batavia

One of three people being questioned by a Batavia police officer at the Days Inn of Oak Street near the Thruway decided to run, leading to a multi-agency manhunt that lasted less than 30 minutes shortly before 1 p.m.

Officer Dan Coffey had been dispatched to the Days Inn to ask three guests who had overstayed their welcome to leave. While doing a wants and warrants check on the three people, one of them took off. Coffey observed the suspect run to a gray Dodge Durango parked behind the hotel and grab something from the vehicle, leading officers to worry that the suspect had grabbed a weapon.

The man, whose identity has not been released yet, then headed toward the Thruway toll booths. At some point, he fell into or ran through a body of water. He then ran across the Thruway near the Route 98 overpass and was last seen in a farm field just north of the Thruway.

By that time, back-up had arrived from the Batavia PD, Sheriff's Office and State Police.  The field was surrounded by officers and the State Police helicopter was called in.

Within minutes of the helicopter arriving, the suspect, who had been lying in the long grass of the field, stood up and tried to run again. He was immediately apprehended by police.

The other two individuals were detained at the hotel, where members of the Local Drug Enforcement Task Force responded and began conducting a further investigation.

Following the arrest, a search of the field was being conducted by State Troopers, which prompted some discussion of bringing in a weapon sniffing dog, to see what, if anything, the suspect left behind.

Chief Randy Baker said the suspect apparently is wanted in Georgia. The nature of the warrant is not available at this time.

(Initial Report)

Joseph Francis O'Shei, 36, of Stebbins Road, Franklinville, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, driving while ability impaired by a combination of drugs and alcohol, inadequate lights and driving the wrong direction on a one-way street. O'Shei was stopped at 10:35 p.m. Monday in the area of 4126 Route 5, Batavia, by Deputy James Diehl.

Ronald M. Markek, 31, of Allegany Road, Corfu, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, failure to yield right-of-way to emergency vehicle and improper right turn. Markek was stopped at 1:31 a.m. on Route 77 in Corfu by Deputy Patrick Reeves.

A manhunt is under way but we didn't catch why. A white male, wearing white, is being sought by law enforcement and he reportedly is "drenched from falling in a ditch."

He was spotted at the Thruway entrance at the end of Oak Street and was last reported in an open field on the south side of the Thruway. A State Police helicopter is going to be airborne shortly to aid in the hunt.

UPDATE 1:01 p.m.: The subject is in custody "on the Thruway."

UPDATE 1:22 p.m.: This incident started when an employee of the Days Inn called police to report that a guest failed to pay for his room. When police arrived, he ran to his vehicle and reached in for something. They thought it might be a weapon. He ran off and they pursued him. The Local Drug Enforcement Task Force is now searching the hotel property. The subject remains in custody.

A one-car accident is reported at Alva Place by JCPenney in the City of Batavia. The driver hit a curb and possibly a light pole and reportedly seems disoriented.

Medics on scene report the driver missed the driveway and hit the curb.

Firefighters are there, too.

UPDATE 3:20 p.m.: A light pole was not struck. Medics are back in service and firefighters are returning to quarters.

A person suffered smoke inhalation following a fire in an electrical box at the car wash at 13 Liberty St. in the City of Batavia.

A city fire engine and Mercy medics are on scene.

UPDATE 3:07 p.m.: National Grid is called to the scene.

UPDATE 3:09 p.m.: The fire is knocked out and they are checking for any extension of it.

UPDATE 3:12 p.m.: Mercy unit is back in service with a patient sign-off.

Photos by Frank Capuano

A vehicle that was on fire near a house at 2560 Pratt Road has exploded. The fire is believed to have spread to the structure. East Pembroke Fire Department is responding along with a tanker from the Town of Batavia.

A firefighter says a large amount of black smoke can be seen from the Indian Falls bridge.

A woman at the residence who called 9-1-1 in a panic was told to evacuate the house.

The location is between Slusser and Powers roads.

"Be advised -- it looks like it hasn't spread to the house yet, just the vehicle in the driveway," says a responder.

UPDATE 2:37 p.m.: Town of Batavia is told "to take their time coming in."

UPDATE 2:39 p.m.: The fire is under control. They are looking for hot spots. Medics are called for a person who suffered some minor burns when the fire "flashed over."

Deborah An Dixon-Thatcher, 52, of North Lyons Street, Batavia, is charged with criminal mischief, 3rd. Dixon-Thatcher is accused of breaking the windows, headlights and taillights out of her estranged husband's 1997 Nissan pickup truck while it was parked at a residence in Bergen at 1:55 a.m., Monday.

Hope Renee Conibear, 37, of Gibson Avenue, Oakfield, is charged with felony DWI, felony driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, failure to keep right and consumption of alcohol in a motor vehicle. Conibear was reportedly involved in a motor vehicle accident April 23 on Hutton Road, Town of Oakfield. The accident was investigated by Deputy Jason Saile.

Joseph Robert Waala, 38, of North Randolph Street, Arlington, Va., is charged with criminal mischief, 4th. Waala allegedly damaged a metal fire hose box at 8250 Park Road, Batavia. He was jailed on $1,000 bail.

The following individuals were arrested and charged with trespassing for allegedly being on privately owned property at 5447 Main Road, Stafford, without permission: Ryan W. Caltagirone, 20, of Ellicott Street Road, East Bethany, Donald M. Fagan, 19, and Joshua T. Gilbert, 18, both of Ellicott Street Road, Batavia, and two 17-year-olds and three 16-year-olds, all from Batavia.

Katrina Le Brandes, 20, of South Main Street, Perry, is charged with DWI and driving with a BAC of .08 or higher. Brandes was arrested following an investigation of a reported domestic incident at 3:55 a.m. on Buckman Road, Bethany, by Deputy Jason Saile.

City firefighters have been dispatched to the parking lot of UMMC to set up a landing zone for Mercy Flight.

The nature of the medical call is not known.

While at the Batavia Cemetery today, I met three young women doing a photo shoot.  

The group leader was Jessica Wheeler (second picture, white shirt), whose degree in journalism hasn't led to a job -- not uncommon these days -- so she's going to beauty school. She's entering a national contest in hairstyling and the rules stipulate a character from a movie be used, so she decided on a female Madhatter from "Alice in Wonderland."

Wheeler is attending Salon Professional Academy in Buffalo.

The Madhatter is played by Lacey Christner, a recent grad of GCC who will be attending UB as a photography major.

The photographer is Danielle Schaffer, a Batavia resident.

Three more pictures after the jump:

A threat of rain (that never materialized) couldn't keep hundreds of people from descending on Main Street this morning for the annual Memorial Day parade.  

The parade featured the Batavia High School marching band and flag team, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, the city and town fire departments, Sheriff's Office and Police Department, along with local veterans groups and elected officials, among other groups.

More pictures after the jump.

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"Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends."

This is found in the Bible, John 15:13, and it was quoted this morning at the Memorial Day ceremony held outside UMMC's Jerome Center. The speaker was American Legion Commander Ronald Konieczny.

“We know what’s in people's hearts, we know how people feel about our veterans. It’s a much better feeling today than what it was during Vietnam,” Konieczny said.  "It is easy for one to believe that (Biblical) statement after witnessing the generosity and admiration shown by all those who attended today's service..."

The atmosphere was solemn but proud, as it was when plans were unveiled for a new monument to commemorate deceased soldiers from Genesee County. It will honor those killed in action during World War I, World War II, Korea and Vietnam.

This $250,000 monument is estimated to be finished in 2013; however, no building will be done before the old plaques, which were stored due to recent renovations, receive a proper military burial. The old plaques, which once stood in front of the hospital on North Street, are to be retired and then buried under the new monument.

Aside from individual grave sites, this commemorative monument will be the only permanent place in Batavia where friends and family of deceased soldiers can pay homage to their lost loved ones, and permanent it will be. The entire monument, plaza and tablets are going to be solid granite. To aid fundraising, the granite pavers used to make the plaza will be sold to families and inscribed with whatever special message is desired.

Though the announcement of the new memorial generated a lot of excitement, the service maintained its true purpose, which was honoring the heroism of deceased soldiers. Helen Laird and Adeline "Dolly" Gioia,  two Gold Star mothers whose sons were killed in combat, were honored today as well as 178 soldiers who died between 2010 and 2011. For each soldier, an American flag was placed in the ground in front of the hospital.

Memorial Day is only one day of remembrance, but for the veterans and families of fallen soldiers it is more than that. It's a chance to show their respect for the sacrifices that their comrade or family member made. With the help of United Memorial Medical Center and those who attended the commemoration, that is exactly what was accomplished today

We are fortunate today to be enjoying a pleasant Memorial Day, a little overcast early but now the sun is out.

These photos are from the Batavia Cemetery. I'll have Batavia parade photos and some photos of Genesee County later today.

City of Batavia firefighters will hold their annual "Fill the Boot" Drive to benefit MDA on Friday, June 3, beginning at 9 a.m.

This year’s co-chairmen are firefighters Jeff Stevens and Greg Ireland.

Off-duty city firefighters -- members of IAFF (International Association of Firefighters) Local 896 -- will help raise money for the cause. They will be at Court and Main streets as well as Court and Ellicott streets.

The IAFF is MDA’s largest sponsor.

City of Batavia Fire Department Local 896 has been holding  the "Fill the Boot" drive for 17 years. Last year's boot drive was quite successful. City firefighters with the community's help raised $5,600 for the MDA!

There are more than 40 neuromuscular diseases that are covered by MDA, including ALS, commonly known as Lou Gehrig's disease.

Donations cover everything from wheelchairs to braces, physical therapy sessions to kids' summer camps.

The guys are looking forward to hitting the streets again in an attempt to top last year’s total. They really appreciate the generousity of those that can give, be it their spare change, a dollar or even more.

There is a report of wires arcing in the area of 14 Brooklyn Ave., Batavia.

City Fire Department is responding.

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During the annual Michael Napoleone Memorial Baseball Tournament in Batavia, the Michael Napoleone Foundation presented a $12,000 check to the Center for Pediatric Biomedical Research at URMC.

Accepting the check above are, from right, Kathleen McGrath, Paul Kingsley and Alec Kingsley.

McGrath said the money is being used to cover the expense of more powerful computers. As part of the center's research, scientists take pictures of blood cells to study. The sophisticated camera equipment creates massive files that took the old computers hours to process. The new computers do the same work in minutes. The center also replaced worn out centrifuges. 

Michael Napoleone died in 2006 from Burkitt's Lymphoma/Leukemia, an aggressive form of blood cancer.

Mark and Laurie (second picture, left, with her brother, Dave Pero) Napoleone set up the fondation to give back to the community after so many people helped them during their son's illness.

Teams from as far away as Fairport are competing in the tournament, which runs through tomorrow.

Griffin Dellapenna, who was friends with Michael, reads a statement about how he misses Michael and what the tournament means to him. 

Griffin met Michael when they were both battling cancer. Next week, Griffin marks his fourth year in remission.

Jeremy Boyle and Matt Roach hit back-to-back home runs during Batavia's game against Oakfield-Alabama.

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More pictures after the jump:

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