on Friday said her office is stepping in to try and help the Seneca Babcock Community Association correct its finances and regain its not for profit status. Seneca Babcock lost that status after its executive director, Brian Pilarski, failed for several years to file the necessary paperwork with the federal government.

New York State Attorney General Letitia James on Friday said her office is stepping in to try and help the Seneca Babcock Community Association correct its finances and regain its not for profit status. Seneca Babcock lost that status after its executive director, Brian Pilarski, failed for several years to file the necessary paperwork with the federal government.

The suspect who was taken into custody early Friday in a murder investigation has been identified, court records said.

Mickey Case Carter, 26, of Grantsville was charged with first-degree murder, according to a release from West Virginia State Police.

According to a criminal complaint filed to Calhoun County Magistrate Court, troopers responded to a residence in the 25000 block of South Calhoun Highway in Chloe just after 2:30 a.m. Friday.

A bill to end immediate athletic eligibility for high school transfers and revert rules back to as they were prior to 2023 has passed the West Virginia Legislature. House Bill 4425, addresses a 2023 law passed by the legislature that allows high school athletes to transfer schools and be immediately eligible to play. HB 4425 would revert the rules back to as they were prior to 2023, requiring transferring student-athletes to sit out a year before regaining eligibility. HB 4425 passed the House of Delegates by a 78-19 vote. It passed the Senate 20-14 on Friday and now heads to the governor’s desk.

Three men accused of illegally transporting live deer across state lines have been charged, federal prosecutors said.Brian Poling, 51, of Albirght, W.Va., Levi Weaver, 74, of Fredericksburg, Ohio, and Leroy Miller, 30, of Millersburg, Ohio, allegedly violated the Lacey Act, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of West Virginia. The release said Poling, who manages Dream Mountain Ranch in Preston County, is accused of working with Weaver and Miller to transport deer without health certificates required by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Regulations require a veterinarian inspection certificate and proof of a tuberculosis test when taking wildlife across state lines

A Charleston man who beat a woman to death with a vase and tried to kill his grandmother by pushing her down a flight of stairs will spend the maximum time in prison for the charges. Izak Surface, 23, pleaded guilty in December to second-degree murder in the death of Lora Farley, 36. Her body was found in a home in the 1600 block of Chandler Drive on Jan. 18, 2024. Kanawha County Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Jordan Gunnoe told Judge Carrie Webster that Surface’s mother repeatedly asked for domestic violence charges against her son to be dropped and refused to testify against him, even though she was a victim of the violence.

In a perfect world, the city of Charleston would have 173 police officers, but they’ve been operating with around 20 less than that for several years. That means overtime overflows. 85The city’s online police ad touts that built-in overtime for each new hire. “Our recruitment is not even catching up with attrition, which is a big concern for me for this city,” city council member Shannon Snodgrass said. “Because without public safety, we don’t have anything.” Mayor Amy Goodwin’s latest budget proposal comes in at just over $113 million; that’s only $100,000 more than last year.