Reading Police Shoot And Kill Knife-Wielding Man: Authorities (UPDATED) Reading Police Shoot And Kill Knife-Wielding Man: Authorities (UPDATED) Reading Police Shoot And Kill Knife-Wielding Man: Authorities (UPDATED)
Reading Police Shoot And Kill Knife-Wielding Man: Authorities (Updated) Update: The Berks County District Attorney's Office has identified the man as 50-year-old Damon S. Stern.  Reading police officers said they killed a man who was armed with a knife early Monday morning, March 25.  Authorities were called to the 400 block of Windsor Street around 3:45 a.m. for reports of a "male armed with a knife making suicidal threats," the department said in a release.  Police said they commanded the man to drop the knife, "however, the male ignored those commands and moved towards the officers," the release says.  They shot him and he succumbe…
Former NFL Player's Killer Arrested In Brooklyn: Berks County DA Former NFL Player's Killer Arrested In Brooklyn: Berks County DA Former NFL Player's Killer Arrested In Brooklyn: Berks County DA
Former NFL Player's Killer Arrested In Brooklyn: Berks County DA The suspected gunman in the 2022 Muhlenberg murder of a former pro football player was arrested in Brooklyn on Tuesday, March 5, according to authorities.  The Berks County District Attorney's Office says Jose Daniel Pizarro, 26, was located in a Bedford-Stuyvesant apartment by US Marshals and city police.  Investigators believe Pizarro shot and killed 32-year-old Antonio Dennard at Legends bar on North 5th Street Highway early on Oct. 16, 2022. He was taken to Reading Hospital where he died from his wounds, Daily Voice reported. Pizarro, of Reading, is awaiting extradition …
Undercover Bust: 5 People Seeking Sex With Teens Met By Detectives In Berks County, DA Says Undercover Bust: 5 People Seeking Sex With Teens Met By Detectives In Berks County, DA Says Undercover Bust: 5 People Seeking Sex With Teens Met By Detectives In Berks County, DA Says
Undercover Bust: 5 People Seeking Sex With Teens Met By Detectives In Berks County, DA Says Five people seeking sex with teens have been arrested in an undercover Berks County sting, authorities said. All five individuals responded to an ad, posted on Monday, Jan. 19 by detectives, offering sex with 14- and 15-year-old juveniles at various locations in Berks County, the county district attorney's office announced. The individuals agreed to meet up and have sex with the "teens," but instead were met by detectives and promptly arrested, District Attorney John T. Adams said. The following arrests were made, according to Adams: Richard Keene, 70, of Reading, charged with Traff…
Berks Woman Stole Thousands From Elderly Victim's Bank Account, Prosecutors Say Berks Woman Stole Thousands From Elderly Victim's Bank Account, Prosecutors Say Berks Woman Stole Thousands From Elderly Victim's Bank Account, Prosecutors Say
Berks Woman Stole Thousands From Elderly Victim's Bank Account, Prosecutors Say A Reading woman is accused of defrauding a senior out of thousands of dollars, says the Berks County District Attorney's Office.  Tracy Hoffman, 58, is charged with felony financial exploitation of an older adult, identity theft, forgery, and related counts, according to prosecutors.  Investigators said Hoffman issued multiple checks from the victim's personal bank account without her knowledge, allegedly withdrawing more than $9,000. She's also accused of making over $12,000 in authorized credit card transactions in the victim's name, authorities said.  Detectives believe t…
Berks Mom Sentenced For Stabbing Fiance To Death While Daughter Was Home: DA Berks Mom Sentenced For Stabbing Fiance To Death While Daughter Was Home: DA Berks Mom Sentenced For Stabbing Fiance To Death While Daughter Was Home: DA
Berks Mom Sentenced For Stabbing Fiance To Death While Daughter Was Home: DA A Sinking Spring woman will spend up to two decades behind bars for stabbing her fiance to death during an "altercation" more than three years ago, said the Berks County District Attorney's Office in a release.  Jillian R. Blimline, now 41, was sentenced to 10 to 20 years after pleading no contest to the third-degree murder of Chad MacWilliam, according to officials.  Authorities have said they were called to Blimline and MacWilliam's shared home at 20 Maywood Avenue around 9 p.m. on Dec. 13, 2020.  Police and medics arrived to find MacWilliam, 39, apparently suffering …
7 Suspected Drug Dealers With 'Links To Mexican Cartel' Sought By Berks DA 7 Suspected Drug Dealers With 'Links To Mexican Cartel' Sought By Berks DA 7 Suspected Drug Dealers With 'Links To Mexican Cartel' Sought By Berks DA
7 Suspected Drug Dealers With 'Links To Mexican Cartel' Sought By Berks DA A week after "Operation Knockout" saw 29 accused drug dealers charged in Berks County, prosecutors say seven of them are still on the run.  Roughly $1.5 million in cocaine, fentanyl, methamphetamine, and other substances were seized by authorities in recent weeks as part of their effort targeting a "large-scale drug trafficking organization" based in and around Reading, officials have said.  The organization, according to the DA's Office, was being supplied by a source who had "direct links to a Mexican cartel." Only 18 of the suspects were in custody when authorities announced "Operation…
Berks Man Arrested On Child Pornography Charges Berks Man Arrested On Child Pornography Charges Berks Man Arrested On Child Pornography Charges
Berks Man Arrested On Child Pornography Charges A 66-year-old Shillington man faces 10 counts of child pornography possession, according to the Berks County District Attorney's Office.  Mark Fishkin surrendered to county detectives on Thursday morning, Oct. 12, and was arraigned the same day, authorities said.  Investigators say they received an NCMEC complaint about a Bing account associated with Fishkin in July.  Detectives obtained a warrant on Sept. 20 and seized a laptop and a desktop from Fishkin's Shillington home, they said. A forensic analysis revealed "numerous digital files of child pornography" on both devices…
PA Bicyclist Was Found By Brother After Deadly Hit-Run: Authorities PA Bicyclist Was Found By Brother After Deadly Hit-Run: Authorities PA Bicyclist Was Found By Brother After Deadly Hit-Run: Authorities
PA Bicyclist Was Found By Brother After Deadly Hit-Run: Authorities A Lancaster Township man is accused of fleeing the scene of the deadly crash that killed 23-year-old Anson Burkholder in Maidencreek Township last month.  Moshe K. Notis, 28, is charged with homicide by vehicle and other counts related to the Sept. 20 crash, said the Berks County District Attorney's Office.  Investigators say Burkholder, of Maidencreek, was biking home after stopping by a farm to tend to animals around 8 p.m.  When he never made it back, his brother went looking and found the 23-year-old dead off the shoulder of Route 222 near the edge of a cornfield, accord…
9 Escaped Inmates Recaptured After Riot At 'Secure' PA Facility (UPDATE) 9 Escaped Inmates Recaptured After Riot At 'Secure' PA Facility (UPDATE) 9 Escaped Inmates Recaptured After Riot At 'Secure' PA Facility (UPDATE)
9 Escaped Inmates Recaptured After Riot At 'Secure' PA Facility (Update) All nine juveniles that broke out of Abraxas Academy juvenile detention center have been recaptured, Pennsylvania State Police Trooper Beohm said on Monday morning.  The teens escaped the "secure youth treatment facility" Abraxas Academy located at 1000 Academy Drive, Morgantown, Caernarvon Township, on Sunday, Sept. 17 around 8 p.m., according to area police.  Trooper Beohm said these boys were at the Academy as a holding facility not the long-term location of sentenced youth.  The boys were between the ages of 14 and 17 years of age. Seven of them were from Harrisburg, one from Lehigh Co…
Husband Charged With Wife's Murder In Berks County: DA Husband Charged With Wife's Murder In Berks County: DA Husband Charged With Wife's Murder In Berks County: DA
Husband Charged With Wife's Murder In Berks County: DA A Berks County man previously charged with assault in a deadly domestic incident is now accused of murdering his wife, according to the District Attorney's Office. Harrison Boakye 46, of Fleetwood, was arrested at his Middletown Road home early on Friday, July 7, after 33-year-old Winifred P. Boakye was found unresponsive inside, Daily Voice reported.  Life-saving aid was rendered by first responders "but failed," and she was pronounced dead, authorities said last week.  During her autopsy on Monday, July 10, medical examiners ruled her death a homicide by way of "manua…
Toddler's Killer Captured By US Marshals In Philadelphia: Cops Toddler's Killer Captured By US Marshals In Philadelphia: Cops Toddler's Killer Captured By US Marshals In Philadelphia: Cops
Toddler's Killer Captured By US Marshals In Philadelphia: Cops A man accused of killing a 2-year-old Berks County boy was arrested by US Marshals in Philadelphia early on Thursday, July 6, according to authorities.  Charles A. Acosta, 25, was taken into custody in Tacony, Marshals said.  Acosta was caring for the 2-year-old victim, the boy's younger brother, and his own daughter while his partner and her daughter went out to pick up laundry on the evening of May 4, the Berks County District Attorney's Office said. Acosta called his girlfriend and told her to return to their Bern Township home after the child became "swollen and lethargic" an…
7K+ THC-Laced Fake Branded Products Seized In Central PA: DA 7K+ THC-Laced Fake Branded Products Seized In Central PA: DA 7K+ THC-Laced Fake Branded Products Seized In Central PA: DA
7K+ Thc-laced Fake Branded Products Seized In Central PA: DA Brand-name products were used to disguise illegal drugs found in Lancaster, according to a release by the District Attorney's Office on Thursday, June 1, 2023. Kellogg’s, Ruffles, and Nerds were among the over 7,200 products seized by the Lancaster County Drug Task Force during a two-day operation– with a total estimated value of approximately $290,000, as detailed in the DA's release. The task force went to 43 stores throughout the county and conducted searches with the store owners' consent to find the Delta-8 and Delta-10 THC products. Products seized included vapes, cartridges, oi…