A suspected gang member accused of being in the United States illegally has been arrested in Northampton County. Tuesday, Federal law enforcement officials announced the arrest Venezuelan national Luis Gualdron-Gualdron, who was taken into custody without incident last Friday near the Northampton County Prison. He is a suspected Tren de Aragua gang member and has a criminal history. In December 2023, he was arrested in Texas for entering the country illegally. After disappearing, Gualdron-Gualdron ended up being arrested in Bethlehem last year on misdemeanor indecent assault charges of a person less than 16 years old. Those charges were withdrawn last week after the alleged victim refused to cooperate and Gualdron-Gualdron ended up pleading guilty to a misdemeanor charge of harassment. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials say he will be detained without bond.
The Accu-Weather forecast for overnight tonight hasn't changed all that much. "There will probably be a coating to an inch of snow and sleet in our area and maybe a bit more in the Poconos because the transition will be slower in taking place," says Accu-Weather's Joe Lundberg. He says the Thursday morning drive to work will almost certainly be a slippery one with the snow, sleet, freezing rain combination beginning around midnight tonight.
There will be no trash collection in Allentown tonight due to the winter weather in the forecast. City officials are asking residents in Wednesday's collection zone to refrain from placing their trash on the curb. Those residents will get their trash and recycling picked up on Sunday. The city is reminding drivers to use caution while traveling in freezing conditions.
PennDOT is planning to place Tier Four restrictions on the Pennsylvania Turnpike in most of the area due to the winter weather in the forecast. The department says the restrictions will go into effect at seven p.m. tonight. Under Tier Four restrictions, no commercial vehicles, buses, motorcycles, or passenger vehicles towing trailers are allowed on the road. Penn-DOT says the roads will be pretreated, but drivers are still urged to use caution in freezing conditions.
The man who has led Air Products for more than ten years is now officially out. Seifi Ghasemi calls his tenure with the Trexlertown-based company an "honor and privilege." His departure comes after Air Products shareholders elected three new directors last month, pushing Ghasemi from the board. Ghasemi has a contract that had him as Air Products CEO until September 2028. He is being replaced by Eduardo Menezes, who takes over on Friday.
An unidentified 26-year-old man died after an explosion at his Easton apartment. The blast happened around 9:30 Monday night in the 700 block of West Milton Street. The man was found outside with severe injuries. He was rushed to the hospital, where he died. Easton police believe the man was either making or manipulating some kind of explosive device when the blast happened.
Gov. Josh Shapiro's 2025-2026 proposed spending plan comes in at $51.5 billion, $3.8 billion more than the current budget. It also would require spending down the state's $3 billion in surplus money and taking $1.6 billion from its rainy day fund. The governor offered a suggestion to Republicans who may give his plan a thumbs down. "Remember, despite the wave nationally, voters sent the same group back here to keep making progress. I ask you to resist the temptation to put politics above people and instead, lets continue to work together to solve problems in Pennsylvania," Shapiro said. Among the items on Shapiro's wish list are raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour, legalizing and then slapping a 20 percent tax on marijuana, taxing so-called skill games, adding another $290 million to public transportation and speeding up his plan to lower the state's corporate net income tax to 4.99 percent by 2029, or two years earlier than currently expected.
Gov. Josh Shapiro's budget is for $51.5 billion. His projected tax revenues for the next fiscal year is $46.6 billion, with the gap filled in with spending down the state's $3 billion surplus and another $1.6 billion from its rainy day fund. House Appropriations Minority Chair Jim Struzzi is not a fan of that idea. "We cannot jeopardize our future by spending all of our money and that's essentially what the governor is proposing to do," Struzzi says. Senate President Pro Tempore Kim Ward agrees. "I think he tried that last year and we still don't have those things passed. They may never pass. They may pass. You can't count on that revenue to pay for programs. We can't do it," Ward says. She believes it's dangerous to base budget numbers on things that don't exist, like marijuana and skill games tax dollars.
State Police are searching for a man missing out of Monroe County. Eighty-two-year-old James Mills has not been seen since Saturday afternoon and police believe he may be confused or at risk of injury or harm. Mills is described as a white male standing five-feet eleven-inches tall with grey hair and brown eyes. Officers say he is operating a 2017 Dodge Ram pickup. Anyone with information on Mills' whereabouts is asked to contact police.
A popular restaurant and miniature golf course in Northampton County has announced its date for a reopening. Mountain View Family Drive-In, on Jacobsburg Road in Bushkill Township, will reopen under new management on March 20, the first day of spring. The owners say Mountain View will continuing to offer its popular burgers and cheesesteaks while introducing new items like cheesesteak egg rolls, a vegan patty melt wrap and and many more salad options.
Pennsylvania's gas prices have dropped a bit over the past seven days. According to AAA East Central, the average price for a gallon of gas in Pennsylvania dropped nearly three cents to $3.34 as of Tuesday. That's three pennies less than last February 4. In the Lehigh Valley, that price dropped by more than three cents to $3.20, nearly 11 cents below the February 4, 2024 price.
Dorney Park is getting in the Eagles spirit ahead of the Super Bowl. The park is flying Eagles flags from some of most famous rides, including the Dominator Drop Tower and the Iron Menace roller coaster. In addition, the Dominator and the park's Ferris wheel will be lit up in Eagles green to support the Birds. The park says the Eagles theme will run throughout February.
The National Traffic Safety Board has left Philadelphia less than a week after a medical jet crashed in northeast Philadelphia. Seven people including a child were killed when the jet went down along Cottman Avenue last Friday. Officials released a picture of the black box on social media that was recovered on Sunday. At least 24 people were injured and 366 properties damaged.
Hershey Gardens is announcing plans for what could be its final major expansion. The Gardens are planning to build a 33-hundred-square-foot pavilion to replace the seasonal tent near the Milton and Catherine Conservatory. Executive Director Don Papson said the Rose Garden Pavilion will give Hershey Gardens the additional space needed to better accommodate guests. The Gardens have launched a capital campaign to raise the money for the three-point-five-million-dollar-project.
State officials say New Jersey added more than 19-thousand new voters last month -- but Democrats lost some two-thousand members from their rolls. The latest voter registration data show Republicans added more than ten-thousand registrants last month. The number of unaffiliated voters grew by about eleven-thousand.
Attorneys for the man accused in the crash that killed NHL star Johnny Gaudreau and his brother in South Jersey say their client faces improperly severe punishment because of publicity over the case. Sean Higgins was indicted last month on several charges, including aggravated manslaughter and reckless homicide. Higgins is accused of striking the Columbus Blue Jackets forward and Matthew Gaudreau with his Jeep while the brothers were riding bikes in Oldmans Township in August. Higgins appeared in a Salem County Courtroom yesterday for an initial hearing into the charges. He'll return next month for a final disposition conference.
The Mavericks aren't done making moves following the Luka Doncic trade. The team acquired Quentin Grimes from the 76ers in exchange for Caleb Martin on Tuesday. Philadelphia is also getting back its own second round pick in 2025 as part of the deal. Martin is averaging just over nine points per game and is in the first season of a four-year, $35 million contract. The 29-year-old is a dead eye from three-point range in the playoffs, shooting more than 40-percent in 45 career games. On the Philly side, Grimes is averaging more than 10 points per game while shooting a career-best 39-point-eight-percent from three-point range this season. The 24-year-old is in the final year of his deal and is scheduled to become a restricted free agent in the offseason. The NBA trade deadline is Thursday afternoon.
