Wyoming County

A 77-year-old Thorpe Street resident has been arrested by the Wyoming County Sheriff's Office and charged with animal abuse.

His son, a Middlebury resident, was also arrested.

The arrests follow an April 28 report in Middlebury of 50 chihuahuas being dropped off on a property in Middlebury.

Joseph Wenzel Jr., of Bank Road, Middlebury, allegedly made the 9-1-1 call.

The day before, according to the WCSO, a Batavia PD officer responded to a residence on Thorpe after receiving a barking dog complaint. The officer reportedly observed eight dogs at the residence, but the homeowner did not come to the door.

The officer left a contact card and information was passed on to the city's animal control officer.

When Wenzel Jr., contacted law enforcement, he said he had fed the dogs and the dogs were contained.

An animal control officer and a deputy responded to the residence and decided to leave the dogs in place until the next morning.

Upon further investigation, Investigator Mayer and Deputy Ficarella determined that Wenzel Sr. allegedly dropped off the dogs after the visit to his residence in Batavia.

He reportedly told officers that he could not take care of the animals any longer.

Wenzel Sr. was subsequently arrested and charged with 44 counts of animal abuse and is being held in Wyoming County pending arraignment.

Wenzel Jr. was charged with 44 counts of animal abuse and falsely reporting an incident. He was jailed on $10,000 bail.

A Le Roy truck driver escaped injury Saturday when the brakes on his semi went out and he lost control of the truck and it overturned on Route 19 near Fox Road.

Nathanael Edmund, 22, of Harris Road, was hauling corn at 1:16 p.m. Saturday down a hill on Route 19 and was unable to negotiate a turn after his brakes stopped working.

The load of corn spilled from the truck.

Responding to the scene was the Wyoming Fire Department, Warsaw Fire Department, Wyoming County Sheriff's Office and State Police.

The accident remains under investigation.

Area scouts showed their colors and displayed true Boy Scout pride last night for the "BoyPower Distinguished Citizens" dinner at Genesee Community College.

These young men and their leaders are members of Iroquois Council Trail, Inc., the Boy Scouts of America council serving Genesee, Orleans, Wyoming, Livingston and Niagara counties. Every year, they honor one outstanding community member from each county.

Betty Lapp was the 2012 Distinguished Citizen for Genesee County. Lapp is the former director of GCC's Nursing program. She retired in 2005, and has been a "professional volunteer" ever since.

Originally from Ohio, Lapp has an impressive track record as a Geneseean:

• Board Chairperson of United Memorial Medical Center
• Board Chairperson of Genesee Valley Educational Partnership (formerly BOCES)
• Regional Action Phone
• Family Counseling Services
• Parent Teacher Association
• Cub Scouts
• Genesee County Department of Health
• Genesee County Mental Health Services

Her service to the wider region includes membership in the following organizations:

• Lake Plains Community Care Network
• WNY Rural Area Health Education Center
• Genesee Valley School Boards Association

Other recipients were:

James Culbertson, Livingston County

David Bellavia, Orleans County (Bellavia currently lives in Batavia, but is originally from Lyndonville)

MORE after the jump (click on the headline to read more):

A 48-year-old Batavia woman was injured in a motor vehicle accident at 8:15 a.m., Monday, in the Town of Middlebury after another driver allegedly failed to stop for stop sign.

Patricia E. Chaya, 48, was transported to UMMC for treatment.

Chaya was heading south on East Bethany Road when Rebecca A. Tallman, 21, of Telephone Road, Le Roy, allegedly failed to stop at the intersection of West Middlebury Road and East Bethany.

Tallman was issued a traffic citation.

The accident was investigated by the Wyoming County Sheriff's Office.

Bethany Fire Department responded to the scene.

A Batavia man is out of the hospital following a serious injury motor vehicle accident Friday on Route 77 in Sheldon.

Donald Rebmann, age not released, was transported to Erie County Medical Center by Mercy Flight with a head injury following the 4:46 p.m. accident.

According to the Wyoming County Sheriff's Office, another driver, Milesh Modi, of Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, was eastbound on Centerline Road when he allegedly failed to yield to a vehicle driven by Rebmann, who was northbound on Route 77.

Hetal Modi, a passenger with Milesh Modi, was transported by Mercy Flight to ECMC for back injuries.

A passenger in Rebmann's vehicle, Norman Rebmann, was transported by ambulance to Wyoming County Community Hospital.

Milesh Modi was taken by North Java Ambulance to WCCH for treatment of facial injuries.

Modi was issued a citation for alleged failure to yield.

The accident was investigated by Deputy John Button of the Wyoming County Sheriff's Office.

A Le Roy resident was killed in a motor vehicle accident Wednesday on Wethersfield Road, Town of Wethersfield, Wyoming County.

According to the Wyoming County Sheriff's Office, Phillip B. Ellinwood, was heading east on Wethersfield Road when he attempted to pass another eastbound car. Ellinwood's car went off the north shoulder of the road and struck a tree.

Ellinwood was pinned in the vehicle. He was extricated by members of the North Java Fire and Rescue Department.

He was then transported to Wyoming Community Hospital.

The press release reads, "Despite life saving efforts by emergency room personnel Ellinwood died from his injuries."

The accident was invested by the Wyoming County Crash Management Team.

No further details were released.

A Batavia man suffered minor knife cuts Tuesday night while visiting the Village of Pike when he became involved in an alleged fight on Main Street.

Josh Sumeriski, 25, of 17 Pringle Ave., was taken to an area hospital with superficial lacerations on his back.

Charged with assault, 2nd, was James L. Lathrop, 20, of 4685 Wilder Road, Warsaw.

The alleged fight was reported at 10:45 p.m.

Lathrop reportedly suffered a cut finger and an eye injury.

The Wyoming County Sheriff's Office did not report any charges against Sumeriski.

Lathrop was jailed on $500 bail.

Pictured: two Boy Scout troupes from the Iroquois Trail Council (ITS), which covers Genesee, Wyoming, Livingston, Orleans and Niagara counties.

This band of 36 youths -- ages 13 to 17 -- are going to Fort A.P. Hill, Va., for the Boy Scouts of America Jamboree, which takes place from July 26 until Aug. 4. Fort (Ambrose Powell) Hill, named after a Confederate general, is an active-duty Army installation near the town of Bowling Green.

The Jamboree normally takes place every four years; this time, however, there was a five-year interim so it would coincide with the 100th anniversary celebration of Boy Scouts of America.

The boys will be accompanied by two adult Scoutmasters -- Guye Smith, of Lima, and Jim Yencer, of Avon, and two youth assistant Scoutmasters (one of whom is from Alexander), making a total of 40 area scouts attending this national event.

Planning for this trip started about two years ago, according to Smith. Since then, the boys have worked very hard to raise money in order to cover the cost.

"Some of them raised every penny (that they needed to pay their individual fares)," Smith said. "That's part of the scout way -- to pay your own way."

The ITS scouts raised money by doing two bike-a-thons, one in July 2009 and the other in October 2009.

The boys biked all the way from Lockport to Brockport -- with an overnight stay in Albion for the first one -- and then from Holley to Macedon all in one day for the second.

The troupes are leaving by bus today. Yencer said they will spend Saturday in Philadelphia, then take the U.S.S. New Jersey (a retired navy vessel) to Aberdeen, Md., to visit the U.S. Army Ordnance Museum on Sunday morning. From there, they proceed to Fort A.P. Hill.

While attending the Jamboree, the boys will be treated to a wide variety of activities such as air-rifle shooting, scuba diving, canoeing, archery and a 5K run; there will also be a musical group performing at the "arena show" (which will be broadcast online) on Saturday, July 31, and if tradition is kept, they may also get a visit from President Barack Obama.

Not only is this Jamboree historic because it is being held during the scouts' centennial, it is also the last one to be held in Fort A.P. Hill (where it has taken place since 1981).

For more information on the Jamboree, please visit www.bsajamboree.org.

For more information on the ITC, visit www.itcbsa.org/Joomla/index.php.

Photo courtesy of Jim Yencer

Fire units from Genesee County are being dispatched to a structure fire in Wyoming County, or being put on standby at fire halls in both Wyoming and Genesee counties.

The fire is reported at 3930 E. Main Road, Attica, Wyoming County.

Pavillion, Darien, Bethany, Alexander and Town of Batavia, at least, have either been requested to the scene or are on standby.

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Two Batavia men were jailed in Wyoming County after a drug task force operation caught them allegedly trying to sell prescription drugs.

Larry Yoho, 37, of North Spruce Street, is accused of selling Xanax and Fentanyl to undercover agents.

Nicholas Williams, 37, of 15 Ross Street, is accused of possession and sale of Xanax.

(via WBTA)

A man who admitted to raping a Genesee County girl will spend three years in state prison and 10 years on supervised probation, Judge Robert C. Noonan ruled this afternoon.

Thomas J. Preedom, 21, of Wyoming County, admitted to rape 2nd in November, as well as attempted escape 2nd.

Reference in court to the case today, indicates that Preedom engaged in consensual sex with an underage girl and the girl had a baby who may or may not have been fathered by Preedom.

Following his arrest, Preedom tried to escape from the State Police barracks in Batavia, where he fought with Troopers and damaged state property.

Defense Attorny Jerry Ader argued that a past probation violation notwithstanding, Preedom was a viable candidate for a probation sentence in this case.

"Despite his prior behavior, he deserves a chance at probation even given this serious charge," Ader said. "He readily admitted to police and to the court what he did and acknowledged that his behavior was wrong, even though it was consensual, it was wrong under the law."

Ader said Preedom has been studying for a career, spending more time hitting the books in jail then he ever has in his life, and that he's grown through the process. He is not the same person, Ader said, that he was as a youth when he was convicted of selling marijuana, and violated probation (which Ader characterized as a legitimate misunderstanding with the Town of Batavia court over the terms of his probation).

For his part, Preedom asked Noonan for probation.

"I'm not a bad kid," Preedom said. "I made some bad decisions in my past and I request a second chance. I'm just asking for a second chance. I think I can succeed on probation. If this child is mine or not, I will take care of it."

Noonan said he couldn't look past his prior probation violation.

"I think by your conduct, you violated your chance at probation," Noonan said.

Genesee County units assisted in an emergency response to an accident yesterday in Wyomning County that led to one injured person being taken by Mercy Flight to Strong Memorial Hospital.

The afternoon accident on Route 63 in the Town of Covington, according to a State Police, occurred when a car on Peoria Road pulled out on the highway in front of an oncoming car.

Eric Maggio, 49, of Leicester, driving a Pontiac Grand Am, reportedly pulled in front of a Oldsmobile Bravado driven by Esequiel H. Olan, 32, of Arkport.

Maggio was flown to Strong with head and chest injuries.

Maria Ortiz, 24, Arkport and Imelda Ruiz-Gomez, 27, also of Arkport were taken by ambulance to Dansville Hospital for chest pain. Olan and a young child in the Bravado were not injured.

Doris Bogner, 78, of Leicester, a passenger in the Grand Am, was taken to Strong Memorial Hospital by ambulance for chest pain.

Pavilion Fire and Ambulance and Leroy Ambulance assisted with the accident.

The investigation is ongoing and no tickets have been issued at this time.

From the office of Rep. Chris Lee:

In a speech today on the House floor, Congressman Chris Lee (NY-26) read a message from a small business owner in Wyoming County to demonstrate the need for action on a swift, effective, and fiscally responsible recovery plan that creates jobs in Western New York: