Niagara Falls

Fast getaway in theft of money

A Roger Drive woman called police after an acquantance jumped from her moving car with an envelope full of money Wednesday afternoon.

The victim said after getting a call, she picked up a woman she knew at GJ Mann School on 95th Street about 3:30 p.m. and as they were driving, the woman grabbed the envelope, containing $462, and jumped from the moving car, which was going about 30 mph.

The suspect was last seen running through a yard on the 1300 block of 95th Street.



PENDLETON

Two treated after crash on South Transit

State troopers responded to South Transit Road in the Town of Pendleton Saturday for an auto accident with injuries.

Troopers say a car driven by Jayne Forster, 76, of Lockport, was headed south when she swerved to avoid another vehicle.

Forster was reportedly unable to stop in time and struck another vehicle, operated by Timothy Caldwell, 47, of Medina, which was stopped in traffic behind a third vehicle.

Caldwell’s vehicle struck the car in front of him, driven by Rogelio Scopano, 69, of Williamsville.

Forster and a passenger in Caldwell’s car were each transported by ambulance to Lockport Memorial Hospital for treatment of minor injuries.

Forster was issued a ticket for following too closely, the report said.



CITY OF TONAWANDA

Fire damages auto shop

A Wednesday morning fire caused approximately $60,000 damage to an auto repair shop on Young Street, City of Tonawanda fire officials reported.

Firefighters received a call of a fire at Mike Barry Motors, 147 Young St., at 3:16 a.m., when a motorist saw the fire and called it in, said Tonawanda Fire Chief Charles Stuart.

Fire officials suspect that the cause of the fire was an oil-burning heating unit that malfunctioned. The shop owner told firefighters he left the unit running overnight because of the cold temperature, Stuart said.

“They burn waste oil. It’s actually a good way to save money and heat the business, but in this case it didn’t work out so well,” he said, adding that anyone who buys heating units should make sure they come with automatic shutoff or some other safety feature.”



NORTH TONAWANDA

Man arrested for bomb threat

Police Wednesday arrested a 21-year-old man for falsely reporting a school bomb threat in two calls made to the high school and a local police detective Nov. 8.

According to North Tonawanda Police Lt. Tom Krantz, Kevin K. Walsh, 176 Robert Drive, was attempting to clear the name of a 14-year-old girl arrested Nov. 5 for a string of three threatening messages left at the school beginning Oct. 30.

“He was trying to cover up for the girl, he was just a friend of (her) family,” Krantz said. “Both of (the messages) said that we arrested the wrong person and that he was still going to blow up the school.”

Despite being placed from a pay phone, Krantz said the latest calls were traced. One call was to a school administrator and the other was to local detective Larry Kuebler just three days after the girl was arrested.

Walsh faces two counts of felony reporting an incident. The charges, which were upgraded from a misdemeanor to a D felony following 9/11, carry a maximum of three years in prison for each count.



Niagara Falls

• CHARGED: Dawoud A. Abdulali, 28, 1101 Linwood Ave., Apt. 2, was charged with petit larceny about 11 a.m. Wednesday, according to city police. Officers said Abdulali left Tops on Niagara Falls Boulevard without paying for five packages of hair coloring, five packages of razor blades and eight deoderants, valued at $191.80.

• THEFT: A Pierce Avenue resident reported that sometime Tuesday night someone took two tan-colored lion lawn ornaments from their front porch. The owner provided police with identifiying features of the ornaments. The estimated loss is $200.

Pendleton

• DWI: Joshua Lee, 37, of Lockport, was charged Saturday with DWI and speeding after a traffic stop on Bear Ridge Road. State troopers stopped Lee for driving 64 mph in a 45 mph zone. He failed several field sobriety tests and registered at 0.13 percent blood alcohol content on a breath test.

Wheatfield

• LARCENY: An employee of an Ohio properties company reported Wednesday that sometime between Oct. 24 and 29 someone stole copper and caseboard heat registers from a foreclosed home the company owns on Shawnee Road. The copper is worth abut $1,000, the report said.

Lewiston

• DRUGS: Maurice Antwon Searight, 29, 2178 Jerauld Ave., Niagara Falls, was charged Wednesday morning with criminal possession of a controlled substance, unlawful possession of marijuana, third-degree aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle, driving with improper plates, driving without valid registration, driving without valid inspection and driving without a valid license. Deputies began to follow Searight on Walmore Road after a mobile plate reader alerted them his license plate was suspended, the report said. Searight pulled into Smokin Joe’s and began pumping gas when deputies saw the passenger get in the driver’s seat. They interviewed the passenger, who said Searight had asked him to drive. Deputies patted down Searight and found a plastic bag containing marijuana. Inside the car, they found 14 pink pills and a pill bottle containing 81 white pills.

Town of Lockport

• CONTEMPT: Peter H. Prine, 30, 6952 Academy Lane, was charged Tuesday morning with second-degree criminal contempt. A sheriff’s deputy on patrol on Davison Road reportedly saw Prine and another man holding shotguns and exiting the woods on Niagara County property. A computer check found Prine was allegedly in violation of an order of protection out of Lockport Town Court that required him to turn over all his guns to the sheriff’s department and not possess any. Prine was released on his own recognizance and is due Dec. 4 in Lockport Town Court.

• DWI: Duane Taylor, 33, of Lockport, was charged Saturday with driving while intoxicated and speeding after a traffic stop on South Transit Road. State troopers reportedly stopped Taylor for allegedly driving 60 mph in a 45 mph zone. He allegedly failed several field sobriety tests. He was released on an appearance ticket for Lockport Town Court.

Middleport

• LARCENY: A Roland Street woman reported Tuesday that sometime over the weekend, someone entered a home she owns on Mechanic Street and stole several items. The woman said she believes her ex-husband, with whom she split the property, took the items, even though they do not belong to him. The items include a shed with lofts, three bicycles, a 32-inch TV, an entertainment center, a rocking chair, golf clubs, a gas dryer, a TV stand, a sectional couch, a sewing machine, a VCR, a space heater and a TV console, are worth about $6,045.