Fixer in lucrative NCAA basketball betting scheme involving colleges like Robert Morris University sentenced to 6 years in prison

(File Photo: Source for Photo: FILE – Information is displayed during a news conference to announce charges against several people including former college basketball players, in what prosecutors called a betting scheme to rig NCAA and Chinese Basketball Association games, Jan. 15, 2026 in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Tassanee Vejpongsa, File)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Philadelphia, PA) Prosecutors in Pennsylvania recently announced that a man who involved in rigging college basketball games has been sentenced to six years in jail.

Thirty-year-old Jalen Smith of Charlotte, North Carolina received this sentence and was involved in fixing games during the 2023-2024 and 2024-2025 NCAA seasons.

This marks the first penalty in an investigation in which authorities said uncovered a network of players and gamblers who made a profit from fixed games.

Smith recruited players so they could underperform in exchange for payment, which allowed bettors to profit by wagering against their teams.

Players from colleges like Robert Morris University had players who were accused of participating in this scheme.

The scheme affected almost 30 games and resulted in more than $3 million in fraudulent wagers.

Smith must also pay a restitution amount of $1.1 million.

Nine Sewickley area nonprofits receive total of $400,000 in grants

(File Photo of a Dollar Sign)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Sewickley, PA) The Valley Care Foundation recently awarded close to $400,000 in grants to nine nonprofit organizations which enhance the lives of older adults in the greater Sewickley Valley area.

In the foundation’s 2025-2026 fiscal year, they awarded funds to previous recipients as well as Sewickley Valley YMCA and Federated Guardians in Beaver.

Grants were also awarded to the following programs:

  • Center for Hope (Ambridge)
  • Coraopolis Community Development Corp.
  • Franklin Center  (Aliquippa)
  • Lindsay Theater and Cultural Center (Sewickley)
  • Samaritan Counseling Center (Sewickley)
  • Sewickley Public Library
  • Sweetwater Center for the Arts (Sewickley)

Reminder: Bernstine to Host Free Shredding Event this Saturday

(File Photo of Representative Aaron Bernstine)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Evans City, PA) Representative Aaron Bernstine (R-Butler/Lawrence) is reminding residents that he will be hosting a free shredding event on Saturday, October 17th from 10 a.m. to noon at the Forward Township Municipal Building in Evans City.  

This event offers families and individuals an opportunity that is convenient to clean out old paperwork and guard their personal information securely.

This event is intended for paper items that contained personal information such as bank account details, medical records or Social Security numbers.

Residents are asked not to bring items like cardboard, junk mail, magazines, newspapers and phone books.

Paper clips and staples do not have to be removed.

However, documents should be taken out of notebooks or binders.

No registration for this event is necessary.

Residents may call the office of Bernstine at 724-847-5291 for more information.

New Castle man arrested for possessing drugs in Lawrence County

(File Photo of Handcuffs)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(New Castle, PA) Pennsylvania State Police in New Castle reported yesterday that thirty-year-old Greg Hickok of New Castle was arrested after possessing drugs in Lawrence County on September 28th.

One member of the PSP New Castle barracks conducted a traffic stop in the area along 100 I-376 West in Neshannock Township at 9:36 a.m. for multiple traffic violations.

According to police, Hickok was the operator of a vehicle, he displayed signs of impairment, and he was placed under arrest for driving under the influence of a controlled substance.

Charges were filed against Hickok, who was found to be in possession of a THC vape pen. 

Attorney General Sunday’s Antitrust Section Takes Action Against Insulin Makers, PBMs for Pricing Scheme, Resulting in Patients Paying More for Life-Saving Meds

(File Photo of a Gavel)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Harrisburg, PA) Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday recently announced a lawsuit against several pharmaceutical companies and pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs) regarding collusion to manipulate insulin price markets, which increased out-of-pocket costs for Pennsylvanians. 

The Office of Attorney General’s Antitrust Section filed a complaint in the Commonwealth Court this week alleging violations of Pennsylvania’s Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law, unjust enrichment and civil conspiracy. 

Pharmaceutical manufacturers Eli Lilly and Company, Novo Nordisk Inc., and Sanofi-Aventis US LLC, and numerous PBMs were named defendants, which included CVS Caremark, Express Scripts and Optum RX. 

The lawsuit alleges that the parties conspired to artificially inflate insulin prices by over 1,000 percent. 

Corporal Don Yates retires from the Brighton Township Police Department

(Credit for Photo: Photo Courtesy of Brighton Township, Beaver PA, Posted on Facebook on October 13th, 2026)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Brighton Township, PA) Corporal Don Yates is retiring after working for over 30 years with the Brighton Township Police Department.

Yates started his career as a Patrolman in 1996 and he was promoted to Corporal in 2007.

He was also an advocate for juvenile victims and made an impact as a School Resource Officer at Dutch Ridge Elementary School.

The Brighton Township Police Department, Dutch Ridge Elementary School and the communities of Brighton Township and Beaver Area gave Yates thanks for his work.

Bomb threat discovered in a bathroom at Mars Area High School

(File Photo of a Police Siren Light)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Butler County, PA) A school in Butler County is taking extra precautions after a bomb threat was discovered in a bathroom yesterday.

According to officials, a bomb threat referencing Friday, October 16th, was discovered on the wall of a bathroom in Mars Area High School. 

Officials state that they contacted police and necessary steps were taken to keep the faculty staff and students safe. 

Police and bomb-sniffing dogs swept the building yesterday afternoon as a precaution.

In addition to that sweep, the building will be searched for the remainder of the week for added security. 

Duane “Keffe D” Davis gets 40 years to life in prison for orchestrating the murder of rap icon Tupac Shakur

(File Photo: Source for Photo: Duane Davis, center, arrives for a sentencing hearing after his murder conviction in the death of rapper Tupac Shakur on Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2026, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher, Pool)

LAS VEGAS (AP) — An aging ex-gang leader was sentenced Tuesday to 40 years to life in prison for orchestrating the 1996 drive-by shooting of rap icon Tupac Shakur near the Las Vegas Strip.

The killing, rooted in a long-running gang feud, had gone unsolved for decades — captivating the public and tormenting Shakur’s loved ones — until Duane “Keffe D” Davis started bragging about it in interviews and a memoir.

Davis, 63, was convicted in August of first-degree murder with the use of a deadly weapon. A former leader of the South Side Compton Crips, Davis stared blankly at Judge Carli Kierny as she imposed a penalty that, even with credit for time served, won’t see him eligible for parole until he’s at least 100.

“You don’t get to take a man from his family, you don’t get to take his very life, his whole future from him and just walk away from it, especially when that man is Tupac Shakur,” Kierny said. “The world never forgot about him and his death and neither did Las Vegas.”

Davis, whose lawyer said he will appeal his conviction, is the only person ever charged in Shakur’s death. The late rapper’s legend has only grown in the years since, and his songs continue to resonate with themes of hardship, love and Black struggles.

Skill game machines removed from Pennsylvania businesses after compliance deadline passes

(Credit for Photo: Photo Courtesy of Sean Simmers, Caption for Photo: Skill games at SkillGame Kingdom June 10, 2025. Sean Simmers of PennLive Patriot News)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Harrisburg, PA) Skill game machines are being removed from businesses and private clubs across the state of Pennsylvania after lawmakers failed to pass legislation that regulates them before a “skill game” compliance deadline for the state occurred yesterday.

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruled on June 15th that these “skill games” are slot machines.

Only casinos and licensed truck stops can operate these games under this ruling.

Pennsylvania State Police can seize machines that stay in prohibited locations and file criminal charges against the people who continue to operate them. 

East Liverpool man arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol in Beaver County

(File Photo of Pennsylvania State Police Trooper Cars)

Noah Haswell, Beaver County Radio News

(Beaver County, PA) Pennsylvania State Police in Beaver reported today that a twenty-one-year-old man from East Liverpool, Ohio was arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol in Beaver County yesterday.

Police were dispatched to Silver Slipper Road in Greene Township at 4:25 a.m. because of a vehicle in the middle of the road.

The operator of that vehicle was determined to be under the influence after an investigation occurred.