Justin Vellucci stories, Page 8
Republican rift: Pittsburgh, Allegheny County GOP refuse to back Moreno for mayor
Two of Southwestern Pennsylvania’s largest Republican committees are refusing to back Tony Moreno, the GOP nominee for Pittsburgh mayor, as part of a widening split with a fractious candidate they view with suspicion and distress. The heads of the Pittsburgh and Allegheny County GOP committees told TribLive on Friday they...
Testimony about loaded gun prompts judge to detain man charged with antisemitic threat against official
An Elizabeth man charged with sending an elected official an antisemitic threat online had texted a friend minutes earlier, asking “Are you ready to hunt down Jews for extermination?” a federal prosecutor said Thursday. Edward Arthur Owens Jr., 29, sent multiple messages expressing hate for Jews and Israel before threatening...
Public safety ‘iceberg’: Police, USGA keeping many details about U.S. Open security under wraps
Around 200 police officers from 25 agencies — some of them handling security or crowd control, others parking and traffic details — will form the U.S. Open’s public-safety backbone next week to ensure the men’s golf championship’s 10th trek to the Pittsburgh suburbs goes off without a hitch. But, when...
Police make 3rd arrest in slaying of Woodland Hills grad
Pittsburgh police Tuesday arrested the third suspect in the fatal shooting in September of a Woodland Hills High School graduate and former football standout. Zion White, 21, of Garfield, was charged in the killing of Gavin Yarbough, 21. Police said Yarbough was shot multiple times during a late-night meeting in...
Agents seize 54 pounds of pot worth $240K at Pittsburgh airport
A Massachusetts woman remained in jail Friday after customs agents at Pittsburgh International Airport said they discovered she was trying to fly overseas with more than 54 pounds of marijuana. Jetta Monet Corbett, 30, of Brockton, Mass., was set to board a British Airways flight from Pittsburgh to London around...
Police arrest 2nd of 3 suspects in slaying of Woodland Hills graduate
Police last week arrested the second of three suspects in the September slaying of a Woodland Hills High School graduate and former football standout. Marcus Johnson, 23, of Pittsburgh was charged Saturday in the killing of Gavin Yarbough, 21. Police said Yarbough was shot multiple times during a late-night meeting...
Route 28 South reopens in Pittsburgh after rush-hour crash sends 1 to hospital
One person was hospitalized Tuesday afternoon following a multiple-vehicle crash that shut down part of state Route 28 and left some rush-hour commuters sitting in traffic for an hour, authorities said. The crash occurred on Route 28’s southbound lanes near the 40th Street Bridge in Pittsburgh, according to Allegheny County...
Communities mark Memorial Day with parades, salutes to honor those who died in fight for freedom
As a cacophony of marching bands Monday helped power Memorial Day parades that snaked through small-town streets — marchers and onlookers alike draped in red, white and blue — it was the small details that resonated loudest for one Alle-Kiski Valley veteran. Don Donahue, a Veterans of Foreign Wars commander...
Neighbor pulls man off property after blaze guts his Springdale Township home
Editor’s note: This story was updated to show the location of the fire is in Springdale Township. Della Mayfield didn’t think much Monday morning when she saw smoke starting to billow from her elderly neighbor’s Springdale Township home. She just looked out her window, then ran. “There was so much...
Dispute over damage to car preceded fatal shooting in Homewood
A Pittsburgh man will face trial in connection with a fatal shooting in Homewood in October. Safon Gump, 24, of East Liberty was held for court Friday following a preliminary hearing on homicide and other charges. Police said Gump killed Gregory Prince, 38, of Homewood after a conversation about damage...
Driver in fatal West Homestead crash had 3x legal limit of alcohol, police say
An Ohio driver’s blood-alcohol level was more than three times the legal limit when he crashed his car in West Homestead two years ago, killing his girlfriend, who was a passenger, police said. Following a preliminary hearing Friday, Gaylen Thomas will stand trial on 17 criminal charges including homicide by...
Former Marine, a double amputee, charged with raping 13-year-old girl
A Marine and Purple Heart recipient who lost both legs to a bomb in Afghanistan in 2010 remained jailed Thursday on charges that he raped a 13-year-old girl multiple times last month. Allegheny County Police this week arrested Brandon Rumbaugh, 36, of Pleasant Hills on 12 criminal charges, seven of...
Moreno-West race leaves Pittsburgh GOP upbeat about party’s prospects
Less than 24 hours after Pittsburgh Republicans chose former police officer Tony Moreno to be their party’s mayoral candidate in the general election, some suggested the GOP pulling off a David vs. Goliath in November is possible — even in a city where their registered voters are outnumbered 5-1. Turnout...
Cops seek answers in shooting outside UPMC McKeesport
A man who police say was shot outside a McKeesport hospital by the driver of a car he was trying to get into remained hospitalized Wednesday in critical condition. Allegheny County Police continue to investigate why the victim was trying to get into a stranger’s car early Tuesday morning. Jim...
Groups ask Innamorato to explain chief public defender’s firing
Two advocacy groups are seeking a meeting with Allegheny County Executive Sara Innamorato about the “apparent lack of due process” for Lena Bryan-Henderson, the former chief public defender who was fired last week following a monthlong human resources investigation. Bryan-Henderson, the first Black woman to hold the post, “was not...
Gainey, O’Connor vote as Pittsburgh mayoral primary enters homestretchVideo
Pittsburgh’s Democratic candidates for mayor — incumbent Ed Gainey and challenger Corey O’Connor — cast their votes Tuesday morning in a primary that will likely decide the city’s next leader thanks to the party’s lopsided registration advantage over Republicans. Gainey voted around 10 a.m. at Paulson Recreation Center in Lincoln-Lemington...
Police charge man with buying beer for underage Pirates fan who fell onto field
Authorities Tuesday charged a Mon Valley man with buying beer in April at PNC Park for his 20-year-old friend, Kavan Markwood, who was celebrating a rally by the Pittsburgh Pirates when he fell 21 feet onto the field’s warning track below and suffered severe injuries. Ethan Kirkwood, 21, of Liberty...
FBI, police probe antisemitic flyers, harassment of Jews in Squirrel Hill
Pittsburgh police and the FBI are investigating who distributed antisemitic flyers and harassed Jewish residents over the weekend in Squirrel Hill — the most recent in a growing list of antisemitic incidents in the city. The Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh said Monday in a statement that members of the...
DA drops attempted homicide charge against man charged in Brookline business district shooting
Prosecutors have dropped an attempted homicide charge against a man arrested for a daylight shooting in a Pittsburgh neighborhood business district, but he will face trial for aggravated assault and a firearms count. Amirre Brown, 20, on Tuesday waived his preliminary hearing in a Downtown Pittsburgh courtroom. Pittsburgh police said...
What is a derecho? Meteorologists weigh label after powerful storms slam Western Pa.
After powerful storms swept through Western Pennsylvania this week, meteorologists hesitated to apply labels — though terms like derecho began to circulate. A derecho is a fast-moving, long-lived windstorm that the National Weather Service says can produce tornado-like damage — but in a single, straight path. To qualify, it must...
Penn Hills man charged with using stolen SUV carrying drugs to ram police vehicle
A Penn Hills man awaiting trial for multiple drug crimes was charged this week with carrying heroin, fentanyl, cocaine and a stolen gun and repeatedly smashing a stolen SUV into a police vehicle while trying to flee. Allegheny County Police on Tuesday arrested Timothy Terry Jr. on 23 criminal charges,...
No flow: The Point’s iconic fountain to stay dry in 2025 amid upgrades
Don’t expect to see the waterworks anytime soon at Point State Park. The majestic fountain that marks the confluence of Pittsburgh’s three iconic rivers won’t be turned on until 2026, due to a bevy of planned upgrades, the state Department of Conservation and Natural Resources said Tuesday. State officials plan...
South Fayette man pleads guilty to filming sex with 14-year-old girl
A South Fayette man has pleaded guilty in federal court to filming himself having sex with a 14-year-old girl, then sending her photos and a video of the encounter. Matthew Trax, 25, used “multiple iPhones” to record sex acts with the teen in November 2023, authorities said. Trax pleaded guilty...
Closed for business: Judge imprisons ‘major player’ in multimillion-dollar stolen goods racket
A Pittsburgh man is headed to federal prison for five years for leading a multimillion-dollar operation that laundered money and resold stolen goods at jacked-up prices through a series of retail stores in the area, prosecutors said Thursday. U.S. District Judge Mark R. Hornak sentenced Durrell Waters, 41, in federal...
DA drops case against retired Pittsburgh cop charged with shooting grandson
Prosecutors Wednesday withdrew all charges against a retired Pittsburgh police sergeant accused of shooting her grandson. Pittsburgh police arrested Virginia Beck, 64 — who retired in 2019 after a nearly four-decade career with the city’s police force — in February on attempted homicide, aggravated assault and other charges. Police said...
