Le Roy

A 20-year-old Le Roy resident is being accused of burglary for allegedly breaking into the old Jell-O plant on North Street, Le Roy, and stealing tools, wire and other items from a business there.

The burglary was discovered after Easter weekend when employees returned to work.

The suspect, John H. O'Shea, of 84 Wolcott St., Le Roy, is accused of making forced entry into the building.

As part of the month-long investigation, police executed a search warrant at a residence in Riga, where some of the allegedly stolen property was located.

O'Shea is charged with burglary, 3rd, and grand larceny, 4th.

After arraignment, O'Shea was released under the supervision of Genesee Justice.

Le Roy PD says the investigation is ongoing.

Michael Timothy Van Houter, 21, of East Main Road, Le Roy, is DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater, failure to reduce speed, driving left of pavement markings in a no-passing zone and failure to stop at stop sign. Van Houter was charged following the investigation into a motor-vehicle accident at 11:24 p.m., Tuesday, on Perry Road, Le Roy. The investigation was conducted by Deputy Jason Saile.

Rea Anne Leaha Wimmer, 19, of Broadway Road, Darien, is charged with driving while ability impaired by drugs and moving from lane unsafely. Wimmer was stopped at 12:40 p.m., Tuesday, on Clinton Street Road, Batavia, by Sgt. Thomas Sanfratello.

Austin L. Wester, 17, of 3373 Pratt Road, Batavia, is charged with criminal contempt, 2nd, and criminal possession of stolen property, 4th. Wester is accused of violating an order of protection. During the investigation, Wester allegedly admitted to possessing property he knew was stolen. Wester was jailed without bail pending an appearance in Batavia City Court today.

Latoya D. Jackson, 26, of Batavia, is charged with disorderly conduct and resisting arrest. Jackson is accused of screaming profanities in Batavia City Court and then struggling with deputies in the lobby of the Genesee County Courthouse. Jackson was jailed on $2,000 bail.

A two-car accident with unknown injuries is reported at Cole Road and Route 77 19 in Le Roy. Le Roy fire and ambulance are responding.

UPDATE 6:45 p.m.: Injuries are minor. The ambulance is told to respond in non-emergency mode. A responder says "As soon as we can get law enforcement here, we'll probably clear."

A 24-year-old Le Roy man was sentenced to 90 days in jail and 10 years probation Thursday for downloading and possessing pornography involving children under 17 years old.

Thomas J. Smith, of Main Road, Le Roy, was arrested in December following an eight-month investigation by State Police.

Earlier this year, Smith entered a guilty plea to promoting sexual performance by a child for downloading pornography involving a child under age 17, and a second count of promoting sexual performance by a child for possessing pornography involving a child under age 16.

Both counts are Class E felonies.

Smith will return to Genesee County Court on May 31 for a sexual offender status hearing, which will determine his standing in the New York sexual offender registry.

A person apparently tried to steal a Milton Cat excavator from a location on Craigie Street, Le Roy, and damaged the machine in the process.

The attempt was made some time between Friday about 11:30 a.m. and Sunday about 4 p.m..

According to Le Roy Police, a person apparently tried to hot-wire the excavator, breaking open a control unit and cutting wires.

The excavator was parked on Craigie Street as part of a gas line replace project in the area.

Any person with information pertinent to the investigation, or who may have seen people around the excavator, are asked to call Le Roy PD at 768-2527.

Today you can get rid of outdated or unneeded medications safely with no questions asked at drug drop-off points throughout the county.

There is one behind the Batavia PD station, one at the Le Roy PD and Pembroke Town Highway barn on routes 5 and 77.

Drugs can be dropped off until 2 p.m.

It will be decades before the 13-acres of woodlands Lynn Belluscio and her late husband once enjoyed together return to their former "park-like" nature, but the man responsible for the removal of more than 100 of her trees will be out of jail in six months and off probation in five years.

David Henry Isabell, 43, of Liverpool, entered a guilty plea in January to scheme to defraud 1st and timber trespass. He was sentenced today in County Court.

The $36,000 Belluscio received in restitution is small compensation for what she lost, she told Judge Robert C. Noonan prior to Noonan handing down his sentence.

"I have only been able to walk in the woods once, and that was at the request of Deputy John Duyssen," Belluscio said. "What I saw that day made me sick to my stomach. If I ever have a chance to explain to my husband what happened, I would be at a total loss for words. ... I will not see the recovery of my woods in my lifetime."

Belluscio hired Isabell's company, Icon Timber Marketing, to cut down about 35 trees that were aging, diseased, or needed removal as a matter of good forest management. Workers took about 140 trees, left stumps and limbs on the property, big ruts in the ground and an area that once included a scenic horse trail is now unusable, covered by thorny vines and overgrowth, Belluscio said outside of court.

As part of the criminal complaint against Isabell, the DA's office alleged six land owners were defrauded out of more than $72,000 in hardwood timber by Isabell.

For the trees from Belluscio's land, Isabell received $60,000, according to bank records obtained during the investigation.

Attorney Robert Durr said his client's family stepped forward to pay the restitution, and Isabell said he's lost everything trying to repay his debts, which allegedly includes money owed to customers not part of the criminal complaint.

"Mr. Isabell is a terrible businessman," Durr said. "As a result of being a terrible businessman, he has placed himself in a situation of criminal liability."

Durr also described Isabell as a changed man who has quit drinking and recognizes that what he did was wrong.

"I truly believe that Mr. Isabell is a different man today than he was two years ago," Durr said. "I truly believe Mr. Isabell has great remorse and sorrow for what he did. I truly believe he feels remorse not for himself, but for these victims, and I truly believe that if he is given an opportunity, he will prove to the court and to the victims he is worthy of that opportunity."

Isabell told Noonan that he is "very remorseful" and that he is working day and night to earn enough money to repay his debts.

"These are all very good people and they trusted me," Isabell said. "I had done work for these people five or six years ago and based on that relationship, they trusted me. I broke that trust.

"I wasn't there," he added, "to oversee things and make sure things were done right and make sure they were paid. I'm very sorry. I feel terrible that they now feel this way about me because I worked very hard to gain their trust."

The case came to the attention the Sheriff's Office when Le Roy businessman and Oakta Trails property owner John Morrill agreed to let Isabell remove some trees from his land. 

In an interview outside of court, Morrill said Isabell identified himself as "Isabella" and said the trees might fetch Morrill about $1,500.

After months of not hearing from "Isabella" and not getting his calls returned, Morrill spotted some of the same trucks that had been on his property and stopped and talked to the crew.

One of the men, according to Morrill, was Donnie Hendrickson, who was later  charged as a co-defendant in the case.

Morrill said Hendrickson provided the correct identity for Isabell and said about Isabell using a different name, "he does that all the time."

When Isabell got wind that Morrill was going to talk with local law enforcement, he said Isabell offered him a payment of $50 toward the timber.

Because Morrill didn't take the payment, the Sheriff's Office was able to open a criminal investigation (if a potential fraud victim takes such a payment, it creates a contract, making the dispute a civil matter, not a criminal matter).

Duyssen was assigned to the case and located Belluscio as a potential victim.

By this time, Isabell was apparently in the Niagara County Jail for violating his probation from a prior DWI conviction.

According to Duyssen, Isabell apparently heard about the criminal investigation and allegedly sent an employee to Belluscio house at 11 o'clock at night with an offer of $5,600 for the wood.  Belluscio turned down the offer.

Outside of court, she described the late-night appearance of Isabell's employee at her house as frightening.

Eventually, Isabell was indicted on charges of two counts of grand larceny, 4th, three counts of grand larceny, 3rd, issuing a bad check, 22 counts of timber trespass, petit larceny, theft of services and scheme to defraud 1st.

Hendrickson was indicted on charges of grand larceny, 4th, 23 counts of timber trespass, grand larceny, 3rd, and scheme to defraud, 1st.

In January, Hendrickson entered a guilty plea to a misdemeanor and has not yet been sentenced.

According to Durr's statements in court, Hendrickson cut a plea deal with prosecutors in exchange for his testimony against Isabell if the case went to trial.

Durr said the only reason his client was in court, and not Hendrickson, having entered a guilty plea to a felony was because Isabell's criminal past.  If the circumstances were different, Durr said, it would be Hendrickson facing a possible prison sentence.

He said Hendrickson received most of the money from the timber sales and was the person Belluscio dealt with the most on her property.

Assistant District Attorney Kevin Finnell said that when he and the victims read some of the letters sent to the court in support of Isabell, from friends, family and employees, they couldn't believe some of the statements in the letters blaming circumstances rather than Isabell for the crimes.

"These letters seem to suggest there is an excuse 100 times over for why he didn't pay these people, and why these events occurred the way they did" Finnell said. "No where is there any acceptance of responsibility."

Noonan said he had to balance a number of factors in his sentence of Isabell -- from the unrecoverable loss to Belluscio to the damage Isabell has done to his family.

"I have to fashion a sentence that makes a point to you and does not unduly burden society at this point," Noonan said. "I do recognize the fact that you did step up and figure out a way, with the help of people close to you, to financially compensate many of the people, if not all of the people, you involved in this scheme.

"There is a very good argument that I should lock you up and throw away the key," Noonan added. "There is also an argument that if not for the people close to you, who have paid a very huge debt, will only face a heavier burden with a long sentence."

After sentence was pronounced, Durr asked if it could be modified to nine months intermittent incarceration in the jail, giving Isabell an opportunity to work, earn money, and take care of his family as well as pay back debts he still owes.

Finnell opposed the request.

Noonan said, "I had the alternative of sending Mr. Isabell to state prison, but I elected not to do so. I fashioned a sentence for punishment as well as rehabilitation and my decision stands."

The mug shot above of Isabell was taken today after he arrived to begin his stint in the Genesee County Jail.

Robert J. Eppolito is going to be out of the community and in prison for many years -- from eight to 11 -- following his sentencing on two criminal charges in county court today.

The 29-year-old Batavia and Le Roy resident has been in trouble with the law a few times in recent years and and in January he entered a guilty plea to assault, 2nd.

Eppolito previously admitted he punched and kicked a victim in Le Roy.

On the assault charge, Judge Robert C. Noonan gave Eppolito seven years in state prison. The sentence will be served consecutively with a violation of probation sentence of one to three years.

The public is encouraged to take part in the National Prescription Drug Drop Off from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. this Saturday, April 28. No questions asked. All medications -- both prescription and over-the-counter -- will be accepted from residents.

In Genesee County, the drop-off sites will be as follows:

• Batavia Police Department -- 10 W. Main St. in the City of Batavia
• Le Roy Police Department -- 3 W. Main St. in the Village of Le Roy
• Pembroke Town Hall -- at the junction of routes 5 and 77 in Pembroke

According to the Center for Disease Control, prescription drug abuse is a national epidemic. In Western New York, prescription pill abuse is the No. 1 drug problem.

Law enforcement agencies, healthcare professionals and drug-abuse prevention groups want you to "Keep unneeded, unwanted medications out of your children's hands."

Stanley Styliades says he's very particular about the food he makes, and he's promising the best breakfasts around in his new eatery, the Le Roy Town Diner on Main Street, Le Roy.

The location was Tyler's and then Katie's.

"My breakfasts are the best, no two ways," Styliades said. "My plates are picture perfect. The home fries are the best. Homemade pancakes, blueberry, blueberry walnut, raspberry walnut, chocolate chip."

Styliades has 30 years experience owning and operating diners in Rochester, always breakfast and lunch establishments. The Le Roy Town Diner will be open from 6 a.m. to 3 p.m., and Friday evenings for fish fry (and perhaps Thursday and Saturday evenings as well).

The diner will have a little Mediterranean flare, Styliades said. He will serve humus, falafel, and pita with chicken and eggplant.

He's working hard to get the diner open as soon as possible, hopefully within the week.

He said he has steam cleaned the entire kitchen and repainted the ceiling and is working to get everything in place before opening.

Brianna Rae Burlingame, 20, of Palmer Road, Churchville, is charged with driving under the influence of drugs, criminal possession of a controlled substance and unlawful possession of marijuana. Burlingame was arrested after deputies Chad Minuto and Jason Saile responded to the parking lot of Petco at 2:14 p.m., Saturday for the report of a woman asleep behind the wheel of her vehicle while it was running. Burlingame was issued an appearance ticket.

Sean Allen Kota, 18, of Byron-Holley Road, Byron, is charged with DWI, driving with a BAC of .08 or greater and driver view obstructed. Kota's vehicle was stopped following complaints of the occupants throwing beer bottles out of the window of the car. His vehicle was stopped at 2:47 p.m., Thursday, on Oatka Trail in Le Roy by Deputy Matthew Butler.

Joshua Webster, 25, of York Road, Pavilion, is charged with grand larceny, 4th, and criminal possession of stolen property. Webster is accused of stealing a purse and credit cards from a location on Commerce Drive, Batavia, and of possessing stolen property from another incident at the time of his arrest on an unrelated incident. (Previously)

Gregory J. Battaglia, 30, of Pavilion Center Road, Pavilion, is charged with petit larceny. Battaglia is accused of stealing gasoline from a station in Le Roy.

A 17-year-old resident of Bacon Street, Le Roy, is charged with endangering the welfare of a child. The youth is accused of failing to provide appropriate supervision to a child left in his care.

A possible strucutre fire is reported at 3 Tountas Ave. in Le Roy. There is said to be the odor of something electrical burning. Yet an emergency responder who was just at that address said he could smell nothing unusual there, only the smell of food cooking.

Le Roy and Bergen fire departments are responding. One unit on scene reports nothing showing. They are going to scan the building with a thermal camera.

UPDATE 1:10 p.m.: Bergen is told to return to service. No other Le Roy units will be needed. The location is the family care clinic. An interior crew is leaving the inside after finding nothing with the imaging camera.

UPDATE 1:14 p.m.: The firefighters are going to use ladders and look into the attic.

UPDATE 1:23 p.m.: Nothing hazardous found. Le Roy is back in service.

Samantha M. Williams, 31, of Warsaw Road, Le Roy, is charged with robbery, 3rd, grand larceny, 4th, criminal mischief, 4th, and petit larceny. Williams is accused of getting into an argument with her mother at about 9 a.m., Tuesday, while in a vehicle on Seven Springs Road. Williams allegedly took her mother's credit card. When her mother attempted to call 9-1-1, Williams allegedly took the phone and got out of the vehicle. Williams was located outside a business on East Main Street Road a short time later.

Raymond James Radley, 46, of Cook Road, Pavilion, is charged with forcible touching. Radley is accused of forcibly touching the intimate parts of a woman during an argument.

Thomas L. Hill Jr., is indicted on four counts of criminal possession of a controlled substance, 3rd. Hill is accused of possessing cocaine with the intent to sell it Oct. 8 while at 335 Bank St., Batavia, and again on Jan. 7 at 174 Ross St.,  Batavia.

Albert A. Ackerman is indicted on a charge of felony DWI. Ackerman is accused of driving drunk Nov. 6 on Route 5 in the Town of Le Roy. Ackerman is accused of a prior DWI in 2009 in Florida.

Danielle Hendrickson is indicted on a charge of criminal possession of a forged instrument, 2nd. Hendrickson is accused of possessing, with the intent to defraud, a forged check in the amount of $50 drawn on the account of a local couple.

Shawn J. Scheg is indicted on a felony count of DWI and felony driving with a BAC of .18 or greater. Scheg is accused of driving drunk Jan. 8 while on West Sweden Road, Bergen. Scheg is accused of having a prior DWI conviction in the Town of Batavia in May 2002.

A vehicle fire is reported on the eastbound Thruway between mile marker 375 and 378. Town of Batavia Fire Department and Le Roy medics are responding.

UPDATE 7:26 p.m.: It's a white Ford Escort. UPDATE 7:35 p.m.: Le Roy medics are back in service. There were flames coming from the vehicle, now there's just some smoke, and they're watering it down to cool it off.

A driver is accused of making an abrupt U-turn, leading to a minor-injury accident at 7:23 p.m., Wednesday, on Route 19 in Le Roy.

Injured was June S. Wood, 58, of Pavilion.

Wood was cited for allegedly making a turn without a signal.

The other driver, Jack E. Benson, also of Pavilion, was not injured.

Wood was reportedly southbound on Route 19 when she allegedly tried to make a U-turn without signaling. Benson reportedly tried to swerve into the northbound lane to avoid striking Wood's car, but a collision ensued.

Wood did not require transport to a hospital.

The accident was investigated by Deputy Matthew Fleming.

In separate press releases today, the Environmental Protection Agency and federal lawmakers moved to assure the public that every possible safety measure is being taken to deal with a toxic plume in Le Roy.

The EPA announced that ongoing testing has confirmed earlier results about the concentration levels of trichloroethylene (TCE) in ground water and the location of the plume. 

Sen. Charles Schumer and Rep. Kathy Hochul hailed the EPA for agreeing to further testing to see if the plume has moved into Livingston County.

It was created in a 1970 train derailment and came to renewed public light this winter when environmentalists with renowned environmental litigator Erin Brockovich visited Le Roy in response to local health concerns.

While even members of Brockovich's team ruled out a connection with the TCE plume and an outbreak of movement disorders among a few students at Le Roy High School, it appeared that the EPA had made no real progress at the Superfund clean-up site.

Both press releases are available after the jump (click on the headline to read more):

From the EPA:

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency made available today the results of ground water sampling taken in December 2011 at the Lehigh Valley Railroad Derailment Superfund site in Le Roy, New York. This sampling is part of an ongoing investigation of the nature and extent of the contamination from that site.

The results, currently available online, are consistent with previous results from quarterly sampling. These results continue to show that the heaviest contamination is in the western end of the plume area, the source area, with concentrations tailing off as the area moves to the east toward Spring Creek.

In previous work, the EPA installed granulated-activated carbon treatment systems on 35 private wells affected by the contamination. The EPA also sampled for contaminated vapors in nearby homes and installed vapor intrusion mitigation systems in eleven homes that needed them based on the testing. The mitigation systems have been effective in controlling the vapors.

This sampling data, along with previous data already publicly available, is being analyzed as part of an overall investigation that will allow the EPA to determine the extent and concentration of contamination and what actions may be needed to control or cleanup the contamination.

A report detailing all of the testing and summarizing all of the results is expected this summer. As part of the ongoing investigation, the EPA is working to develop plans to conduct further sampling to more specifically identify the eastern edge of the contamination to ensure that the contamination is not impacting areas east of Spring Creek.

“Protecting the health of people who live and work near the Lehigh Valley Superfund site is our highest priority,” said Judith A. Enck, EPA regional administrator. “We are working with local residents and business owners to ensure that the contamination is not entering their homes and businesses.

"The work at the Lehigh Valley site is being done under the Superfund law, which operates on the principle that polluters bear the full costs of hazardous waste cleanups, rather than passing the expenses to taxpayers."

Levels of trichloroethene (TCE) in the ground water range from 6,000 parts per billion in the immediate spill area on the western end of the plume to 14 parts per billion toward the eastern edge. The EPA continues its work to ensure that the vapors from this contamination are not seeping into homes or buildings, similar to the way that radon gas can, and causing vapors at unacceptable levels.

The Lehigh Valley Derailment Superfund site is the location of a Dec. 6, 1970 train derailment, where approximately one ton of cyanide crystals and approximately 30,000 to 35,000 gallons of TCE spilled on to the railroad right-of-way. The spilled TCE contaminated soil and the ground water beneath the site. The plume of contaminated ground water extends approximately four miles to the east and southeast of the site. Exposure to TCE can have serious health impacts, including liver damage and increased risk of cancer. The Lehigh Valley Railroad will pay the cost of the cleanup, not taxpayers.

For the ground water sampling results, visit: http://www.epa.gov/region2/superfund/npl/lehighvalley/relateddocs.htm.

For more information about the site, visit: http://www.epa.gov/region2/superfund/npl/lehighvalley/.

From the office of Kathy Hochul:

U.S. Senator Charles E. Schumer and Congresswoman Kathy Hochul (NY-26) today announced that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will conduct further testing to confirm that the eastern boundary of an underground TCE contaminated plume, caused by a Lehigh Valley Train derailment in 1970, does not extend beyond Spring Creek near Caledonia-Mumford Central School, located only a quarter of a mile east of Spring Creek on North Street.

“This testing should bring relief to Western New York homeowners who worried for decades about what this derailment might mean for the health and safety of their families,” Schumer said. "We’re pleased that the EPA is stepping up to the plate to get some answers once and for all, and will continue to do everything we can to ensure that the areas impacted by the Lehigh Valley spill are safe and secure.”

“For over 40 years, the residents of Livingston, Monroe and Genesee counties have worried about the effects of the train derailment at the Lehigh Valley site,” Congresswoman Hochul saod. “Senator Schumer and I hope that today’s announcement by the EPA to continue testing will bring reassurance to these communities that everything is being done on the federal level to ensure that the health and safety of Western New Yorkers is our top priority.

"And the release of the December 2011 report today will hopefully provide residents with the answers they need to know that this area is a safe place to live, work, and raise a family.”

After hearing from local officials in the Town of Caledonia in Livingston County, Hochul and Schumer urged the EPA to conduct additional soil gas sampling in Caledonia, east of Spring Creek. The sampling will help the EPA determine if the plume is spreading eastward beyond Spring Creek toward the Caledonia-Mumford Central School by assessing whether there is evidence of TCE vapors in the subsurface area over the underground water table. If TCE vapor is detected, the sampling results will then help the EPA determine where to place permanent underground monitoring wells. The EPA expects to begin the soil gas sampling within the next few months, and may begin as soon as May.

The EPA also announced today that in response to a letter from Congresswoman Hochul, Senator Schumer and Senator Kirsten Gillibrand earlier this year, they will publicly release the results of ground water sampling taken last December at the Lehigh Valley Railroad Derailment Superfund site in Le Roy, New York. A copy of the letter can be found here.

The Lehigh Valley Railroad Derailment federal Superfund site is the location of a train derailment in 1970 that spilled one ton of cyanide crystals and approximately 30,000 gallons of TCE along portions of Gulf Road, the former railroad bed, and the properties next to the railroad crossing in the Town of Le Roy. The TCE leached into the underground water table, creating an underground TCE contaminated plume that covers approximately 4.5 square miles. EPA ground water testing reveals the underground TCE plume extends approximately four miles to the east, toward the Town of Caledonia. The site was added to the Superfund National Priorities List in 1999.

A second man involved in a "particularly dangerous" type of methamphetamine production has entered a guilty plea in federal court.

Christopher L. Williams, 33, of 8 Erie St., Le Roy, faces up to a year in prison or a fine of $100,000 or both after his guilty plea to unlawful possession of methamphetamine.

His apparent partner, Nicholas P. Sadwick, 24, of Le Roy, entered a guilty plea on charges stemming from the same case last month.

Both men were arrested a year ago after a residence they were using was raided by members of the Local Drug Enforcement Task Force.

The manufacturing method used involved batteries -- a method unique among all of the other meth lab busts in 2010 -- which Deputy Chief Jerome Brewster described at the time as "particularly dangerous."

In a press release today, the U.S. Attorney's Office said investigators found a baggie and a Mason jar, both containing clear liquid that was found to contain methamphetamine.

Outside the residence, investigators found an Icy Hot pack that had been ripped open.

"These items are common materials used in the production and clandestine manufacture of methamphetamine," the release said.

Williams admitted to possessing methamphetamine for personal use.

Sentencing is set for 11 a.m., July 11, in federal court in Buffalo.