Oakfield

Jody B. Gillett is indicted on two felony counts of menacing a police officer, one count of criminal possession of a weapon, 3rd, and two counts of menacing, 2nd. Gillett is accused threatening, with a knife, two members of the Genesee County Sheriff's Office during an incident July 24 at 8 Pine Hollow Road. He is also accused threatening, with a knife, two other people in the same incident.

Grant A. Sundown Jr., is indicted on a count of DWI and aggravated DWI, driving with a BAC of .18 or greater and three counts of aggravated unlicensed operation. Sundown is accused of driving drunk on Lewiston Road, Oakfield, on April 7.

Paul Wapniewski is indicted on a count of burlgary, 3rd, criminal mischief, 2nd, and petit larceny. Wapniewski is accused of breaking into Delavan's Restaurant, 107 Evans St., Batavia, on May 6.

Jose A. Torres is indicted on two counts of criminal possession of a controlled substance, 3rd. Torres is accused of possessing cocaine on March 28 with the intent to sell it.

Charles L. Muntz is indicated on a felony count of DWI. Muntz is accused of driving drunk on Griffin Road, Alabama, on April 16.

Coming off two disappointing seasons and starting the 2011 season 0-2, it would be easy to dismiss a game against Oakfield-Alabama as a bye week, but as any coach in the Genesee Region will tell you, there's no squad in the league that can be taken lightly.

There's no telling if the Fighting Irish took the Hornets a little less than serious coming into Friday night's league match-up, but O-A's young players certainly made a game of it.

The final score was 29-14, but the Hornets were never really out of it until the final minutes, and at the half looked like a team that could spoil Notre Dame's early season perfect record.

"They're very well coached," said Notre Dame's head Coach Rick Mancuso. "Brian (Palone) is doing a great job. That (Tommy) Manzella kid is a terrific quarterback. They're tough, there's no doubt about it. They spread you out all over, they throw the ball. I give them all the credit in the world. I thought they played very well tonight."

Palone said his team is young. They let the game get away from them when Nate Woods returned a punt 50 yards for a TD, making the score 15-14 following a two-point conversion.

"That changed the momentum," Palone said.

While Manzella showed he could still march his offense down the field -- he passed for 192 yards on the night on 27 completions -- the Hornets couldn't finish the deal in the red zone.

"Overall I fell like we were right in there," Palone said. "Our kids were fighting hard just like we ask them -- 'give 110 percent.' We’ve got a lot of sophomores out there. We’re just very young this year, so we’re going to make mistakes, but we’re just going to learn from our mistakes and improve."

The scoring started in the first quarter when Nick Taylor capped a Notre Dame drive with a 16-yard run.

But O-A's no-huddle offensive helped the Hornets get the momentum back and the defense was being pretty stingy, twice intercepting Tim McCulley.

Two O-A drives in the second quarter ended in TDs -- a three-yard run by Manzella and a two-yard pass by Manzella to Chris Nanni.

By the fourth quarter, Notre Dame's running game was nearly unstoppable. 

Taylor finished the game with 87 yards on the ground on 17 carries. Nick Conklin had 82 yards rushing on 11 carries.

ND's two fourth-quarter TDs were a five-yard run by Taylor and Woods hauling in a 25-yard pass from McCulley.

McCulley finished with 107 in the air on 16 completions.

Mancuso said his young team played two great quarters to start each of their previous games and then "sort of frittered it away" in second halfs, but Friday the team played better in the second half than the first.

"With a young group of kids like we've got, that's what you expect," Mancuso said. "I want to get us to the point where we're playing four full quarters of football."

As for O-A, which was shut out three times in 2010 on its way to a 0-7 season, following a 2-5 campaign in 2009, Coach Palone is disappointed in his team's 0-3 start, but he said he's seeing progress for the Hornets.

"I feel like this program is heading in the right direction," Palone said. "Every day and each and every game you can see that we’re improving. We’re hanging right in there with these teams now, where last year and the year before we weren’t right in there with the games. They were breaking the games wide open. This year, we're right there."

A former Batavia resident who has had a few run-ins with the law the past couple of years is back in jail, this time with bail set at $15,000.

Robert J. Eppolito Jr., 29, of 61 Church St., Apt. #2, Le Roy, is being charged with one count of assault, 2nd.

Last night, Le Roy Police responded to multiple calls about a disturbance in the area of Bacon and Lake streets.

Eppolito is accused of striking another person several times on the head and face with his fists, knocking the victim to the ground and then kicking the victim in the face with his foot.

The victim reportedly suffered a possible eye socket fracture.

In September, 2009, Eppolito was accused of having sex in public with a woman and in a separate incident of slamming another woman against a wall.

Eppolito lived in Oakfield at the time.

In June, 2010, Eppolito was accused of endangering the welfare of a child and harassment, 2nd, while a resident on Maple Street, Batavia.

This past Monday, law enforcement officials were heard on the scanner chatting about Eppolito being released from jail that day.

Oakfield Fire Department is responding to a reported tractor fire at Lamb Farms.

The tractor is near a building.

A Massachusetts man will serve two consecutive six-year prison terms for having sex with two 14-year-old girls, one of whom he originally met while she was traveling with her mother in Florida.

Raymond E. Allard, 27, who admitted to two counts of second-degree rape on July 15, told Judge Robert C. Noonan today that he wasn't the kind of person who had sex with children. While Allard has convictions in Florida for burglary and grand larceny, he's never faced sex-crime accusations before.

"I was foolish and I'm willing to face whatever penalty is coming to me for my behavior," Allard said. "I'm sorry to the girls. I'm sorry to the families. I'm sorry to the court. I'm sorry to myself."

Noonan wasn't sympathetic.

"You are a child rapist, a serial child rapist," Noonan said. "For you to stand here and say you're not that kind of person -- you are exactly that kind of person. You are the kind of person who can't be trusted to be in the presence of another child ever again and it's my job to put you away for as long as I can."

Allard was originally indicted on 64 charges of rape, 2nd, and criminal sexual act, 2nd, and agreed to a plea guilty on two counts in exchange for capping his sentence at 12-years maximum.

He'll be on probation for 10 years when he's released from prison.

Allard was indicted in May, accused of having sex with two 14-year-old girls in November and December of 2010.

According to reports at the time, Allard met the mother of one of the girls while in Florida and followed her and her daughter back to Oakfield.

"The circumstances of this case clearly indicated that Mr. Allard is a predator of young girls," Assistant District Attorney Will Zickl said. "His relationsip with one of the victims began outside of New York State as the result of a chance meeting and was continued when Mr. Allard decided to come to this area and continue his grooming of this child for his own sexual purposes."

Zickl said Allard's statements in the pre-sentence investigation further implicated Allard as depraved.

Allard allegedly described one of the victims as "sexually aggressive" and an "overwhelming sexual creature."

"This is Mr. Allard's feeble and feckless attempt to put himself in the best possible light," Zickl said. "I would submit that it puts him in an even worse light because he's blaming a 14-year-old girl for his predation on her."

The mother of one of the girls spoke and said that Allard's actions caused a lot of damage to her relationship with her daughter and they've never really talked about what happened. She said all she knew was what she read in her journals before her daughter was placed in a foster home.

"I'm very angry, very hurt and very distraught about what happened to my daughter," the woman said. "He's done a lot of damage to my family. I don't think he should ever be around children again."

From kettle korn to pop music there was no end of reasons to be in Oakfield today for the annual Labor Day picnic sponsored by the Oakfield Betterment Committee.

Games, crafts, music, family fun and of course food will all be part of the festivities again Monday starting with a parade at 10 a.m.

If you have trouble viewing the slide show below, click here.

Village of Oakfield residents should brace for a couple of increases in their quarterly water bills.

The first increase will be 65 cents per thousand gallons of water. That 19.4-percent increase will take the rate from $3.35 to $4.

The increase, according to Mayor Rick Pastecki, is designed to eliminate a deficit in water spending for the village.

"Basically, we found out that our rates were so low that state officials were concerned we wouldn't be able to pay back our debt," Pastecki said. "Basically, we found through the process that our rates were considered extremely reasonable, which precluded any kind of grant money."

The village needs a low-interest loan -- which has been awarded, and a grant, also awarded -- for a new water tower and transmission line.

The current water tower is well beyond its useful life and the village has been able to secure a 2.5-percent loan and a $600,000 grant, but those funds will only cover a portion of the cost of the $3.4 million project.

And that cost -- though expected to be high -- hasn't been determined yet.

To pay for the tower, another water-rate increase will be necessary, according to Pastecki, but more calculations need to be done before he can estimate the potential second rate increase.

Information for this report courtesy of Geoff Redick of WBTA.

A man from Oakfield suffered minor injuries after his motorcycle struck a deer on Hutton Road, Oakfield, at 10:30 p.m., Thursday.

Following the accident, David Hendershott, 21, of Orchard Park Road, Oakfield, was transported by private vehicle to UMMC.

Hendershott was north on Hutton Road, near Duck Pond Road, on a 2008 KMCU when his bike struck the deer. Hendershott was thrown from the bike and the motorcycle came to rest on the east shoulder of the roadway.

The accident was investigated by Deputy Joseph Graff.

A driver was charged with unlawful possession of marijuana after being involved in a motor vehicle accident on Albion Road, Oakfield, at 2:58 p.m., Saturday.

The driver made a left turn into a drive and told Deputy Timothy Wescott that she had time to beat the southbound car that struck her 2006 Toyota.

The driver of the other car, a 1999 Chevy SUV, Lawrence E. Rebert, of East Shelby Road, Oakfield, was transported by ground ambulance to UMMC with minor injuries.

Charged with UPM and failure to yield the right of way was Andrea C. Rosone, 30, of Albion Road, Oakfield.

The accident occurred in the area of 6478 Albion Road, Oakfield.

(Initial Report)

Photos from the JV Youth Football game 8/27/11. Pembroke was the home team.

Minis: Pembroke 8, Oakfield-Elba 0

JV: Pembroke 36, Oakfield-Elba 6

All pictures from the event are available here for readers of The Batavian.

A two-car accident with injuries is reported in Oakfield in front of 6475 Albion Road, just north of Lockport Road. Oakfield Fire Department is responding along with medics.

UPDATE 3:50 p.m.: At least one person has been transported to UMMC with injuries, apparently non-life threatening. Two tow trucks have been called in. Law enforcement is at the scene.

UPDATE 3:58 p.m.: All units are clearing the scene, back in service.

A Level 3 sex offender who is accused of committing new criminal sex acts against a child was denied his request for lower bail today.

Anthony L. Nicosia Jr., 54, of Albion Road, Oakfield, is being held in the Genesee County Jail on $15,000 bail or $30,000 bond.

The bail was set in the Oakfield Town Court.

Judge Robert Noonan gave both the prosecutor and defense an opportunity to speak to the bail issue, but then seemingly cut off the discussion saying that as a matter of law, the only thing he could do at this stage of the proceedings against Nicosia is decide whether the bail set by the lower court was excessive.

It's not, Noonan ruled, and he can't lower it at this stage.

Assistant District Attorney Will Zickl argued that bail certainly shouldn't be reduced, if anything it ought to be raised.

Zickl said the alleged victim has been interviewed further since Nicosia's arrest and detailed more alleged assaults. There is the possibility, Zickl said, of further criminal charges.

It's also possible, Zickl indicated, that there may be additional victims.

Nicosia, who was arrested earlier this week and charged with criminal sex act, 3rd, forcible touching and endangering the welfare of a child, was convicted of sexual abuse in the first degree in April, 1995.

A 54-year-old Oakfield man is being accused of sexually abusing a child and has been jailed on $15,000 bail.

Anthony Leslie Nicosia Jr., of Albion Road, Oakfield, was arrested following an investigation into sexual abuse that began June 1.

Nicosia is charged with criminal sex act, 3rd, forcible touching and endangering the welfare of a child.

The age of the child was not released.

The alleged abuse reportedly took place at his residence.

A silver SUV on Maltby Road reportedly struck two dogs and kept on going.

A deputy is dispatched to the area.

Driving back from Alabama on Saturday afternoon, it was one of those late summer days that reminds you we're so lucky to live in Genesee County. And if you're reading this and don't live in Genesee County, my condolences.

I put the photos I took in a slide show so you can use the button in the lower left to expand the photos to a full screen view.

A Level 3 sex offender convicted by a jury in June of failure to register his proper address will serve one-and-a-quarter to four years in State Prison, the maximum sentence on the charge available to Judge Mark H. Dadd.

Meanwhile, Ronald A. Smith, 19, of Batavia, was given until Friday to decide whether to take a plea offer on three felony counts of sexual abuse in the first degree.

Smith is accused of sexual contact with children under age 11 within months of being released from state custody on a prior sex crime conviction.

Public Defender Gary Horton said Smith indicated that he wished to proceed to trial on sexual abuse charges, but by this morning had a change of heart and wanted time to discuss the plea offer with his family, particularly his mother.

If convicted at trial of all three counts, Smith faces up to 21 years in prison (maximum sentences of seven years each, and if imposed consecutively).

District Attorney Lawrence Friedman has offered a maximum five-year sentence -- the minimum sentence available for a second violent felony offender -- in exchange for a guilty plea.

Smith is scheduled to reappear in Genesee County Court at 9:45 a.m., Friday, to either plead guilty or request that his case go to trial.

Smith was arrested in January on the sexual abuse and failure to register charges, less than four months after being released on a similar sexual abuse conviction. Smith reportedly lived for a time on Thorpe Street, on East Main Street and in Oakfield. He only ever registered his address on Thorpe Street.

The failure to register charge was tried separately from the sexual abuse charges and a jury returned a verdict in less than two hours on June 22.

Judge Dadd, out of Wyoming County, presided over the trial because Judge Robert C. Noonan was presiding over a civil trial in Orleans County at the time.

Noonan was on the bench today for Smith's plea cut-off hearing, which followed the sentencing by Dadd on the failure to register charge.