For the second time this week the Bethlehem Fire Department has been called to the Iglesia Pentecostal de Bethlehem church on Pembroke Road. Firefighters were seen on the roof the church around 2 o'clock this morning, two days after a bigger fire severely damaged the church. That initial fire has now been ruled an arson. Investigators reportedly found one of the church's windows and a door broken when they arrived early Tuesday morning.
Former Reading Mayor Vaughn Spencer will spend eight years behind bars for his role in the pay-to-play scheme tied to Reading City Hall. He has to report to prison in June. Investigators say Spencer traded city contracts for campaign donations. He was found guilty of bribery in August. Spencer served as Reading's mayor from 2012 to 2016. Prosecutors wanted a minimum of 10 years in prison for Spencer, who apologized during his sentencing Wednesday saying "I don't want to go to prison. However, I made mistakes. I lost my compass and for that I have to pay a price."
Easton City Council has voted 5-2 in favor of selling city-owned property to developers who plan to put a 70-unit apartment building there. Easton will sell the property at 56 North Third Street to a Bethlehem developer who will turn the 70-space parking lot into a five-floor apartment building featuring 37 one-bedroom units and 33 two-bedroom units. The plans are subject to approval of Easton's Historic District Commission and Zoning Hearing Board. If approval is not given, the property would revert back under Easton city control.
A South Whitehall Township man is being charged for attacking police, including a police robot, when authorities came to arrest him. Christopher Colosi was arraigned Wednesday on aggravated assault and criminal mischief charges. Police were called to Colosi's Nittany Court home last December and found Colosi acting strangely. Colosi refused to come out of the home when police arrived. Before finally being arrested, Colosi allegedly smashed a police surveillance robot with a frying pan before slashing at officers with an Army knife. He was finally subdued after being shot with rubber bullets.
An autopsy is being performed today on an Illinois man who died Wednesday in a crash on I-80 in the Poconos. Adeolu Adeyemi was ejected from his eastbound tractor trailer after it crashed near the 380 split in Pocono Township. Investigators are yet to determine why his rig smashed a guiderail, then left the road and took out several trees. No one else was injured in the crash, which shut down the highway for several hours.
A judge has reduced the sentence of former Gov. Chris Christie aide Bridget Kelly. She was originally sentenced to 18 months in prison, but that sentence has been reduced to 13 months. While Kelly is still going to jail, she isn't going quietly and ripped the former New Jersey governor after her sentencing. "Mr. Christie, you are a bully and the days of you calling me a liar and destroying my life are over," Kelly said. She'll report to prison in July.
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy is saying sports wagering will bring thousands of jobs to the Garden State. Murphy was the keynote speaker Wednesday at the Betting on Sports America Conference, where he said that New Jersey could potentially replace Nevada as the top sports betting market in the nation. Murphy continued on Twitter, where he added that the sports wagering industry will create 6000 jobs in New Jersey by next year. Murphy continued that while the Garden State is the second largest sports betting market in the country, his goal is to become number one.
The number of measles cases keeps rising across the U.S. to the highest level since 2000. Infections in New York, New Jersey and California increased to 671 for this year. The number of cases has not been that high since the disease was declared eliminated 19 years ago. Most of the measles cases are unvaccinated children, although some adults may be at risk.
New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker is releasing his tax returns amid the continuing controversy over President Trump's finances. The Democrat is the latest presidential candidate to do so. Booker's tax returns show him earning more than $152,000 last year, most of it from his job in the Senate.
For the first time in about a decade, there's a new Kit Kat flavor. The Hershey Company says Kit Kat Duos Mint-and-Dark Chocolate will be available year round beginning in December. Officials are hinting this new flavor offer could likely be the first of several other new Kit Kat flavors coming soon.