Brian C. Rittmeyer stories, Page 56
State police investigating officer-involved shooting in North Braddock
State police are investigating after a North Braddock police officer fired his weapon after being shot at by a man fleeing a crash scene late Tuesday. Neither the officer nor the suspect were hurt, state police Trooper Rocco Gagliardi said. According to state police, the crash happened about 11:45 p.m....
Maryland man dies after being thrown from vehicle in Pa. Turnpike crash in Pine
A Maryland man died when he was thrown from his vehicle Monday afternoon in a two-vehicle crash on the Pennsylvania Turnpike in Pine, according to state police. State police identified the man as Ashfaq Ahmed, 58, of Suitland. The crash happened around 4:20 p.m. According to state police, Ahmed’s westbound...
Police investigating armed robbery of Brookline gas station
Pittsburgh police are investigating the armed robbery of a Brookline gas station on Tuesday night. Police said officers responded to the reported robbery at a Sunoco gas station in the 1600 block of Saw Mill Run Boulevard around 10:30 p.m. A store clerk told officers that a man with a...
Man accused of threatening to kill Allegheny County DA, encouraging mass killing
A Rosslyn Farms man is accused of making threats online to kill Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr. and others and threatening to use a weapon of mass destruction. Scott Township police arrested Joshua J. Thompson, 46, on Monday. He was denied bail at an arraignment early Tuesday...
Winter storm watch issued for ice accumulations in higher terrain outside Pittsburgh
Locations in higher terrain outside of Pittsburgh could see ice accumulating Wednesday night into Thursday morning, a National Weather Service meteorologist said Tuesday. With cold air in place, freezing rain will start developing over the area around 10 p.m. Wednesday, meteorologist David Shallenberger said. In lower elevations, Shallenberger said the...
Beaver County man’s death in fall at Acrisure Stadium ruled an accident
A Beaver County man’s death at Acrisure Stadium was an accident, the Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office has ruled. Dalton Ryan Keane, 27, of Center Township died after falling from an escalator at the stadium following an Oct. 2 Steelers game. The medical examiner said Keane died from multiple blunt...
‘Our hearts are broken’: Children killed in Sewickley house fire identified
Less than two weeks before Christmas, the Quaker Valley School District community is mourning the loss of two Edgeworth Elementary School students who died Tuesday morning in a house fire. “Our hearts are broken by the loss of these children. They were treasured members of the Quaker Valley family and...
Crafton Heights man thought he would be meeting child for sex, police say
A man from Pittsburgh’s Crafton Heights neighborhood was arrested Thursday after police said he made arrangements to meet for sex with what he thought was a 14-year-old girl. The girl was actually an undercover FBI agent. Pittsburgh police charged Ackenio Taylor, 32, with criminal attempt, criminal solicitation, unlawful contact with...
Gas prices falling across nation and state, but Pennsylvania drivers still paying more than others
Average gasoline prices are continuing to fall in Pennsylvania and across the nation, although the average in Pennsylvania is about 50 cents per gallon higher than the national average. According to AAA, the national average Monday is about $3.26 per gallon. That’s about 14 cents less than a week ago,...
Pittsburgh man killed in Braddock Hills apartment building fire
A 60-year-old Pittsburgh man was killed in a fire Monday morning at a senior apartment building in Braddock Hills. Kevin Prince was pronounced dead at 7:13 a.m., according to the Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office. Ten apartments were damaged in the fire at Brinton Towers, 3000 Locust Street, according to...
1 killed, 3 hurt in fire in Downtown Pittsburgh apartment building
One person died, another was critically injured and two emergency responders suffered injuries late Sunday in a fire at a Downtown Pittsburgh apartment building. Pittsburgh Public Safety said police, firefighters and paramedics responded to a five-alarm fire just after 10:30 p.m. at The Roosevelt Building at Penn Avenue and Sixth...
Nearly 30 graduates nominated for New Kensington-Arnold ‘Distinguished Alumni’ honors
Nearly 30 graduates of Valley High School and its predecessors in New Kensington and Arnold have been nominated to be recognized as distinguished alumni. New Kensington-Arnold Assistant Superintendent Jon Banko and School Director Sarah Yurga announced earlier this year that the district would be bringing back a program to honor...
New Kensington-Arnold approves repairs, improvements at all schools
The New Kensington-Arnold School Board has approved several projects that will see improvements, upgrades and fixes touching on all of the district’s schools. At the high school, the board approved negotiating a contract with Pittsburgh Stage to renovate the auditorium stage’s rigging and tracks, electrical and lighting systems. Business Manager...
Drug forfeitures, seizures fund police equipment purchases in Westmoreland County
The Allegheny Township Police Department is doing away with its “bring your own gun to work” routine with help from the Westmoreland County District Attorney’s Office. The department used $9,300 it received from District Attorney Nicole Ziccarelli to buy 15 department-issued 9 mm handguns and holsters for all of its...
Plum police detective becomes department’s first public information officer
A Plum detective has been named the police department’s first public information officer. Joseph Little took the weeklong FBI Law Enforcement Executive Development Association class in Pleasant Hills to take on the role. “I provide the community with the most accurate, up-to-date information,” he said. “As you would imagine, during...
New Kensington-Arnold fires security guard accused of assaulting 5-year-old student
The New Kensington-Arnold School Board fired a security guard who had been accused of assaulting a 5-year-old elementary school student last year. Lori Ann Waltonbaugh, 59, of Greensburg entered a negotiated guilty plea Sept. 29 to a charge of recklessly endangering another person, according to court records. She was sentenced...
Plum police, Rotary Club present donations to Meals on Wheels
Some fuzzy faces in Plum’s police department are helping making Christmas brighter for people getting help from Meals on Wheels. Police Chief Lanny Conley presented a $1,340 check Tuesday to Samantha Lamorte, manager of the Meals on Wheels program at the Plum Community Center. The money came from the department’s...
OPEC production cuts, Russian price cap could disrupt falling gas prices
The national average price of gasoline has dropped for four straight weeks to its lowest level since January, Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at price-tracking service GasBuddy, said Monday. “Every state has again seen average gasoline prices drop in the last week, and it remains very possible the...
New Kensington residents gather for Christmas tree lighting, mayor’s holiday dinner
New Kensington residents sang together before breaking bread together as the holiday season got underway in the city Friday night. Christie Sabulsky came to the lighting of the city’s Christmas tree for the first time with her children, Brayden, 9, and Brooklyn, 6. “I like when the community gets together,”...
Police: Man found unconscious in Downtown Pittsburgh alley was attacked with BB gun
Pittsburgh police say a man who died after being found unconscious in a downtown alley had been assaulted with a BB gun. The Allegheny County Medical Examiner’s Office identified the man as Christopher Gaylor, 50. He died at UPMC Presbyterian Hospital. According to police, officers and medics went to Coffey...
Leechburg High School enters PennDOT ‘Paint the Plow’ competition opening soon for public voting
The blade of a snowplow was quite a different canvas for Leechburg High School senior Jasa Oliver to work on. “I usually do traditional paper and pencil or digital art on my computer,” said Oliver, 18, of Gilpin. “It was very different, especially the proportion, the size and the curve...
Plum hosts Santa, ‘Christmas at Plum Creek’ at new municipal center
Two-year-old Olivia Sikina calls Santa “Ho-Ho,” but her father wasn’t sure how she was going to react to seeing him. “We’ll see if she screams or cries. She seemed very excited at the house,” said Rick Sikina of Plum. “Last year, it didn’t go very well. I think she’s starting...
Allegheny Valley Habitat for Humanity Christmas raffle to benefit Ukrainian orphans
Alle-Kiski Valley residents interested in winning a decorated Christmas tree, wreath or menorah have a chance to do that while also helping the youngest victims of Russia’s war on Ukraine. Two Christmas trees, a wreath and a menorah are up for raffle at Allegheny Valley Habitat for Humanity’s ReStore in...
New Kensington getting into Christmas spirit with tree lighting, dinner, parade
The Christmas season starts this weekend in New Kensington. Festivities begin Friday evening with the lighting of the city’s Christmas tree, followed by Mayor Tom Guzzo’s annual free dinner. The city’s Christmas parade will be held downtown Saturday morning, followed by free horse and carriage rides on Fifth Avenue. “This...
Car found abandoned, wrecked in New Kensington was stolen Thanksgiving night
A car found abandoned after being wrecked in New Kensington on Friday morning had been stolen from its owner’s driveway the night before, police Chief Bob Deringer said this week. Deringer said the car, a Dodge Charger, was stolen in New Kensington sometime after 7 p.m. on Thanksgiving Day. It...
