A Pottsville woman is heading to prison for scamming elderly victims out of around $160,000. Yahaira Diaz was sentenced Tuesday to spend five years and five months in prison. She convinced older people from all over the country to send her money by telling them she was a relative who had gotten into trouble with the law and needed some fast cash to help her deal with legal issues. Diaz was also ordered to repay her victims.
A Lehigh County teen who caused a crash that killed two people in Reading is entering the equivalent of a guilty plea in juvenile court. The DA's office says the teen pleaded to vehicular homicide while under the influence after admitting to smoking marijuana before he ran a stop sign in Reading on July 3rd. Mirta Claudio-Castro and 14-month-old Elaine Ramirez died in the crash.
Lehigh and Northampton counties are getting some help from the federal government for interstate improvements. St. Sen. Pat Browne says those two counties will share $374 million to repair sections of I-78 over the next 12 years. Browne says that money will go a long way toward solving safety and congestion issues in the region.
State police say a hunter is dead after a fall from a tree stand in eastern Berks County. It happened in a wooded area of District Township, in the area of Conrad and Huffs Church roads. This comes a few days into the start of rifle deer hunting season. State police expect to release more information today.
George Chando will serve another year as president of the Easton Area School Board. The school board re-elected him Tuesday to serve as president for a third year. Jodi Hess was also re-elected as vice president.
An elected official from Philadelphia will be charged later today by the state attorney general. Josh Shapiro says he'll hold a news conference to discuss the charges, which include perjury, tampering, theft and other offenses.
Gov. Tom Wolf is encouraging you to help your neighbor this Christmas season. "There's a lot of food insecurity out there and in a country as rich as ours there shouldn't be. It's a matter of people doing individual acts of kindness and making sure people are getting the food they need," Wolf says. The governor is asking you to volunteer at local soup kitchens and homeless shelters, donate to a food pantry or perhaps host a coat drive between now and Christmas.
Gov. Tom Wolf and his wife are opening their doors to the public this Christmas season. The governor's residence will hold its Holiday Open House this Sunday and self-guided tours will be available on weekdays from December 9th to the 20th.
A deadly drug-resistant fungus is spreading in New Jersey. The fungus, called Candida auris, turned up in the United States in 2016 and is typically found in healthcare facilities. So far, there have been 141 confirmed cases in the Garden State, killing one in every three patients who develop the infection according to the CDC. The fungus was discovered ten years ago when it popped up simultaneously in India, Africa and South America.
Rutgers University's new football coach, Greg Schiano, will be the highest-paid state employee in New Jersey history when he takes over. Rutgers' Board of Governors approved his eight year, $32 million contract Tuesday. Perks in his contract include a car and a wardrobe allowance as well as use of a private jet for recruiting trips.
Ohio State, LSU, Clemson and Georgia remain ranked one-through-four in the newest College Football Playoff rankings. Utah moves up to number five. Penn State sits at tenth.