Weekend News Brief
Written by Dan Fischer on April 22, 2023
150 thousand New York state Licenses may need to be renewed because their owners didn’t pass a vision test during the pandemic. If you had to renew your license between March 1st of 2020 and August 31st of 2021 and deferred your vision test then your license may be about to be suspended. If that is you then go to an approved tester, Tops Friendly Markets are approved for this or you can go to your DMV and take a vision test. They will send the information in for you. If you go to a non approved location for your test you will need to send in the vision test results yourself.
The Wyoming County Sheriff’s Office announced that 35-year-old Nasser Taher of Buffalo was arrested following the execution of a search warrant at Zaza Smoke Shop in Warsaw. According to the sheriff’s office, an undercover drug buy was made following complaints of unlawful and unlicensed dealing of cannabis at the smoke shop. Following the undercover drug buy, the search warrant was issued. The sheriff’s office said around four and a half pounds of concentrated cannabis and six pounds of raw cannabis with an estimated retail value of over $84,000 was seized. A large amount of U.S. currency was also seized. Taher was charged with first-degree criminal possession of cannabis, arraigned in Warsaw Town Court, and released on his own recognizance.
A former Wyoming County Corrections Officer, 37-year-old James Sutton of Depew has been charged with distribution and possession of child pornography.
Sutton allegedly distributed child pornography in October of 2021 and on February 7 he allegedly possessed images of child pornography involving a prepubescent minor on three different cell phones. Sutton was arraigned before U.S. Magistrate Judge Michael Roemer and held pending a detention hearing on April 24. The U.S. Attorney’s Office said the charges carry a minimum penalty of five years in prison and a maximum of 20 years.
A man who went on the run April 18th for kidnapping a 16 year old girl has been apprehended and the girl recovered. 41 year old Christopher Comfort of Warsaw was investigated for being in contact with a minor who there was an order of protection against starting in October. He was indicted and arraigned in December and then an arrest warrant was served in April but Comfort escaped out a back window and fled with the girl down the railroad tracks and into the woods. A K9 and drones couldn’t locate them. Comfort’s mother, 60 year old Marie Vinci paid for a hotel room in Shamokin Dam Pennsylvania where security video showed the girl and Comfort in a hallway. Police caught them there and the girl was recovered without incident. Comfort was charged in Pennsylvania with kidnapping, criminal contempt, possession of drugs with intent to deliver, and fugitive from justice. His mother was arrested in Gainesville and charged with custodial interference and hindering a prosecution.
Environmental Cleanup of Basket Place LLC at 22 Clinton Street is set to begin in May. The city site was used for making novelty baskets for the last several decades. Before that the site was used for manufacturing of highway and agricultural equipment. The 22.9 acre site has been investigated since the 1990s for being classified as a brownfield and needing cleanup. The top soil was determined to be contaminated and also the groundwater near it may be affected by the pollution from heavy industrial use. The cleanup activities will be performed by CNH Industrial Baumaschinen GmbH with oversight provided by the state DEC.
