Crime and Fire

Guns, Jewelry Snatched in $10,000 Lower Mac Burglary

State police seek witnesses or knowledge of the crime.

A burglar may have struck gold recently when entering a Lower Macungie Township residence. If not literally, then at least figuratively. A release from state police at Fogelsville did not detail the stolen valuables but did generalize by listing jewelry and several firearms. Whether that jewelry included gold items or not isn't certain, but the $10,000 total value of the loot would suggest that the thief made a pretty good haul nonetheless. The home, in the 3900 block of Larkspur Drive near Fish Hatchery Road, was entered between 8 a.m. May 9 and 8:15 a.m. May 16, police said. Police ask that anyone with information call them at 610-395-1438.

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Crime and Fire

Driver Stuck on RR Tracks Charged with DUI

Police say blood test results show he was more than twice the legal limit for alcohol.

An out-of-town driver took a wrong route recently, landing him on railroad tracks in Macungie, according to borough police. The action also landed the Orefield man in some hot water when police thought they detected that he was drunk. Test results confirmed the notion, according to police, who said his blood-alcohol content was .20. A driver is considered above the legal limit in Pennsylvania at .08. Police said that the vehicle driven by Matthew Partel, 34, of 1115 Grove Drive became stuck on the tracks at Church and Lehigh streets at 3:50 a.m. May 4. There is no crossing at the location, and train traffic was stopped until the vehicle was removed. Partel was charged with driving under the influence after the blood test results were …

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Crime and Fire

Erratic Behavior at First Niagara Bank Prompts Alarm

Man's tirade prompts employee to push hold-up alarm button, police say.

The actions weren't quite the same as yelling "bomb" on an airplane or "fire" in a crowded theater, but a Macungie man's recent angry behavior brought him some unwanted attention inside a borough bank nonetheless. Rocco Giannetta became irate over a bank policy on check cashing, according to Macungie police. The commotion at 12:48 p.m. May 11 prompted a First Niagara Bank employee to activate a hold-up alarm. Police thought they were responding to a bank robbery. Once inside the 201 W. Main St. bank, police sorted out the events. It seemed that Giannetta, 59, became furious when he was told that it would take several days for a check he was depositing to clear before he would have use of the money, police said. Giannetta, of 505 Brookfield…

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Crime and Fire

Three Air Conditioners Taken from Lower Mac Store

Police say man was caught taking third air conditioner from Wal-Mart.

In this instance, the third time wasn't the charm. An Allentown man shopping at Wal-Mart in Lower Macungie Township might have thought he was a cool customer, but loss prevention officers instead probably thought he wasn't so hot. Richardo Orasmin Cabrera, 24, was accused May 11 of retail theft when he was caught loading an air conditioner into his vehicle, according to state police at Fogelsville. Not only had he not paid for that air conditioner, but police further said the same man left the store at 1091 Mill Creek Road with air conditioners on two other unspecified occasions. The total value of the three was $852. Cabrera was taken to Lehigh County Central Booking Center for arraignment on the retail theft charge, police said. He was …

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Car Crashes Into Trexlertown Wal-Mart

A vehicle crashed into the front of Wal-Mart in Trexlertown on Saturday

An elderly woman was taken away by ambulance after her car crashed into the front doors of Wal-Mart in Trexlertown around 1 p.m. Saturday, according to a witness at the store. There are no reports of injuries to any shoppers or store employees. The woman was unresponsive after the crash, according to John MacDonald, manager of the Auntie Anne's preztel stand inside the Walmart Super Center. MacDonald told Patch that he went outside immediately after the accident and observed that the woman would not open the car door or window. Emergency crews arrived on the scene within minutes, and they eventually got the door open, MacDonald said. He said there was no visible damage to the car and the entryway to the store was repaired and open within …

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Kids Hurt When Bus Crashes After Leaving Dorney Park

A bus with about 30 students on board crashed following a trip to Dorney Park

A bus carrying about 30 students crashed around 6 p.m. Friday after leaving Dorney Park. The bus is from the Pennridge Regional School District in Perkasie, Bucks County. There were no serious injuries, according to Trooper Jeremy Temple of the Fogeslville state police barracks. About 15 people were taken to local hospitals - seven to St Luke's Hospital and eight to Lehigh Valley Hospital's Cedar Crest campus. The bus hit a light pole on the ramp from Hamilton Boulevard to Interstate 78 in Lower Macungie Township. Police say three buses were on Hamilton Boulevard/Route 222 waiting at a traffic light. The first bus made it through the light as the green arrow changed to solid green. The second bus crashed when making a hard left to avoid an…

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The Hero Next Door

Lower Mac’s Jim VanWert Shares His Stories

Just stop by the new Brandywine Station.

Name:  Jim VanWert Age:  51 Hometown:  Lower Macungie Township Family:  Jim and his wife, Renee, have been married for 30 years and have three sons. Occupation:  He is the shop foreman at Becker Suburu. Fire Company:  Jim has been a volunteer at the Lower Macungie Fire Department for the past 31 years. Training:  “I am trained as officer 1, water rescue, car rescue, and many, many more areas.  Training never stops.  Things have changed a lot since I started, especially the training.  When I began, firefighters learned by doing—there was no training.” Describe your job with the fire company.  “I am currently the assistant chief of the department. I am also the treasurer of the Wescosville Firemen’s Relief Association. This association was …

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