Tuesday's preliminary hearing for one former and one current Allentown policeman was heated. One woman testified she was forced into sex acts by both Jason Krasley and Evan Weaver in order to avoid being sent to jail back in 2015. Other women testified they also were raped by Krasley over the course of several years also in order to avoid jail. One of those women said she was seven months pregnant at the time and went into labor and had to go to the hospital. During the women's testimony, one of the alleged victims frequently cursed during exchanges with defense attorneys, who say they had never seen such conduct and she should have been held in contempt. While the judge bound over the rape charges, a involuntary servitude charge for both men and a kidnapping charge against Weaver were dismissed. Krasley retired from the force six years ago. Weaver is on administrative leave pending the outcome of the case.
A 36-year-old Allentown man is charged with last weekend's assault of a pregnant woman outside a Montgomery County apartment building. Police say Raymond Bautista kicked and punched the woman several times outside the Hatfield Village Apartments in Hatfield. Bautista is free on bail. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for May 7th.
An investigation is underway after a bridge collapsed in Lehigh County yesterday while a propane tanker was driving over it. Pennsylvania State Police said they are looking into whether the truck was "in compliance" with the Lower Macungie Township bridge's posted five-ton weight limit. There are reports the tanker could have been carrying up to 16 tons. Authorities said it took crews more than eight hours to pull the truck out of Little Lehigh Creek, but no fuel inside the tanker spilled into the water, and the driver is expected to be ok.
Gas prices remain unchanged across Pennsylvania. According to AAA East Central, the average price for a gallon of gas remains at $3.35 for a second straight week. That is 45 cents below last year's price. In the Lehigh Valley, the price is $3.22 a gallon, up a penny from the previous week, but 52 cents less than the 2024 price.
There was a ribbon cutting Tuesday at the Jordan Meadows Park in Allentown. The ribbon cutting was to celebrate the park's new mini pitch program, which offers better lighting, improved fencing, benches, and access for those who are disabled. Allentown Mayor Matt Tuerk is hoping there's more to come. "It was a total of $131,000 invested and we're hopeful that we can find other places that we can build mini pitches across the city," Tuerk says. The mayor calls it an investment that encourages activities across our city among young people.
Pennsylvanians lost hundreds-of-millions-of-dollars last year due to cybercrimes. According to the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center, more than 27-thousand Keystone State residents lost a total of over 400-million-dollars due to security breaches and fraud. Among the top cybercrimes last year were phishing, extortion, and investment scams. The I-C-Three also reported a large increase in cryptocurrency fraud, with the department receiving over 149,000 complaints across the country.
One GOP lawmaker is upset that New Jersey's compliance rates for the Real ID are lowest in the country -- and has called on officials to extend MVC office hours. Assemblywoman Nancy Munoz calls the state's last-place finish a predictable disaster that should have been avoided. Demand remains high for in-person appointments across the state as the May seventh Real ID deadline approaches. MVC officials say part of the reason for the low compliance rate is the high percentage of New Jerseyans who already have passports -- which means many residents already have a document that is Real ID compliant.
For the second straight postseason, the Phantoms and Hershey Bears are meeting. Hershey has won the last two Calder Cup titles and Phantoms coach Ian Laperriere knows how big a mountain his team has to climb. "It's a helluva challenge in front of us. We know they won the last two Calder Cups and hopefully we're up for the challenge. I have confidence in our guys that we will be, but it's a helluva challenge in front of us," Laperriere says. Both teams won five of the ten games played between the teams this season. Game one is tonight at 7 on 1470AM and the iheartradio app.