WCDO Radio News

The Otsego County Sheriffs department arrested 34 year old Harry Lee Wilkins of the Bronx following a traffic stop in Oneonta. Wilkins was found to be in possession of 770 envelopes containing heroin, he was charged with 2 counts of 3rd degree criminal possession of a controlled substance. Wilkins was sent to the Otsego County Jail on $50,000 bail, more arrests are anticipated

State Police CNET Unit and Vestal Police Department arrested 38 year old Kendall Smith of Binghamton after a search warrant led to the seizure of 245 packages of heroin, packaging materials and cash. Smith was charged with Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance and Criminally Using Drug Paraphernalia, Smith was arraigned in Binghamton City Court and remanded to the Broome County Jail without bail.

6 Sidney area residents were arrested on drug trafficking charges Friday evening by members of the Delaware County Sheriff's Office, Sidney Village Police Department and State Police, following a 5 month investigation, and the execution of a search warrant Friday. Arrested were 43 year old Gabriel Bonacci, on 2 counts of Criminal Sale of a Controlled Substance, for Heroin, 27 year old Rene Hurlburt of Unadilla, for Criminal Sale of a Controlled Substance for Cocaine. Also arrested was 64 year old Donna Bonacci of Sidney for Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance with Intent to sell for the intended sale of cocaine, heroin, prescription drugs & marihuana. Police also charged 53 year old Belinda Davis of Sidney on 3 counts of Criminal Sale of a Controlled Substance for allegedly selling Oxycodone, 32 year old Randal Babcock of Sidney for Criminal Sale of a Controlled Substance for allegedly selling Xanax & 34 year old Chad Walters of Mount Upton for Criminal Sale of a Controlled Substance. All werearraigned & were remanded to the Delaware County Jail without bail, additional arrests & drug charges are pending.

State Police & Vestal Police arrested 21 year old Kenneth Godfrey of Binghamton for Criminal Sale of a Controlled Substance and Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance with intent to sell. Members of CNET and the Vestal Police Department executed a search warrant on Godfrey, his vehicle and residence last Wednesday, seizing 371 envelopes of heroin, & cash. Godfrey was arraigned in City Court and remanded to the Broome County Jail without bail.

State Police arrested 91 year old Edward Wist of Deposit for Forcible Touching and Endangering the Welfare of a Child.  The investigation determined that the victim was a 13 year old girl. Wist was arraigned in the Town of Windsor Court and released without bail set.

Attorney General Eric Schneiderman today announced awards in Binghamton, to law enforcement agencies in the Southern Tier, to help law enforcement agencies purchase bulletproof vests.  The funding awarded today assists with the purchase of vests for the City of Binghamton Police Department, Steuben County Sheriff’s Office, Watkins Glen & Horseheads Police Departments, among others.  So far, the program has helped with the purchase of over 7,500 bulletproof vests for across the state.

Unless the state's top court intervenes, there will be a Republican primary between incumbent State Senator Tom Libous and challenger Denver Jones in the 52nd senate district. A ruling issued by an Albany court, reversed an earlier decision that had invalidated hundreds of Jones' petition signatures, Albany County Supreme Court Judge Tom McNamara's ruling validated Jones' petition with 1,019 signatures enough to qualify him to be on the ballot for the September 9th primary. The Republican candidate for the seat will face Democratic candidate Anndrea Starzak, the former Vestal Town Supervisor, in the November election.

State Police, responded to a report of an Attempted Robbery at Otsego Auto Crushers in Davenport, the investigation lead to the arrest of 23 year old Johnathan Lynn of East Meredith for Attempted Robbery in the 3rd Degree & Criminally Possessing a Hypodermic Instrument.  Lynn was arraigned in the Town of Davenport Court on those charges and was remanded to the Delaware County Jail on $15,000 cash bail.  Further investigation revealed that Lynn was also accused of the Robberies at the Convenience Express in Oneonta on April 19th & the Oneonta Arby’s robbery April 24th.  Additional charges of 2 counts of 2nd degree Robbery are pending in the Town of Oneonta Court.

Oneonta Police arrested 53 year old Robert Donaldson of Delhi for 3rd degree Grand Larceny, 1st degree Perjury, & Fraudulent Insurance Practices.   The arrest was the result of a combined investigation by the City of Oneonta Police Department Detectives Bureau, New York State Insurance Fund Investigators and New York State Workers Compensation Board Office of the Fraud Inspector General.  Donaldson is accused of receiving benefits from the workers compensation board while being employed & for making false testimony on his wages.  Donaldson was arraigned in the City of Oneonta Court and remanded to the Otsego County Jail without bail, pending future court action.

The Otsego County Department of Health reported that a calf has tested positive for rabies, in the town of Pittsfield.  Officials said that no one was bitten by the calf, but several people came into contact with the calf, and have started rabies treatments. The health department has set up a rabies clinic on Wednesday May 7th in Neawha Park

Mirabito Convenience stores announced the acquisition of all 17 Manley’s Mighty-Mart locations.  Manley’s locations included Binghamton, Endicott, Endwell, Vestal, Johnson City, Windsor, Ithaca and Glen Aubrey.  Mirabito’s operates 57 Mirabito Convenience Stores, Convenience Express, and Quickway Food Store locations throughout central New York.

Oneonta Police & the State Department of Health Bureau of Narcotics Enforcement, arrested 45 year old Janice Vaugh-Young of Oxford for Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance.  The charges stemmed from an investigation into the theft of narcotics from a health care facility.  Vaugh-Young was arraigned in the City of Oneonta Court and released on her own recognizance to appear at a later date.

The Southern Tier Parents against the Common Core are holding a presentation on March 31st.  The event will take place from 6:00 to 8:00 PM at the Vestal Library; concerned parents are encouraged to attend.

Delaware County Sheriff’s Deputies arrested 31 year old Gerard Johnson of Walton on a warrant from the city of Oneonta Court for failure to pay a fine for his arrest on a charge of criminal possession of a controlled substance.   Johnson was turned over to the City of Oneonta Police Department for further processing & subsequent court action.

State Police of Norwich arrested 47-year-old Mathew Bates, of Plymouth for 2nd degree Harassment.   The arrest followed an investigation into a recent dispute in the town of Plymouth, Bates was arraigned in the Town of Sherburne Court and released on his own recognizance & will reappear in court on March 28th.

State Police in Deposit arrest 42-year-old Patrick Brown of Deposit for Criminal Obstruction of Breathing and Criminal Mischief.  The arrest occurred after a dispute Deposit, where    Brown is accused of choking the victim and keeping the vic9tm from notifying police.  Brown was arraigned in the Town of Deposit Court and released on his own recognize, an order of protection was issued by the court against Brown.

State Police arrested 27-year-old Jason Harvey of Groton on 1 count each Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance & Unlawful Manufacture of Methamphetamine.  Harvey is accused of manufacturing Methamphetamines in his residence, he was arraigned & was remanded to Tompkins County Jail on $15,000 cash bail or $30,000 secured bond pending court action March 21st.

The Southern Tier Parents against the Common Core are holding a presentation on March 31st.  The event will take place from 6:00 to 8:00 PM at the Vestal Library; concerned parents are encouraged to attend. More information is available at parents against cc.com

The Chenango County Sheriff’s Office executed a “no knock” search warrant at 219 Kelly Rd in the Town of Columbus early this morning.  The Narcotics Division arrested 24-year-old Kody Weidman for Criminal Nuisance, Criminal Possession of a Controlled Substance, & Criminally Using Drug Paraphernalia.  The Sheriff’s Office recovered cocaine and a digital scale during the execution of the search warrant. Weidman is currently a New York State Parole following a previous drug offense.  Weidman was arraigned in the Town of Columbus Court and remanded to the Chenango County Sheriff’s Office on $5,000 cash bail. He is also being held on a New York State Parole Warrant.  Norwich Police, New Berlin Police and State Parole division assisted with the investigation.

State Police and the Vestal Police Department arrested 37-year-old Rashid Imhotep & 44 year old Nathaniel Williams on 2 counts each or criminal possession of a controlled substance & using drug paraphernalia, Imhotep was also charged with resisting arrest for jumping out of a window & struggling with officers.  Both were arraigned in City of Binghamton Court and remanded to the Broome County Jail without bail.  Police confiscated heroin with a street value of between $50,000 and $80,000, as well as packaging materials, grinders, scales and other items that are used to sell the drug.

Solitary confinement for juvenile, pregnant women and developmentally disabled prisoners will be limited under a deal struck by state and the New York Civil Liberties Union. The NYCLU sued the state Department of Corrections, arguing the state’s system of solitary confinement violated the U.S. Constitution. The state will no longer place pregnant inmates in solitary housing units “except in exceptional circumstances” approved by the corrections department. Inmates who are age 16 or 17 would be limited to no more than 19 hours in their cell per day and offered the opportunity to exercise outdoors five days a week. For developmentally disabled inmates, the deal calls for the state to create an alternative program for those who have been in solitary confinement for more than 30 days

State Police announced the arrest of 3 people for allegedly operating a Meth Lab in Broome County.  Arrested were 25-year-old Caleb McNeilly, 33-year-old Brad Gates  and 27 year old Nathan Pixley, all from Castle creek, on a variety of drug charges, following a 3-week investigation by the state Police CNET team & Vestal Police.   Police confiscated 8 ounces of liquid methamphetamine; 2.5 grams of powder methamphetamine; a scale; a surveillance camera; cellphones; a 20-gauge shotgun and a .22 caliber rifle; as well as chemicals & items utilized in meth manufacturing.  All 3 were arraigned and were remanded to the Broome County Jail.

Oneonta police, and the Otsego County Sheriffs department K9 unit executed a no-knock search warrant Thursday morning at 71 Elm Street in Oneonta, and arrested 2 women on charges of heroin possession.  25-year-old Stephanie Seagren, and 24 year old Jania Barnett, were charged with 3rd degree possession of a controlled substance.  Police seized 38 packets of heroin and $620 in cash. Both were arraigned in Oneonta city court and sent to the Otsego County jail

About one third of the 17,487 bridges in New York are rated either "structurally deficient" or "functionally obsolete."  The state Department of Transportation said those bridges are safe, but need repairs or upgrades. For each bridge, the state provides the location, the feature it passes over, the year it was built, the owner, the date of last inspection and the condition ratings. State Comptroller Tom DiNapoli released a report that said the state should rework the pot of money dedicated to highway and bridge repairs so it pays for its intended purpose.

State Police, arrested 20-year-old Amir Ebadullah-Aslamkhan of Vestal after the execution of search warrant led to the discovery marihuana, weapons & cash.  State Police charged Ebadullah-Aslamkhan with Criminal Possession of Marihuana; Criminal Possession of a Weapon, & Criminal Possession of a Weapon, police confiscated 13 pounds of marihuana; $35,000 in Cash, a loaded assault weapon; 2 shotguns, ammunition, 2 switchblades; as well as scales and packaging used in the sale of marihuana.  Ebadullah-Aslamkhan was arraigned in the Town of Vestal Court and remanded to the Broome County Jail without bail. The investigation is continuing and further arrests are anticipated.

The New York State Department of Taxation and Finance today kicked off the income tax season, new this year is that 85% of taxpayers can e-file their state returns for free. The Department is accepting e-filed income tax returns for the 2013 tax year through its Web site at tax.ny.gov starting today.  The filing deadline is April 15th again this year.