batavia

Gregory A. Jones is indicted on a charge of predatory sexual assault against a child, a Class A-11 felony. Jones is accused of raping a child of less than 13 years of age while in an apartment at 34 Main St. in the Village of Le Roy.

Craig A. Tiberio-Shepherd is indicted on a charge of DWI as a felony. Tiberio-Shepherd is accused of driving drunk Aug. 14 in the Town of Pembroke.

Dominic J. Cordello Jr. is indicted on charges of DWI as a felony and driving with a BAC of .08 or greater as a felony. Cordello is accused of driving drunk on Aug. 11 in the Town of Alexander.

Matthew A. Beccue is charged with a misdemeanor count of criminal possession of stolen property, 5th, and criminal possession of stolen property, 5th. Beccue is accused of possessing two stolen Dell desktop computers. The Grand Jury did not find sufficient evidence to indict Beccue on felony charges, but did find sufficient evidence to sustain the misdemeanor charges, so the case is returned to the Pavilion Town Court.

Jason L. Pask is indicted on a charge of criminal mischief, 2nd. Pask is accused of damaging another person's car, a 2010 Camaro SS, causing damage in excess of $1,000 in value, on July 24.

Tacoya S. Johnson is indicted on charges of criminal possession of a forged instrument, 2nd, and grand larceny, 3rd. Johnson is accused using a forged instrument to steal more than $3,000 while at a local bank branch on Oct. 31, 2007.

Dannielle D. Sturgis-Ruise is indicted on charges of criminal possession of a forged instrument, 2nd, and grand larceny, 4th. Sturgis-Ruise is accused of using a forged instrument to steal more than $1,000 from a local bank branch on Oct. 27, 2007.

William A. Muoio III is indicted on charges of DWI as a felony and driving with a BAC of .08 or greater as a felony. Muoio is accused of driving drunk Aug. 22 in the Town of Le Roy.

Jennifer L. Coombs is indicted on charges of DWI as a felony and driving with a BAC of .08 or greater as a felony. Coombs is accused of driving drunk June 30 in the Town of Byron.

Cheryl A. Vagg is indicted on a charge of driving while ability impaired by drugs as a felony. Vagg is accused of driving while under the influence of drugs July 3 in the Town of Alabama.

The Grand Jury returned a "no bill" (finding insufficient evidence to support the charges) on Shawn C. Wetmore. Wetmore was charged in the City of Batavia of burglary, 3rd, criminal possession of stolen property and unauthorized use of a motor vehicle.

Joanna M. Morgan, 37, of Wyoming, is charged with felony DWI, DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater and driving with view obstructed. Morgan was stopped by Le Roy Police Officer Emily Clark on Sunday following a report of two people out of a vehicle and fighting along the roadside of I-490. Morgan, driving a vehicle that matched the description of the one spotted on I-490, was found in the Village of Le Roy. Following a traffic stop, Morgan was allegedly found to be intoxicated. A child under 16 years of age was reportedly in the car, leading to the felony DWI charge.

Darrel R. Scroger, 33, of Swan Street, Batavia, is charged with three counts of petit larceny and possession of burglar tools. Scroger was taken into custody at 2:56 p.m., Thursday, in the Target parking lot as a result of an investigation into stolen mobile phones. The phones were reported stolen over the previous week. Scroger was allegedly caught stealing from Target. He is also accused of shoplifting from Target on Dec. 6 and Dec. 8. Scroger was jailed on $500 bail. The investigation was conducted by Deputy Joseph Graff, Deputy Patrick Reeves, Deputy Brad Mazur and Sergeant Thomas Sanfratello.

Jerome Sanders Dennis, 24, of Jackson Street, Batavia, is charged with criminal trespass, 2nd. Dennis allegedly entered a residence on Drake Street, Oakfield, at 3:50 p.m., Dec. 8, without permission of the owner.

Aaron D. Bradley, 29, of 679 E. Main St., Batavia, is charged with harassment, 2nd, and criminal obstruction of breathing or blood circulation. Bradley is accused of placing his hands around the throat of a victim during a domestic incident at an unknown time Sunday. He was jailed on $1,000 bail.

Elizabeth A. Wesley, 38, of 31 Trumbull Parkway, Batavia, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater and inadequate headlamps. Wesley was stopped on a street in Batavia at 12:31 a.m., Sunday, by Officer Matt Fleming. Wesley was jailed without bail.

Joshua A. Canfield, 21, of 190 Greeley Ave., Hornell, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, and running a red light. Canfield was stopped at 3:28 a.m., Sunday, by Officer Eric Bolles, after allegedly running a red light at West Main and Ellicott streets.

Amber N. Wallace, 21, of 4 Highland Park, Batavia, and Nicole L. Cramer, 21, of 2 Highland Park, Batavia, are charged with disorderly conduct. Wallace and Cramer were allegedly observed by police officers fighting on Pringle Avenue at 2:38 a.m., Sunday. They were taken into custody by officers Eric Bolles and Frank Klimjack.

Justin M. Hoover, 30, of 22 Tracy Ave., Batavia, is charged with criminal possession of stolen property, 5th. Hoover is accused of possessing items stolen from vehicles on the south side of the city the night of Nov. 24. He was taken into custody on Friday by Det. Pat Corona.

Amy A. Wagner, 41, of Angola, is charged with harassment, 2nd. Wagner was arrested by State Police for an alleged incident on Aug. 21. No further details released.

Aaron J. Huck, 27, of Brockport, is charged with DWI and aggravated DWI. Huck was stopped at 4:11 p.m., Friday, by State Police on Townline Road in Bergen. Huck was held without bail.

A former Rochester City Council member and current appointee to the Monroe County Community College Board of Trustees was arrested at a GCC woman's basketball game yesterday.

John Parrinello, a defense attorney who served on the Rochester council in the 1970s and lost a bid for mayor in 2006 against Robert Duffy, was charged with criminal trespass, 3rd, after being arrested by State Police Trooper Daniel Hollands.

Hollands was dispatched to the GCC gym at 4:35 p.m. for a report of a fan causing a disturbance and refusing to leave.

According to the State Police, campus security reported the suspect was using vulgar language.

When Hollands arrived, he contacted Parrinello and advised him to leave. Parrinello refused. Then Hollands reached for his handcuffs, according to reports, at which point Parrinello agreed to leave, but then reportedly would not exit the building by the route ordered by Hollands. At that point, Parrinello was arrested.

Parrinello is scheduled to appear in Town of Batavia Court at 1 p.m., Dec. 20.

Sources: WHAM 13, Democrat and Chronicle, MCCC web page.

A Sheriff's patrol has been dispatched to the intersection of Killian Road and Pratt Road for a dangerous condition report.

There is apparently a jaywalking snowman stuck in the middle of the road.

An Alden man is being held in jail without bail after being accused of trying to steal a historic long gun yesterday from the Holland Land Office Museum, 131 West Main St., Batavia.

An observant witness spotted a person leaving the museum with the long gun hidden under a trench coat and followed the suspect's car, phoning the dispatch center with a license plate number, description and direction of travel.

Taken into custody at the intersection of West Main and Oak streets shortly after 1:30 p.m. was Frank J. Bieniek, 55, of 962 Virginia Drive, Alden.

The gun is valued at more than $3,000.

Bieniek is charged with grand larceny 3rd and criminal possession of stolen property 3rd.

The case was investigated by Officer Matt Flemming and detectives Kevin Czora and Todd Crossett.

Bieniek will be arraigned and receive a bail review in City Court at 11 a.m., Monday.

(initial report)

Last evening, I took pictures of Christmas lights of several homes on the south side of Batavia. Above a home on Ganson Avenue.

More pictures after the jump:

Osterhout Street

Highland Street

Jackson Street

Hutchins Street

A minor-injury car accident is reported at School and Swan streets in the City of Batavia.

City fire and Mercy EMS are responding.

John Micheal Parker, 58, of Phelps Road, Corfu, is charged with DWI, aggravated DWI (driving with a BAC of .18 or greater), speed not reasonable for conditions. At 12:41 a.m., Dec. 4, the Sheriff's Office received a call of a car in a ditch on Route 77 in Pembroke. Deputy Kevin McCarthy responded and found a car in a ditch, partially blocking the roadway. Parker was allegedly found to be intoxicated.

Charles M. Blatt, 48, of 319 E. Main St., Batavia, is charged with criminal contempt, 2nd. Police responded to a reported domestic incident at 6:25 p.m., Thursday. Blatt was allegedly found in violation of an order of protection that barred him from being intoxicated in the presence of the protected party. Blatt was jailed on $1,000 bail.

William A. Andrews, 31, of 54 Hutchins St., Batavia, is charged with criminal contempt, 1st, and harassment, 2nd. Andrews allegedly violated an order of protection by making repeated threats of violence against the protected person. Andrews was jailed without bail.

Gordy Abiola Akinpelu, 18, of Lincoln Street, Brooklyn, is charged with criminal trespass, 3rd. Akinpelu is accused of entering a room at Oak Hall in College Village without permission.

Police are in pursuit of a black Intrepid that is reportedly heading southbound on Oak Street from Richmond.

The suspect reportedly stole a historical gun from the Holland Land Office Museum.

It may have just been stopped on Oak Street and Main.

UPDATE 1:42 p.m.: The vehicle was stopped. The property has been identified.

A car attempting to cross from the Rite Aid parking lot across Lewiston Road to the Tops parking lot was stuck by an other car in a minor-injury accident at 1:42 p.m., Thursday.

Cited for alleged failure to yield was Nancy L. Alfes, 64, of Darien-Alexander Townline Road, Darien Center.

Alfes was also reportedly injured, but not transported to a hospital.

The other driver, Helen W. Laird, 88, of West Main Street Road, Batavia, was not injured.

The accident was investigated by Deputy Lonnie Nati.

(initial report)

He started his first business when he was 16 and just a day before his 21st birthday, Tim Walton has bought out his first company.

Walton, who is the owner and founder of TopLine Shirt Company, has agreed to terms with Marc Tillery, owner of MT Graphixs, to buy out and merge the two companies into one. This will allow Walton to add a wide variety of graphic design services including advertisement design and consulting.

"Marc is a great designer and his company has really proven itself and was something that I wanted to get involved with," Walton said.

MT Graphixs is a design and advertising firm that has clientele based throughout the United States and has done design work for high-end clients including the Grammy Award winning group Boys II Men, R&B group New Edition and John Neilson of Rebel Spirit Clothing -- a line that is often worn by the stars of the MTV hit show "Jersey Shore."

"It's a great opportuniy for both of us," says Walton. "MT (Graphixs) has a long list of clients and it's great to be able to add them to my portfolio and should result in a revenue increase for both of us."

Tillery has a variety of experience in design and advertising.

"We can help you with a plan to get your ads to reach customers, we can design fliers, logos, business cards, T-shirts or whatever else you may need designed," he said.

As part of the deal, Tillery will now be operating full-time out of TopLine's current location at 214 E. Main St. in Batavia.

"I felt like this was the right move for both of us. It gives me an opportunity to be able to work with Tim and offer the customers I have even more services," Tillery said.

The terms of the deal are not being released.

"This addition isn't just going to add more design services," says Walton. "This allows us to become more of an advertising company as a whole and will allow for us to continue to expand into numerous other markets that otherwise would not have been possible."

(Photos - Top, Tim Walton, left, and Marc Tillery; lower, Marc Tillery, left, and Tim Walton.)

A downtown storefront is not the usual place you'd expect to find a batting cage, but Bruce Dedman and partner Mike Sputore have moved their baseball business to a location near Liberty Street.

The facility features two 70-foot cages and hitters can either face off against a machine or live batting-practice pitching.

Pitch 'n Hit Baseball Training Center was previously located on Harvester Avenue. With the location change, Dedman said, the cages will now be open year-around. In the past, the business would shut down in the spring, when players return to their teams.

The batting cages were just an off-season workout, Dedman said.

Genesee Community College's ball team is putting the cages to good use, and several high school players also work out at the facility, Dedman said.

He's also working on arrangements to make provisions for softball players.

Most hitters pay for monthly memberships, but half-hour and hourly rates are also available.

The business is located at 214 E. Main St. Hours: 3 to 9 p.m. Monday through Friday; 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday; and noon to 6 p.m. Sunday. Appointments are also accepted.

Hitters should use scheduly.com For more information, write to pitchnhit@gmail.com or call (716) 560-0031.

GCC was filled with young entrepreneurs today as students from more than a dozen high schools in the region participated in a trade fair, selling wares from their virtual businesses.

Debbie Dunlevy, college tech prep project director at GCC, explains the program:

In September 2003, six districts in the GLOW Region, with the assistance of the College Tech Prep program at GCC, began a pilot program related to the Business Career Cluster. There have been up to 11 GLOW school districts participating in the program and currently there are nine with a company. This program integrates an Entrepreneurship class with the international Virtual Enterprise program.

Students enrolled in the class seek to establish a business from the ground up. They design a business plan, decide on a product to “sell," design a marketing a plan, work with payroll and taxes and, in general, learn about all aspects of running a business without assuming any of the actual risks since the entire project is completed virtually using the internet, fax, phone and U.S. Mail.

Students participate in a Trade Fair during the fall term and an end of year competition in the spring semester. All of the schools are members of the Rochester Area Consortium, which includes 10 Monroe County secondary schools, three Erie County schools, plus the nine from the GLOW Region.

At the Trade Fair, students set up displays with the objective of getting visitors to “purchase” their product. Awards are given to the top three schools in the areas of best booth, salesmanship and most sales. Money from the Trade Fair sales is deposited into the company accounts.

All visitors are given $10,000 in virtual money to spend at any of the booths.

This program exemplifies the main goal of College Tech Prep program, which is to provide rigorous academics coupled with hands on or practical application.

For more than 20 years, the Mancuso family and the Batavia Lions Club have teamed up to host a Christmas Day dinner for any local residents who wish to join in a community meal on the holiday.

Seating times at T.F. Brown's this year will be at noon and 1 p.m. Reservations are recommended and can be made by calling Maud at 343-2091.

T.F. Brown's is not officially open on Christmas and there will be no bar service that day.

All are welcome to this free meal, which will offer the traditional Christmas Day fare of turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, cranberries, salad and dessert.

Local vendors supporting the dinner this year include Jeffrey Condidorio and Kathy Pettinella, who helped get food donated for the event. The Lion's Club contributes funds to ensure every child under 18 receives a Christmas present. Lion's Club members also work as servers, dishwashers and busboys.

Photo: From left, Ben Mancuso, Bob Swanson, president of the Lion's Club, Joe Teresi, and Rick Mancuso.

Albany needs to tackle unfunded mandates before it imposes a property tax cap on local governments, says a resolution the Batavia City Council will be asked to consider at its meeting Monday.

In a report to the council from City Manager Jason Molino, he says mandates make local spending "artificially high."

The report doesn't specify what unfunded mandates the city is most concerned about, but does say that the New York Conference of Mayors has appointed a 20-member task force to identify unfunded mandates and recommend what to do about them.

In the early stages of looking at the 2011/2012 city budget, Molino says, there is a potential $1.1 million shortfall, due mainly to rising retirement costs.

Retirement costs are expected to go up by $371,000, but with the proposed property tax cap, the city would only be able to realize an additional $72,000 in additional revenue, leaving a deficit of $289,000. That deficit would mean a cut in city services, Molino said.

The city manager's report does not advocate a tax increase, and the proposed resolution notes that New York has some of the highest property tax rates in the nation. Taxes are high, according to the resolution, because state mandates imposed by Albany on local governments are so inefficient.

A property tax rate cap will only work, according to the resolution, if mandated expenses are repealed. It also says that without mandate relief, and a property tax cap, local governments will be forced to drastically reduce services and eliminate jobs.

Hundreds of local residents gathered at Northgate Free Methodist Church in Batavia on Wednesday evening for "A Service of Prayer and Remembrance."

The annual service sponsored by funeral home company H.E. Turner and Co., is a chance for people to remember loved ones who have passed and light a candle in their honor. The candles can then be taken home and relit on Christmas Day.

Rev. Greg Brotzman and Rev. Donald Shirk (pictured at the microphone below) participated in the service, which included music and a memorial sermon.

A two-car accident with injuries has been reported on Lewiston Road in front of Tops Market.

The vehicles are blocking the roadway.

Town of Batavia Fire and Mercy EMS responding.

Michael Aaron Witkop, 18, of Ross Street, Batavia, is charged with sexual misconduct. Witkop is accused of having sexual intercourse with a girl under 17 years of age, who is considered too young to give consent.

Timothy J. McGall, 22, of Mill Pond Road, Byron, is charged with aggravated DWI and DWI. McGall was arrested Monday following an investigation into an accident on Swamp Road in Bergen at 10:10 p.m., Oct. 31. Based on an investigation by the Monroe County Toxicology Laboratory, McGall was allegedly found to be driving with a BAC of .18 or greater.

Brittany Lynn Frey, 20, and Scott Alexander Lawrence, 19, both of Griswold Road, Darien, are charged with petit larceny. Frey and Lawrence are accused of shoplifting from Kmart on Tuesday.

A two-car accident with minor injuries has been reported at the intersection of Bank Street Road and East Saile Drive.

Town of Batavia and Mercy EMS responding.

Joshua Carney, 33, and Holly Carney, 27, both of 64 Spencer Court, Batavia, are changed with several felonies following an investigation by the Department of Social Services. Joshua Carney has been charged with nine counts of offering a false instrument for filing, 1st, and one count of grand larceny, 3rd. Holly Carney is charged with 11 counts of offering a false instrument for filing, 1st, and one count of grand larceny, 3rd. DSS investigators alleged that the Carneys failed to report commission income from his employer. The alleged failure to report the income meant the Carneys received $14,017.14 in food stamp and medicaid benefits from May 1, 2008 to June 30, 2010 to which they were not entitled. They were taken into custody by Deputy Chad Minuto and arraigned in Batavia Town Court.

Brandy Miller (aka Brandy Osmancikli), 37, of 2093 Lewiston Road, Basom, is charged with four counts of offering a false instrument for filing, 1st, and one count of petit larceny.  Miller is accused of failing to report income from March 11, 2010 to May 27, 2010. She allegedly received $612 in food stamp benefits to which she was not entitled.

Jamie Hamill, 33, of 4311 Lockport Road, Elba, is charged with grand larceny, 4th, and three counts of offering a false instrument for filing, 1st. Hamill is accused of submitting forms to DSS without revealing that her husband was employed full-time. Hamill allegedly received $542.41 in temporary assistance benefits and $661 in food stamps to which she wasn't entitled between July 2009 and November 2009.