Content about Police Chief

03.18.11

Avalon officials showed their appreciation this week for two police officers injured during the pursuit of a suspected drug dealer earlier this year. Working in plainclothes along with Police Chief Tom Kokoski, Officers Sean Khirley and Walt Johnson pursued the fleeing suspect through a 20-foot jump and over a fence, finally nabbing him and recovering a quantity of suspected heroin. Both officers and the suspect were hospitalized after the chase. While Khirley has returned to duty, Johnson remains off-duty with a leg injury.

12.17.10

Always on the job...

What happens when two police chiefs run into each other on vacation? They go do police stuff, of course. That happened just last week when Ohio Township Police Chief Beaver Micklos (pictured above at left) and Avalon Police Chief Tom Kokoski (right) ran into each other on the Caribbean island of Aruba. They were invited to accompany Aruban police detectives on helicopter surveillance of the island as police searched the surrounding ocean for any sign of drug traffickers bringing in narcotics from South America.

01.22.12

Robbery charges

Ohio Township Police have identified the man who robbed an Emsworth resident on Jan. 10 as the same man arrested Thursday morning for the rapes of two women in Ross Township.

Ohio Township Police Chief Beaver Micklos said that his officers planned to file charges Thursday against Arthur Henderson, 38, of Ross, for the Jan. 10 robbery of Paul Leung in the parking lot of the House of Lee restaurant in Emsworth. Leung was seriously injured and robbed of $4,000 - $5,000 after returning to his residence above the restaurant after gambling at the North Side casino.

11.11.11

Scam artists hit

Ohio Township Police are warning residents not to let strangers into their homes after a group of scam artists were nearly successful in stealing property from an Emsworth woman.

08.12.11

New door

Bellevue's police station is expected to be a bit more secure after the replacement of an exterior door.

Police Chief Matt Sentner said that the rusted door has not closed properly several times, allowing citizens to walk into the rear area of the station that is off-limits to the public.

Council authorized the purchase and installation of a new door at a cost of no more than $1,890.

07.02.11

Heroin haul in Bellevue

Bellevue Police seized 250 stamp bags of heroin and more than $2,700 in cash during a raid on a home in the borough on Monday. Police are not disclosing the exact location of the bust in the northern section of the borough, or the names of the individuals taken into custody. Police Chief Matt Sentner said that the investigation was headed by officers Aaron Nutter and Jim Niglio, and involved the assistance of the city and county police narcotics units. The five “bricks” of heroin seized have an estimated street value of about $5,000, Sentner said.

06.17.11

Legacy

In the future, when North Boroughs residents use the words “Lennon” and “police” in the same sentence, they may not be talking about former Kilbuck Township Police Chief Jack Lennon. Instead, they may be referring to his grandson, and namesake, John Lennon, who was sworn in as a Bellevue Police officer Tuesday evening.

05.20.11

Ben Avon okays emergency notice system

By LOIS THOMSON

"Let's get it up and running," said Ohio Township Police Chief Norbert Micklos. And with that, Ben Avon Council voted unanimously to authorize the chief to enter into an agreement with the One Call Now System on behalf of the borough.

The idea behind the one call service is to keep all residents apprised if an emergency occurs in the community. Participation is voluntary, and council voted to give all participants the option of receiving automatic notification by phone (land lines), text message or e-mail.

02.18.11

Shooting-related search ends in drug bust

The search of an Avalon home in connection with the recent drive-by shooting in Bellevue ended with no arrests for the shooting, but three people charged with narcotics-related offenses.

Police officers from Bellevue, Avalon and Ohio Township entered the home at 304 S. Home Ave. just after 6 a.m. last Friday. According to Bellevue Police Chief Matt Sentner, his department obtained information that two youths seen running from the scene of a drive-by shooting on Lincoln Avenue on Feb. 8 had gone to that house.

02.11.11

Car shot in Bellevue drive-by

Bellevue Police are calling a drive-by shooting that occurred on Lincoln Avenue Tuesday afternoon a "transient event" not substantially connected to the borough.

The victim of the shooting at this point appears to be a gray Oldsmobile, as both young men in the car fled the scene on foot and have not yet been located.

02.11.11

Meter increase?

Bellevue Council is expected to vote Feb. 22 on whether to double the price of parking at a meter in the borough.

The increase, from 25 cents per hour to 50 cents per hour, is proposed as part of a “revenue generation action plan” presented to council by Police Chief matt Sentner.

The plan also calls for increased fines for meter and street sweeping violations.

10.31.10

COPS approval

Bellevue Council voted Tuesday to accept the grant that will put another police officer on borough streets for three years, but not without questions over why information on fourth-year funding was not provided.

10.16.10

Chief says he will get COPS funds

Amid concerns about the cost of accepting a grant that would put another police officer on Bellevue’s streets, the borough’s police chief has pledged to come up with the necessary funds.

08.21.10

Stabbing justified, police say

A stabbing that resulted in the death of a man was a case of self-defense, according to Bellevue Police Chief Matt Sentner.

Police were called to a Jefferson Avenue apartment building just after 2 a.m. on Sunday. A woman reported that someone had broken into her apartment and been stabbed by her boyfriend.

The stabbing victim was located in the basement of the building by an Avalon Police officer.

Witnesses say the man had been stabbed multiple times.

08.13.10

K-9 in Bellevue?

Bellevue Police Chief Matt Sentner would like to see the borough council budget money next year to hire a new police officer -- one who will patrol on four legs instead of two.

Sentner told council members Tuesday that outside funding likely is available not only to pay for a police dog, but the training necessary for both dog and the officer who will be handling him. The major expense facing Bellevue, he said, will be for a special police car that contains a built-in kennel. That car will stay with the dog and the human officer at all times, he said.

07.23.10

Property owners could be fined for police calls

An ordinance under consideration by Avalon Council could give police the power to fine the owner of any property where officers are called more than twice in a 30-day period.

Property owners would be charged $100 per call in excess of the limit. Property owners who fail to pay the fine within 10 days of receiving an invoice from the police department could be charged with a summary criminal offense and fined an additional $25 to $100.

The ordinance would apply to the owners of any property in the borough -- residential, commercial or vacant lot.

07.09.10

Bellevue man throws self into traffic

A Bellevue man faces multiple felony charges after he attempted to outrun police on a motorcycle, then threw himself into oncoming traffic.

Police say that David Davis, 35, may have become agitated after being served with a Protection From Abuse (PFA) no-contact order earlier Wednesday night. About 1 a.m. Thursday, he was observed on a motorcycle on Ohio River Boulevard in Emsworth, where police say he ran the red light at Camp Horne Road.

07.02.10

Arthur gets around

Arthur did not take off with State Police Trooper James Pecori and Avalon Police Chief Tom Kokoski because, quite frankly, he did not fit in the helicopter.

07.02.10

Take-off

Avalon Police Chief Tom Kokoski prepares to take off in the state police helicopter used Monday in a multi-jurisdictional narcotics surveillance task.

07.02.10

Take-off

State Trooper James Pecori and Avalon Police Chief Tom Kokoski take off on their mission.

06.18.10

Drug bust ends with shots fired

A drug bust ended badly in Avalon last Thursday night, with a suspect attempting to run over a police officer and the officer shooting at the vehicle.

Avalon police Chief Tom Kokoski said that officers Walt Johnson and Matt McDanel were working in plainclothes, observing a drug deal occurring in Peach Alley. When the officers approached the car, Kokoski said, identifying themselves as police officers, the driver took off, headed right for Johnson. The chief said that Johnson fired three shots in self defense but did not hit the vehicle.

06.11.10

Some COPS after all

After voting two weeks ago not to apply for a Community Oriented Police Services (COPS) grant unless there was no financial obligation on the part of the borough, Bellevue Council reversed itself at Tuesday's work session and voted to allow the police chief to update and revise a COPS grant application.

Bellevue previously was denied a request for funding that would cover the salaries and benefits of two officers for three years. The officers would have to be new hires, and would have to remain employed by the borough for one full budget cycle after the three-year period.

05.21.10

New Avalon chief sworn in

Avalon Police Chief Robert Howie, left, welcomes his successor, new chief Tom Kokoski, after Kokoski was sworn in by Mayor David Haslett at Wednesday’s Avalon Council meeting. Howie will retire May 25 after 17 years as chief, and a total of 23 years with the Avalon Police Department. Kokoski, who has been a police officer for 12 years and employed with Avalon for the past eight, was hired last month by Avalon Council. Council voted Wednesday to approve a 3.5 year contract with Kokoski, though Dec. 31, 2013.

05.21.10

Senior charged with post-prom assault

An Avonworth senior is being charged with rape and indecent assault after being discovered with an unconscious girl at a post-prom party in an Ohio Township home last Friday.

According to Ohio Township Police Chief Norbert Micklos, witnesses at the party found Chad Stewart, 18, of Emsworth, sexually assaulting an unconscious girl.

The girl is a juvenile and is not from the North Boroughs, Micklos said.

05.14.10

Student won’t be charged

No charges will be filed against an Avonworth Middle School student who authored a note that caused concern in the district this week.

According to Ohio Township Police Chief Beaver Micklos, a school bus driver found a piece of stationary containing the “Death Note” logo. Death Note is a Japanese anime series about a high school student who discovers a supernatural notebook -- the Death Note -- that gives him the power to fight evil by causing the death of anyone whose name is written in the notebook.