Evening News Brief
Written by Tom Tharp on September 23, 2021
In a COVID-19 briefing on Thursday morning, Governor Kathy Hochul announced the state’s health commissioner, Dr. Howard Zucker, had resigned. As commissioner of the state health department, Zucker’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic came under fire in 2020 and into 2021. Following a report from New York Attorney General Letitia James in January of this year on the deaths of COVID-19 patients in nursing homes, several elected leaders in Western New York called for Zucker’s resignation. Governor Kathy Hochul will appoint the next commissioner and Zucker will stay in his position until that replacement is appointed.
The New York State Comptrollers office has released a report saying they found lax oversight of operations at Western Region Off Track Betting. Western Regional Off-Track Betting spent thousands on tickets to events, food and alcohol for board members, employees and other individuals without state oversight, according to an audit released Thursday. A second audit found that CEO Henry Wojtaszek did not reimburse the organization for his personal use of a company vehicle in a timely manner.
New York State announced the “Vax and Win” COVID-19 vaccine incentive partnership today. The program is a partnership between NYS and the Buffalo Bills, New York Giants and New York Jets. It offers New Yorkers a chance to win tickets, signed merchandise and more. It is open to New Yorkers 12 and older who received their first COVID-19 vaccine dose between September 9, 2021 and October 24, 2021. For more information follow the link at wbtai.com. https://www.governor.ny.gov/programs/new-york-state-vax-and-win-football-sweepstakes
The Genesee County Sheriff’s Office is asking for the Public’s assistance in locating Marc C. J. Cook. Mr. Cook is wanted on multiple Warrants including Criminal Possession of a Firearm, Criminal Possession of a Weapon 3rd and Bail Jumping 2nd, all Felonies in Alabama Town Court. He is also wanted by Batavia City Court for Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance 7th, Criminal Use of Drug Paraphernalia 2nd, Possession of a Hypodermic Needle, and three counts of Bail Jumping 3rd, all Misdemeanor charges. If anyone knows his whereabouts, please contact the Genesee County Sheriff’s Office at 585-343-5000.
Jack Eichel is no longer the captain of the Buffalo Sabres. The Sabres and Eichel have been at odds lately as Eichel, following a neck injury, accused the team of not supporting him during his recovery and making bad medical decisions that could have ended his career. General Manager Kevyn Adams said that the decisions was made because “the captain should be the heartbeat of his team.”
