(Matt Drzik/Beaver County Radio)

A business that offered a 457B  plan outside of the established pension plan for Beaver County employees is the subject of a lawsuit brought on by the Department of Labor regarding what Beaver County Solicitor Garen Fedeles referred to as “suspicious transactions” when making the public aware of this news at Wednesday’s work session for the Beaver County Commissioners.

According to Fedeles, the former River’s Edge Wealth Management oversaw the 457B pension plans of approximately 120 current and retired County employees; elective plans that were not part of the required pension plans that County employees must participate in.

An RFP (request for proposal) is currently being drafted to find a new suitor for the 457B plans to be offered to County employees following the dissolution of River’s Edge. Fedeles stated that the RFP is due by March 1.

Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) takes a photograph with San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy (13), NFL Network’s Scott Hanson, center, Kansas City Chiefs’ Chris Jones (95) and San Francisco 49ers’ Fred Warner, left, during the NFL football Super Bowl 58 opening night Monday, Feb. 5, 2024, in Las Vegas. The San Francisco 49ers will play the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl 58 Sunday. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

LAS VEGAS (AP) — The first Super Bowl in Las Vegas has everything the imaginary NFL scriptwriters could’ve wanted. There’s Patrick Mahomes and the underdog Kansas City Chiefs aiming to become the first repeat champions in 19 years and trying to solidify their claim to a dynasty with a third Super Bowl title in five years. There’s Brock Purdy returning from a significant injury after rising from “Mr. Irrelevant” to now lead the San Francisco 49ers to the brink of a record-tying sixth Super Bowl title that would etch his name alongside Pro Football Hall of Famers Joe Montana and Steve Young. Of course, there’s the glitz and glamour of America’s showcase city. Did we mention Taylor Swift yet?

A Marine CH-53E Super Stallion helicopter flies during training at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego, Tuesday, Feb. 6, 2024. A Marine Corps helicopter, like the one pictured, that had been missing with five troops aboard as an historic storm continued drenching California was found Wednesday morning, Feb. 7, 2024, in a mountainous area outside San Diego.(K.C. Alfred/The San Diego Union-Tribune via AP)

SAN DIEGO (AP) — The military says five U.S. Marines aboard a helicopter that went down during stormy weather in the mountains outside of San Diego are confirmed dead. The miliary made the announcement early Thursday. Authorities say the CH-53E Super Stallion vanished late Tuesday night while returning to Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego after training at Creech Air Force Base, northwest of Las Vegas. The craft was discovered Wednesday morning near the mountain community of Pine Valley, an hour’s drive from San Diego. The names of the Marines were not immediately released. Efforts to recover the remains of the five have begun and an investigation into the crash is underway,

 

NFL football commissioner Roger Goodell speaks during a Super Bowl 58 news conference, Monday, Feb. 5, 2024, in Las Vegas. The San Francisco 49ers face the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl 58 on Sunday. (AP Photo/Matt York)

LAS VEGAS (AP) — The Philadelphia Eagles will be the host team for the NFL’s first regular-season game in Brazil on Friday, Sept. 6. Commissioner Roger Goodell announced the game during his news conference at the Super Bowl site in Las Vegas on Monday. It will be the first Friday game on the NFL’s opening weekend in 54 years. The Eagles will play in Sao Paulo against an opponent to be named. The game will be played at Corinthians Arena, which was used in both the 2014 World Cup and the 2016 Olympics. It will be one of five international games in 2024.

Firefighters work at the scene where two police officers were injured while responding to reported standoff in East Lansdowne, Pa., on Wednesday, Feb. 7, 2024. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

EAST LANSDOWNE, Pa. (AP) — Authorities are expected to search the charred remains of a suburban Philadelphia home, a day after a shootout and fire that left two police officers wounded and at least six people unaccounted for. Officials in Delaware County say officers were called to the house in East Lansdowne on Wednesday afternoon on a report that a child had been wounded by gunfire. One officer was shot in the arm, another in the leg. District Attorney Jack Stollsteimer says both are expected to fully recover. Intense flames were seen consuming the three-story home, which was largely gutted. Stollsteimer says six to eight people may have been inside, but authorities wouldn’t be able to search until Thursday.

NEW YORK (AP) — Winnipeg Jets defenseman Brenden Dillon has been suspended three games for an illegal check to the head of Pittsburgh Penguins forward Noel Acciari, the NHL’s Department of Player Safety announced Wednesday after a disciplinary hearing.

Dillon hit Acciari in the head with his left shoulder four minutes into the second period of the teams’ game Tuesday night in Pittsburgh. Dillon was given a match penalty and ejected, while Acciari left the game because of an injury and did not return.

“He’s doing OK but being evaluated right now,” coach Mike Sullivan said of Acciari after his team’s 3-0 win. “Our major concern is Noel and his health.”

Dillion will forfeit $60,938 in salary and miss upcoming games at Philadelphia and at home against Pittsburgh and San Jose. It’s his second career suspension after getting one game for slashing in 2017 while with the Sharks.

The league in a video explaining the length of the ban said head contact was avoidable. While the 5-foot-10 Acciari was bent forward, the league determined he did not change the placement of his head in the seconds prior to the hit from Dillon, who’s 6-foot-4.

“Dillon chooses an angle of approach that cuts across the front of Acciari’s body, missing his core and picking his head,” the league said. “If Dillon wants to deliver this hit, he must choose an angle that hits through Acciari’s shoulder and core, rather than one that makes the head the main point of contact.”

(Matt Drzik/Beaver County Radio)
(Photo/BCR Archives)

A Pittsburgh man has pleaded guilty in Federal Court to one county of bribery on Wednesday, following an investigation into his term as a building inspector for the city.

58-year-old Walter Eiseman admitted to federal prosecutors that he was responsible for the issuance of a temporary certificate of occupancy for a commercial building in downtown Pittsburgh, after which Eiseman was rewarded by the developer of the building with home appliances and a set of kitchen cabinets.

The sentencing that has been scheduled for June 6 could result in a maximum penalty of ten years in prison, a $250,000 fine, or both dependent on the severity of the crime. Chief District judge Mark Hornak heard the plea and scheduled the sentencing.

NEW YORK (AP) — U.S. stocks are holding near record levels as evidence keeps piling up to show the job market remains remarkably solid. The S&P 500 was little changed in early trading Thursday, a day after coming within a fraction of a point of the 5,000 level for the first time. The Dow was up 69 points, and the Nasdaq composite was little changed. The latest show of strength for the economy came from a report indicating fewer workers applied for unemployment benefits last week than expected. The Walt Disney Co. jumped after reporting stronger profit for the latest quarter than analysts expected.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.

Wall Street edged lower before the bell Thursday, but 5,000 remains within reach for the S&P 500.

Futures for the S&P 500 inched back 0.2% before the bell, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average is effectively unchanged.

The focus this week is on corporate earnings with few economic indicators on the schedule out of Washington, and turbulence in the regional banking sector continues to rattle investors.

New York Community Bancorp slid again early Thursday, falling 4.9%. About half its value has been wiped out since it surprised investors last week with a loss that was driven by holdings in commercial real estate.

The bank is also struggling with its acquisition of Signature Bank, one of the banks that collapsed in last year’s mini banking crisis.

The Walt Disney Co. jumped almost 8% in premarket after posting stronger-than-expected first-quarter earnings on Wednesday, boosted by cost cuts and growing revenue from its theme parks. Disney earned $1.91 billion, or $1.04 per share, in its fiscal first quarter, up 49% from the same period a year ago.

Online payment company PayPal fell nearly 9.7% before the bell, even after it beat sales and profit forecasts. A flat profit forecast for 2024 sent the California company’s shares tumbling.

In Asian trading, Hong Kong’s benchmark fell while Shanghai advanced after China replaced its top stock market regulator late Wednesday.

Beijing has been struggling to prop up what have been some of the world’s worst-performing markets this year. Late Wednesday, China’s top stock regulator was replaced by a former chairman of the Shanghai Stock Exchange as part of those efforts.

Wu Qing, also a former banker and ex-vice mayor of Shanghai, has been dubbed the “broker butcher,” analysts say, due to his record for cracking down on market abuses such as insider trading.

The announcement that Yi Huiman was being dismissed from his post as chairman of the China Securities Regulatory Commission came without any explanation. But the ruling Communist Party may have chosen him as a way of signaling its resolve to protect smaller investors who have taken a drubbing in the recent sell-offs.

Market observers have cited the lack of transparency surrounding how the markets are run as a factor undermining investor confidence.

On Thursday, the Shanghai Composite index gained 1.3% to 2,865.90 and the Shenzhen Components index in China’s smaller main market also added 1.3%. Markets in mainland China will be closed from Friday through next week for Lunar New Year holidays.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 1.3%, to 15,878.07 on heavy selling of technology companies, despite strong gains for property developers.

Market heavyweight and e-commerce giant Alibaba’s shares dropped 6.1% after the company announced a major share buyback and said it was giving up plans for share listings of two of its group companies.

Elsewhere in Asia, Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 rose 2.1% to 36,863.28 and the Kospi in Seoul was 0.4% higher, at 2,620.32.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 picked up 0.3% to 7,639.20.

Bangkok’s SET gave up 0.8% and the Sensex in India shed 1%.

Germany’s DAX gained 0.4% and the CAC 40 in Paris advanced 0.6%. Britain’s FTSE 100 was unchanged.

In other trading Thursday, U.S. benchmark crude oil gained 72 cents to $74.58 per barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Brent crude, the international standard, added 80 cents to $80.01 per barrel.

The dollar rose to 149.32 Japanese yen from 148.18 yen. The euro slipped to $1.0754 from $1.0774.

On Wednesday, Wall Street rose to the edge of another record-breaking milestone as Ford Motor, Chipotle Mexican Grill and other big stocks climbed following their latest earnings reports.

The S&P 500 gained 0.8%, coming within a fraction of a point of the 5,000 level. The Dow added 0.4% and the Nasdaq composite gained 0.9%.

(Sandy Giordano/Beaver County Radio)

Aliquippa City Council hired two new police officers, Garret Kimmel and Randall Cook Jr, this past Wednesday night at their council meeting. Kimmel was a part time officer who had been recommended by police chief John Lane to become a full time police officer. 

The City Council also hired Alexander Toth as a part time firefighter based on the recommendation of Fire Chief Dave Foringer. 

Their next monthly work session will be Wednesday, February 28 2024 at 7 p.m.

Story by Curtis Walsh – Beaver County Radio. Published February 7, 2024 11:59 P.M.

(Freedom, Pa) At the Freedom Borough Council meeting Wednesday evening, the Freedom Volunteer Fire Department was questioned by Council on their compliance with state regulations. The Borough was recently sent a letter that allegedly suggested the Department was out of compliance and did not have proper training. The letter was said to be sent by a disgruntled former member of the department.

According to Council, their questioning and investigation of the department was done as a precautionary measure. Councilwoman Syndey Eckman led the discussion as her and other members of Council had numerous questions prepared for the fire department members who were in attendance as well as their departments attorney, Kenneth Fawcett.

When the department was asked about training certifications, fire chief Harry Gilarno relayed that modern firefighting training programs are long in duration comparative to a college course. Gilarno said that it is hard for volunteer firefighters to have the time to take such a course. Years ago, Beaver County had a fire school training program that many older members of the department received lifelong certifications from. Currently, Butler County still has a training program and some newer department members have taken their courses. Ultimately, Pennsylvania policy does not require special certification of firefighters and allows policies to be made within the fire house.

The Chief says he makes sure all members of the department are comfortable in the duties they perform each time they are on a call. The department did provide a copy of all members level of training with the Council.

The Council also asked about communication and equipment policies within the department and systems that they use, which were all stated to be in compliance with the state. Other questions asked by council included inquires of finance and other records.

According to legal representation, the current operations of the Freedom Borough Volunteer Fire Department were found to be in compliance with no legal concerns to the Borough. The Borough and Department agreed to have more transparency moving forward.

Following the nearly 2-hour long discussion, Chief Gilarno relayed to Council that Freedom and Conway Fire Departments are in the early stages of considering a merger. More discussions on the subject are set to be taking place in the near future.