We're learning more about the murder of a Northampton County woman. Police were called to the home on 3rd Street in Bethlehem Township for a wellness chack on James Frank. His employer requested the check because Frank hadn't reported to work Tuesday. When police got there they had to enter a second floor window after Frank refused to open the door. When police engaged Frank, he told them his wife was dead in the bathtub. "It appeared that she had been dead for a number hours," says Northampton County DA Stephen Baratta. He says Frank told investigators he slit his wife's throat then stabbed her and hit her chest with a hammer about 10 times to make sure she was dead. Frank and Deborah Glaser were married since 2012.
Two of the three men charged with a January 12th murder are in custody, while a third remains on the run. Pocono Mountain PD's Chris Wagner describes what officers found when they got to the door of a short-term rental property on Clover Road in Long Pond. "Small amounts and traces of blood on the outside of the door, which warranted immediate entry into the residence. Upon entry, officers found Lionardo Zarata deceased on the lower level of the home," Wagner says. He says Oscar Sosa, his brother, Oswaldo and Josthin Perez are charged with Lionardo Hernandez-Zarata's killing. A third Sosa brother, Jesus, is charged with hindering apprehension. Oscar and Jesus Sosa are under arrest as is Perez, however Perez remains on the run. Oswaldo and Oscar Sosa both have ties to the Venezuelan gang 'Tren de Aragua', as did the murder victim. Police say Zarata was killed after Jesus Sosa claimed Zarata didn't pay him for his DJ services at a house party that night.
A 48-year-old Schuylkill County man is dead after an accident at East Penn Manufacturing in Berks County. The coroner says Stephen Rapp died after becoming pinned underneath metal pallets that fell onto him and pinned him beneath more than one ton of weight. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration and Fleetwood police are investigating the accident, which happened around 8 o'clock Tuesday night.
A 21-year-old woman is dead after a Tuesday night crash in Bethlehem Township. Kelsey Rodgers, who lived in the township, was killed around 9:30 Tuesday night when her car went into the oncoming westbound side of Freemansburg Avenue, sideswiped a vehicle and then slammed into a utility pole. The driver of the second vehicle, who is a 29-year-old Bethlehem woman, was not injured.
A split Easton City Council has failed to legalize possessing small amounts of marijuana in the city. Crystal Rose was among the three council members voting in favor of decriminalization. "I would request that everyone consider in support of voting in favor of this ordinance because I think it's the right thing to do. I would hate to see some young person or some old person, or someone who's medically challenged who has a small amount of cannabis to have this go on their record. I think we are in the wrong if we vote against this," Rose said.Frank Pintabone and James Edinger voted along with Rose. Councilman Roger Ruggles explained why he was among the three council members voting against the idea. "Everybody up here took an oath to uphold the laws of the commonwealth. It's my opinion, by doing this we are not upholding that specific law of the commonwealth that says that this is a misdemeanor," Ruggles said. Mayor Sal Panto and Ken Brown joined Ruggles. Council member Taiba Sultana abstained after her bid to have the issue tabled failed.
A Monroe County home is in ruins after a Wednesday afternoon fire. The residence on Red Pine Road in Chestnut Hill Township went up in flames at around 1:30 p.m. Residents of the home were able to escape unharmed. The cause of the fire is not yet known.
A person of interest is being named in the case of a missing University of Pittsburgh student. Police say new video has been found showing Sudiksha Konanki and two other men, including previously questioned 24-year-old Joshua Riibe from Iowa, walking to the beach in an upscale Punta Cana resort in the Dominican Republic. She was on a spring break vacation in the country when she was reported missing earlier this month. She was last seen on March 6th.