News-Saturday, June 30th

BAGHDAD (AP) - U-S military officials say troops in western Iraq
have found a mass grave containing dozens of bodies. A military
statement says the remains of as many as 40 people were discovered
after a tip from a local resident. An investigation is under way.

BAGHDAD (AP) - American officials say 26 suspected militants
were killed in today's pre-dawn raid targeting Baghdad's Sadr City.
The military says the victims were combatants who died after an
"intense firefight." Iraqi officials put the death toll at eight
and say the dead were civilians.

LONDON (AP) - Police in London are conducting a manhunt for a
possible suspect in yesterday's attempted car-bombings. Authorities
say the vehicles were filled with gasoline, gas canisters and nails
and could have killed hundreds of people. Authorities are stepping
up their patrols across the city in an effort to reassure the
public.

MADRID, Spain (AP) - A bomb threat has led to an airport
evacuation in Spain. Authorities say the police then exploded a
suspicious package. The airport in Ibiza (eye-BEE'-zah) attracts
tens of thousands of summer tourists. The bomb threat comes just
weeks after the Basque separatist group ETA (EH'-tah) called off a
15-month cease-fire.

UNDATED (AP) - Barry Bonds hit his 750th career home run last
night, but his team still lost to Arizona. The San Francisco Giants
slugger now needs just six homers to pass Hank Aaron's 755 mark.

PITTSBURGH (AP) - A Pittsburgh man who spent 32 of the past 34
years behind bars will spend more time there for bank robbery. Tony
Atkinson was sentenced yesterday to 17-and-one-half years in prison
for robbing a P-N-C Bank in 2003. He had been released from prison
nine days before. Atkinson denies he robbed the bank -- even though
he was caught with the money in his pocket.

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) - State Representative Dan Surra, an Elk
County Democrat, is recovering from a mild heart attack. His son,
Andy Surra, says his father had the heart attack Thursday night and
could be released from a Harrisburg area hospital early next week.
Surra, who is 54 years old, has been in office since 1991.

MIDLAND, Pa. (AP) - A Beaver County personal care home company
has filed for bankruptcy. DeSimone's Personal Care Home, based in
Ohioville, has filed for Chapter Eleven protection in U-S
Bankruptcy Court. DeSimone's operates in Ohioville and Chippewa and
South Beaver townships.

CRANBERRY, Pa. (AP) - The U-S Forest Service says an invasive
beetle that has destroyed more than 20 (m) million ash trees in
five states could wipe out Pennsylvania's ash population in 12
years. The state's first emerald ash borer was discovered earlier
this week in Cranberry, Butler County. Since then, thousands have
been discovered. Pennsylvania has three (m) million ash trees
valued at 760 (m) million dollars.

State police are looking for the people who broke into a Pine Grove Township church. Sometime during the day Monday, the burglars pried open a door to the banquet hall at Salem Hetzel’s Church, then entering the church proper. While inside, the thieves made off with a large screen TV, and various electronic equipment. They fled through the rear of the building.
Schuylkill Haven state troopers now say that the items were valued at about $5-thousand-dollars. If anyone has information, call Schuylkill Haven State Police at 593-2000.

A New York man is in the county prison following an incident at Home Depot in St. Clair Thursday. St. Clair police say that 24-year-old Ronald Morise was at the store Thursday night. Morise reportedly applied for a store credit card under the name of Steven Seward of Texas and was granted a line of credit. He attempted to make a purchase with the card, when employees became suspicious and called police. Morise presented a Texas driver’s license with Seward’s identity, which was a fake. The real Seward was contacted in Arizona, and said he never applied for the card. Further investigation found that Morise and several other people had merchandise in the van they were driving, all apparently purchased fraudulently. Police believe that this was part of a multi-state crime ring. Morise was arraigned on various theft charges and taken to prison.

With the release of David Fleming’s new book about the Pottsville Maroons, a number of ideas are being tossed around by city officials how to commemorate the occasion. The published work “Breaker Boys: The NFL’s Greatest Team and the Stolen 1925 Championship”, which will be released in October, has spurred Mayor John Reiley and Pottsville’s Lasting Legacy Committee to talk about holding events in conjunction with the book premiere. Among the ideas are a book signing and presentation by Fleming, along with a big band musical show and other tie-in events. ESPN Books published the story about the 1925 NFL Champs, the Pottsville Maroons, who were stripped of the championship. Almost since the time that the title was taken away, Schuylkill Countians, and other supporters like Governor Ed Rendell, have gone to bat to try and have the title restore to the rightful champion, the Pottsville Maroons.

Wegmans Food Markets, Inc. has issued an alert about a product sold at their stores in the mid-Atlantic region. The Rochester, New York grocer is alerting customers to a potential problem with unopened bottles of Wegman’s Blueberry Lemon Frizzante. There have been multiple reports of excess pressure in bottles, which caused the liquid to forcefully spray out of the bottle. In one case, a bottle burst. The alert affects products purchase on or after December 1st, 2006. The company recommends that consumers get rid of the product rather than return it to the store. Customers can contact the company directly for a refund. The alert is for the 33 ounce container, with a UPC code of 77890 31497.

A Schuylkill Haven teen was involved in a DUI-related crash early yesterday morning in South Manheim Township. 18-year-old Kevin Coleman was eastbound on the Schuylkill Mountain Road around 4am when his car left the roadway. The car hit a split rail fence, then struck a brick pillar in the driveway of 1492 Schuylkill Mountain Road. The force of impact brought the pillar out of the ground and onto the driveway, where the car came to rest on top of it. State police suspected that Coleman was intoxicated, and conducted field sobriety tests. He was arrested and given a blood alcohol test at Pottsville Hospital. Charges will be filed pending the outcome of those tests.