AKRON
U.S. deports two
AKRON: Two of 34 employees arrested during a raid of the local Mariachi Locos restaurant chain have been deported, nine more are in “various stages of the removal process,” and 23 have been released pending deportation proceedings, a spokesman with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said Friday.
The Akron Beacon Journal published a story Friday about a rally held at the Summit County Courthouse to call attention to the raid and the pending deportation of undocumented workers who are parents of U.S.-born children.
The agency did not return comment in time for the story, but on Friday, a spokesman, Khaalid Walls, provided an update on deportations.
He also said that the Aug. 18 raid of the seven restaurants in Summit and Stark counties was “part of an ongoing criminal investigation.”
“The documents related to the investigation are under seal in federal court,” he said.
BATH TOWNSHIP
Caregiver arrested
BATH TWP.: The caregiver for a 77-year-old woman faces charges of theft, assault and tampering with drugs after she was accused of stealing the woman’s prescription narcotics for pain and replacing them with veterinary medicine.
Amy Williamson, 50, of Barberton, was booked into the Summit County Jail.
The older woman became ill after consuming the wrong medicine, according to the Summit County Sheriff’s Office. A spokesman said she is not in the hospital but is being monitored by doctors.
CLEVELAND
Veterans indicted
CLEVELAND: Two Akron men are among 16 veterans in Northeast Ohio charged with submitting inflated mileage claims totalling nearly $250,000.
The indictments were announced Friday by Steven M. Dettelbach, U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Ohio, and Gavin McClaren, resident agent in charge of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General.
The veterans are accused of submitting “false claims for travel reimbursement to the Veterans Affairs Office, using false or nonexistent addresses representing a greater distance of travel than he or she had actually traveled.”
“This money should have been used for legitimate medical care for veterans, particularly our returning combat veterans,” McClaren said in a news release.
The two Akron men indicted are Timothy Knotts, 54, and Anthony Shumpert, 54. They are accused of submitting claims for $9,326 and $17,134 respectively.
Shampert is also charged with making a false statement to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
COPLEY TOWNSHIP
Fire destroys barn
COPLEY TWP.: A fire in an old barn kept firefighters from Copley Township and surrounding communities busy late Friday afternoon.
Firefighters were called to the west end of Knox Boulevard to a reported fire in the woods.
Authorities say an old barn caught fire and since it is located off the road, additional equipment was called in from neighboring departments to help ferry in water.
No one was reported injured.
WADSWORTH
Council OKs pact
WADSWORTH: The City Council this week approved a contract with GPD Associates for professional engineering services to improve High Street in the Great Oaks Business District.
The GPD contract, which could exceed $742,000, includes plans to widen High Street, the bridge over Interstate 76 and the ramps associated with that intersection.
Because of funding, the original plans were scaled back, said City Engineer Tom Tucker.
At one time, plans called for improving High Street north to the city limits and south of West Street. But those plans were shortened by about one-half mile to include only the portion of High Street just north of Smokerise Drive.
Tucker said the final engineering for the project is expected to cost $1.5 million. Acquisition of right-of-way and installing utilities would cost about $3 million. Construction would be $11 million.
The plans still have to go through a series of local and state reviews.
Nearly 30,000 vehicles flow through the intersection daily. Because it has been deemed a high-accident area, the city will receive nearly $9 million in federal funds for improvements.
The city expects to receive another $3.1 million from the Northeast Ohio Areawide Coordinating Agency. Local matching funds are expected to total $3.2 million with $1.5 million of that being tax increment financing from the Wal Mart-Home Depot development at the intersection of High Street and Smokerise Drive.
Hearing on store
WADSWORTH: A public hearing on a proposal to rezone two lots from residential to commercial on College Street near state Route 57 will be heard by the city’s Planning Commission at 7 p.m. Monday at City Hall, 120 Maple St.
The developers hope to construct a Stop’n Go at the site.
To answer concerns raised by nearby residents, David Krebs, architect for the project, said a drive-thru in the original plans has been scrapped.
This along with changing the location of fuel pumps, Krebs said, should help eliminate some of the headlight glare on neighboring properties.
Plans call for a convenience store, gasoline pumps and a car wash.
Planning Director Jeff Kaiser noted the planning commission will only discuss the rezoning issue at the Monday hearing.
Plans for the site, if the rezoning is approved, will be heard at a later date.
After the commission makes a recommendation, the City Council will take up the issue.