Police and Crime News
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Centre County Residents Hit by Phone Scams
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Centre County Sheriff Bryan Sampsel said that in the latest round of calls scammers are pretending to be deputies from his office, using spoofed phone numbers and real names they have scraped from public sources.
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New Charges Filed Against Men Accused in Centre County Teen Sex Abuse Case
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State police at Rockview on Wednesday filed a long list of new charges, including human trafficking, against the three men accused of sexually abusing teenage girls and recording the encounters inside a Centre County home. The new charges come as investigators have spent the days after the arrests of Samuel C. Friday, Michael H. Woomer…
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Human Trafficking Charges to Be Filed in Centre County Child Sex Abuse Case
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Prosecutors plan to file human trafficking charges this week against three men accused of sexually abusing teenagers in a Centre County home. Since the arrest of Samuel C. Friday, 67, on Nov. 17, on child pornography charges, investigators have been reviewing evidence collected from his basement and believe he may have been bringing underage teens…
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Police: Penn State Students Made Counterfeit Passes to Get on Field at Beaver Stadium
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Two Penn State students are facing criminal charges after police said they used counterfeit passes to enter Beaver Stadium and get on the field during a recent Nittany Lion football gameday. Nikola Georgiev, 19, admitted to Penn State police that he used artificial intelligence to create the field media passes that he and Jyot S.…
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Two More Men Charged in Centre County Child Sexual Abuse Case
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Updated 11:48 a.m. Nov. 22. Days after a Centre County man was arrested for allegedly soliciting underage teens for sexual activity and recording the encounters, two more men are now facing charges in the case. Michael H. Woomer, 66, of Taylor Township, and Morris W. Reese, 64, of Blair County, were each charged on Thursday…
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Centre County Law Enforcement Look to Identify Possible Victims in Child Pornography Case
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Investigators and prosecutors are looking to identify possible victims of a Centre County man who they say solicited underage teenagers for sexual activity and recorded the encounters. Samuel C. Friday, 67, was charged Tuesday with 10 felony counts of child sexual abuse material after state police at Rockview found numerous videos and photos of juveniles…
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Centre County Man Recorded Himself Sexually Abusing Children, Police Say
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A Centre County man was arrested Monday night after police said he filmed and photographed himself sexually abusing children. Samuel C. Friday, 67, of Taylor Township, is charged with 10 felony counts of child sexual abuse material. A court docket noted that “charges related to physical acts” are pending. State police at Rockview on Nov.…
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Ferguson Township Names State College Police Veteran as Next Chief
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A longtime State College police officer has been selected to lead the Ferguson Township Police Department. Matthew Wilson, the borough’s assistant chief since 2017, was unanimously approved by the Board of Supervisors on Wednesday as Ferguson Township’s next chief of police. He is expected to begin his command of the township police department in January,…
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Centre County Woman Accused of Stealing More Than $1M From Employer
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A Spring Township woman was charged on Wednesday with stealing more than $1 million from her employer over the course of five years. Carri A. Roan, 46, admitted to the thefts from Nittany Learning Services, saying that she had fallen into deep debt following a breast cancer diagnosis, according to an affidavit of probable cause…
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State College Names Next Police Chief
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Updated 8:23 p.m. Nov. 10. A State College native will return to the borough as its next police chief. Joseph Merrill, who has been chief of police in Altoona since 2021, will be sworn in as State College’s top cop on Jan. 5, Borough Manager Tom Fountaine said during Monday night’s council meeting. He will…