Attorney Charged with Theft by Fraud
Hermitage – A Mercer County Attorney and a notary public are facing various felony charges for an alleged conspiracy to defraud a man out of his house. According to authorities, Attorney Dustin Cole and Notary Jenny Laslow, both of Hermitage, conspired to make an illegal loan to a Volant resident seeking legal help to avoid a foreclosure on his home in exchange for the deed as collateral. They then filed that deed with the Mercer County Recorder to take possession of the property and attempted to evict the rightful owner. Dustin Cole has been charged with theft by deception, conspiracy to commit theft by deception, and loaning money at illegal interest rates. Jenny Laslow is charged with conspiracy to commit theft by deception.

Allegheny College Gets New President
Meadville – On Saturday, Doctor Ron Cole was inaugurated as the 23rd president of Allegheny College; Dr. Cole is a longtime and influential resident of Meadville who graduated from the college in 1987 and has previously served as both a professor and provost of Allegheny. As part of the Meadville Community, Dr. Cole is also a member of Meadville Medical Center’s Corporate Board and the Economic Progress Alliance of Crawford County.

Burglary Witnesses Sought
Dempserytown – In Venango County, police are searching for witnesses who may have seen an attempted burglary in Plum Township, not far from Dempseytown. According to police, there were signs that someone attempted to break into a home on Wallaceville Road while the resident was out of town. Evidence suggests that someone had broken a lock on a shed and attempted to push an air conditioning unit through a window to get inside the house, but did not succeed. If you may have information please call the Franklin State Police at (814)676-6596 and reference incident number PA23-1323580.

Stronger Police Background Checks in PA
Harrisburg – Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro signed four new laws yesterday, most of them making minor modifications to existing policies. The most significant of these laws is Senate Bill 836 which allows the use of an applicant’s fingerprints to run background checks for police jobs. Governor Shapiro has signed 12 non-budget laws since taking office.