Afternoon News Brief

37-year-old Cassandra Smith of Batavia has been arrested by Sheriff deputies following a shoplifting complaint at Tops Market in Warsaw. She was also found to have allegedly shoplifted from two adjacent stores, Zaza Smoke Shop and Walmart. Smith was charged with petit larceny and released with appearance tickets to return to court at a later date. But then during a traffic stop later the same day, Smith was found to have new clothes in her vehicle that she did not have earlier; it turns out that Smith went back to Walmart and shoplifted again. This time, she was arrested and remanded to Wyoming County Jail and held on $5000 bail. Smith is scheduled to appear in Town Court at a later date.

 

A high wind watch has been issued for Orleans, Wyoming and Genesee Counties from 5 p.m. Saturday through 8 a.m. Sunday with 60-mile-per-hour gusts expected; the strongest winds will move through our region Saturday night. Travel could be difficult at times, especially for high profile vehicles. Damaging winds could blow down trees and power lines; scattered power outages are possible.

 

 

 

The first Agriculture Week at Notre Dame High School wrapped up today. Land Pro, Monroe Tractor, Helena Agri, Upstate Niagara Co-op, and Wyoming Country Cooperative Extension assisted with the project, which provided opportunities for student to check out farm equipment up close. School administrators hope it will become an annual event. Photo by Doug Thompson, WBTA News.

 

FROM THE WYOMING COUNTY SHERIFF: 53-year-old James Jacobs of Attica was arrested and charged with petit larceny. It’s alleged he stole a GPS from the Warsaw Walmart. He was issued a ticket for Town of Warsaw Court to appear early in April. ALSO: 37-year-old Katy Day of Warsaw is charged with felony criminal mischief. She’s accused of intentionally damaging a computer tablet while she was incarcerated at the County Jail on an unrelated matter. Damages totaled $250. Day was arraigned in Warsaw Justice Court and returned to the County Jail where she’s being held on other charges.

 

Two Starpoint High School students are in some legal trouble after being arrested for harassment. The Niagara County Sheriff’s Department says the arrests are connected to an incident centered on the high school’s varsity wrestling team. The 17-year-olds from Lockport were both allegedly involved in an incident that happened at a home in Wheatfield, but details about what occurred haven’t been made public. The school district released a statement saying it would have no comment on the investigation.

 

A Buffalo man has been sentenced for his role in the murders of three people during a drug robbery. Yesterday, a judge ordered Deandre Wilson to spend the rest of his life in prison for being involved in the deaths of (pictured, from left-to-right) 31-year-old Miguel Anthony Valentin-Colin, 24-year-old Nicole Marie Merced-Plaud and 29-year-old Dhamyl Roman-Audiffred. The remains of Merced-Plaud and Valentin-Colon were spotted in a burned out van on Tonawanda Street in September 2019. Roman-Audiffred’s remains were later found in a fire pit in the back of a home on Box Avenue.

 

Genesee County deputies have released the name of the pedestrian who lost his life after being struck by a vehicle. On Wednesday night, 44-year-old Richard Jones Junior was walking on Route 63 in the Town of Alabama when he was hit by a car. Jones was pronounced dead shortly after first responders got to the scene. So far, there have been no charges filed against the driver who struck Jones.

 

 

According to the State Department of Labor, the unemployment rate in New York stayed flat in February, holding at 4.2%. The addition of 21,200 jobs in the private sector amounted to a 0.3% increase, but was not enough to change the state’s jobless rate, which remains higher than the national average of 3.6%. New York’s labor force participation rate increased slightly from 60.5% to 60.6%, but is still below pre-pandemic levels. The state lost about 2 million jobs in the immediate wake of the closure of public gathering spaces and business three years ago. The hospitality and tourism sectors of the state’s economy were hit especially hard by the initial closure. State officials have estimated jobs will not fully return to pre-pandemic employment for another several years this decade.

 

School taxes in Batavia are expected to go up by 1 percent in the coming year. Superintendent Jason Smith said the increase is smaller than it was going to be. Originally, a 3% increase was anticipated. The cost is due to the need for 3 new school busses. Also, a contract for transportation expires at the end of the year, which means a renegotiation, and subsequent price increases. The Superintendent expects a mandate coming from the state to buy electric only school busses in the near future as well. And finally, teacher salaries and other personnel expenses are set to increase by 1 million dollars across the school district. (Photo: LinkedIn)

 

New information has been released about a bomb threat that led to schools in the Hilton Central School District being evacuated. The threat that claimed there were bombs in multiple district buildings came from an e-mail address that used a Russian domain. Monroe County deputies are still trying to find out who sent the message. A search of the buildings didn’t result in any explosives being found.

 

 

Hyundai and Kia are telling the owners of more than 571,000 SUVs and minivans in the U.S. to park them outdoors because the tow hitch harnesses can catch fire while they are parked or being driven. Owners affected by the recall will be notified starting May 16th. (Hyundai vehicles include the 2019 to 2023 Santa Fe, the 2021 to 2023 Santa Fe Hybrid, the 2022 and 2023 Santa Fe Plug-in hybrid and the 2022 and 2023 Santa Cruz. The only Kia affected is the Carnival minivan from 2022 and 2023. All have Hyundai or Kia tow hitch harnesses that came as original equipment or were installed by dealers. Dealers at first will remove the fuse and tow hitch computer module until a fix is available. Later they will install a new fuse and wire extension with an improved connector that’s waterproof.)

 

New Yorkers are being encouraged to get out and support their local maple producers this weekend. Maple Weekend kicks off tomorrow and will run through Sunday. Maple producers will be opening up their doors to people and giving them a chance to taste their products. There will also be tours and pancake breakfasts at some locations. To find a full list of events, go to mapleweekend.nysmaple.com.

 

 

With their hopes of making the postseason nearly dashed, the Buffalo Sabres will be taking on one of the top teams in the Eastern Conference tonight. The Sabres are hosting the New Jersey Devils at KeyBank Center. Buffalo is on a 4-game losing streak after being beaten by the Nashville Predators 7-3 Tuesday. Face-off for this evening’s contest is scheduled for 7:00.

 

 

The Mega Millions jackpot just keeps going up. Whoever is lucky enough to correctly choose all six winning numbers ahead of tonight’s drawing will receive a prize of at least $302,000,000. The drawing will be streamed live online at megamillions.com. Please play responsibly.