A father and his son are accused of robbing four Dollar General and Family Dollar stores in Beaver and Allegheny counties. State police say 58-year-old Tyrone Johnson and 39-year-old Michael Young have been taken into custody. The first of the crimes was reported at a Dollar General in Raccoon Township on May 27th. Investigators say the pair shoved a female employee to the ground and took cash during the incident.
State Police in Lawrence County report a New Castle man was scammed out of 20 thousand dollars. The victim told police he paid the amount in STEAM gift cards, Bitcoin and Apple gift cards. The alleged incident took place in October of last year.
One person was taken to the hospital following an accident yesterday afternoon in Mercer County. State Police said 87 year old Dianne Ross of Greenville was operating a lawn tractor on Donation Road in Delaware Township when she pulled into the path of an Amish buggy. Ross was flown to St. Elizabeth’s Hospital in Youngstown. No other injuries were reported.
Pennsylvania’s unemployment rate declined two-tenths of a percentage point over the month to 3.8% in June, the lowest rate on record (back to January 1976). The U.S. unemployment rate was down one-tenth of a percentage point from May to 3.6%. The Commonwealth’s unemployment rate was one-half of a percentage point below its June 2022 level of 4.3%, and the national rate was unchanged over the year. Pennsylvania’s civilian labor force – the estimated number of residents working or looking for work – was down 4,000 over the month. Resident employment rose by 10,000 over the month and unemployment fell by 13,000.
Lottery players around the nation still have a chance to win one of the largest jackpots in American history. There has been no jackpot winner in the multi-state Mega Millions game since April and last night’s drawing was no exception. With no winner again, the estimated top prize for this Friday’s drawing now stands at 910-million dollars.
Gov. Shapiro, along with Department of Community and Economic Secretary Rick Siger discussed plans to expand broadband access to more than 300,000 Pennsylvanians. The plan is called the Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment program. According to Siger, the common wealth has received $1.2 billion in federal funding to expand high speed internet. Shapiro said there are 276,000 households without internet access and 52,000 households without reliable access.
Pennsylvania State Representative Mark Rozzi, who briefly served as Speaker of the House in 2023, says he’s considering a run for Auditor General in 2024. In February he stepped down as House Speaker after less than two months on the job where he promised to serve as an independent amid several House special elections that ultimately gave Democrats a slim majority. Rozzi, a democrat has represented Berks County since 2013.
A Jeanette man is facing charges in connection with a house fire that was intentionally set earlier this year. Authorities say that surveillance video has been used to connect 44-year-old Jason John to the blaze at a since-demolished Magee Avenue home. Police say that John was inside the home, left and then returned to the home and left a final time all in the minutes before the fire ignited. No one was injured in the blaze. John is being held without bail on charges including arson and reckless endangerment.
State police are once again enforcing safe driving rules in work zones on the Pennsylvania Turnpike through Operation Orange Squeeze. The initiative was first launched close to ten years ago and restarted for the first time since the pandemic this past April. Troopers are using construction vehicles to monitor traffic in areas where crews are making repairs. More than four-hundred citations have been issued to drivers so far this year.