Two years after his office was raided by the FBI, Allentown Mayor Ed Pawlowski has been indicted in a pay-to-play scheme. Five indictments were filed Tuesday, but it's not known how many are related to the Allentown case. Those indictments are expected to be unsealed today. Pawlowski is seeking a fourth term and says he has no plans to resign. His Republican opponent, Nat Hyman, says that's unfortunate. "The regrettable thing for Allentown is he says he plans to stay in office and fight the charges, which is could take many, many months," Hyman says. Allentown City Council President Ray O'Connell is also calling on Pawlowski to resign immediately. Pawlowski is the highest ranking city official to be indicted in connection to a conspiracy to trade city contracts for campaign contributions. Nine others charged as part of an FBI investigation have all already pleaded guilty.
Authorities in Lehigh County are investigating after a body was found in a wooded area of Whitehall Township. The Lehigh County Coroner's Officer declared the man dead around 6:30 Monday evening near the MacArthur Town Centre and will conduct an autopsy today to determine the cause of death. Investigators say they'll release more information once the body is identified.
A Bethlehem man will spend eight years in jail for tax evasion. Back in April 51-year-old Robert McAndrew admitted to tax evasion and Tuesday was sentenced to jail time and ordered to pay $5.3 million in restitution. McAndrew owns NEPA Payroll Services and stole money paid by clients to cover employees' federal wage taxes and under-reported his own income over a four year time period.
Police are charging two men with a disgusting crime at a Lower Nazareth Township Wegmans. Police say the two men made a mess of the store's restroom by spreading feces around. The men allegedly spent about 25 minutes in the restroom around 2 o'clock in the morning on June 30th. Thanks to surveillance video and an employee recognizing the men from school, Mykel Bauman and Zachary Anthony are being charged. A store employee also told investigators other stores in the area have dealt with the same type of crime.
Some Pennsylvania Democrats are criticizing House Speaker Mike Turzai for taking an out-of-state trip while the budget situation remains unresolved. Turzai is in Georgia for a gathering of Republican lawmakers. He's the chairman of the Republican Legislative Campaign Committee. The get-together in Atlanta began Sunday and ends on today. A spokeswoman for the PA Democratic Party says Turzai has derailed budget negotiations for his own poltical gain. When asked about the trip, Turzai took aim at Governor Tom Wolf saying, "Where's the governor been? He's completely absent?" But a spokesman for Wolf says the governor cancelled a trip to the National Governors Association's summer meeting in Providence earlier this month.
Protesters are trying to get Pennsylvania House Speaker Mike Turzai to pass a Marcellus shale gas tax. Union members and activists gathered outside Turzai's office in western Pennsylvania Tuesday to voice their displeasure over his current plan, which includes no new taxes and uses money from other funds. Opponents say Turzai's plan would not provide a long-term fix.
The Pennsylvania National Fire Museum's building is in dire need of repair. Officials with the museum say they need to raise about $150,000 dollars to stay open. "We're getting to the point now where we have some big ticket items. The roof, the facade of the buildings, the windows all need to be replaced and we just don't have the money to do that," says the museum's John Brutsch. He says a Go-Fund-Me page has been set up by the museum.
The fishermen who caught the 926-pound shark off the New Jersey coast are being told that their catch will not be recognized as a record. Regulations posted on the Division of Fish and Wildlife's website note state records "are determined by weight alone." But the agency notes the state record application says the angler seeking the certification must swear the fish was caught with anyone's help. Six fishermen were involved in reeling in the more than 12-foot-long Make shark caught Saturday, which beat an 880-pound tiger shark caught in 1988.
A western Pennsylvania man, awaiting trial for a knife rampage at Franklin Regional High School, is back in prison. Alex Hribal was furloughed for several hours Tuesday to attend his grandmother's funeral. He was taken to the funeral home under guard and returned to prison a few hours later. Hribal has been in custody since the 2014 attack that injured 20 students and a security guard. Hribal's trial is currently set to begin in September.
Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz says his second training camp feels a lot different than his first one a year ago. "Mentally I'm just in a way better place. I've come in and kind of know what to expect and sort of know the routine so for me mentally it's been a lot better for sure," Wentz says. The entire team is scheduled to report to training camp later today.