Bronx News Roundup, Sept. 23

Tensions are high in the ongoing Bronx synagogue bomb plot trial. According to NY1, Judge Colleen McMahon got into verbal spats yesterday with lawyers on both sides of the case.

Police arrested a 30-year-old woman yesterday in connection to a fire she allegedly started last week in the basement of an apartment building in West Farms.

There may not be alligators in New York's sewers, but a Bronx man found a 3-foot snake in his toilet earlier this week. Authorities say it was a harmless corn snake, and likely someones discarded pet.

A Bronx man is being charged with the sexual assault of an 11-year-old girl Throgs Neck girl who went missing last week. She has since safely returned home.

A man from Riverdale is going to court today for leaving his dog locked in a van during 95-degree weather last July. The dog died, despite attempts by police to revive it.

Martha Stewart designed the Bronx Botanical Garden's "Edible Garden" exhibit. The homemaking maven also hosted a cocktail party at the garden on Tuesday.

Bronx-born Jenny-from-the-block Lopez will be the next new judge on American Idol. 

The City Council will announce a new plan today to deal with the city's distressed and over-leveraged buildings--like the crumbling Bronx properties owned by Milbank Real Estate.  We'll have more on this later.

The Lehman Center for the Performing Arts celebrates its 30th anniversary season this year. 

A Bronx student traveled to the White House this month to participate in a dance program.

American Diner Owner Faces Arson Charge

The owner of the American Diner on East 204th Street in Norwood is behind the fire that destroyed his business, a Foodtown, and a dental office on Dec. 21, a Fire Department spokesman told The New York Times.

Mohammed Abdul Quadir was arrested yesterday on arson and other charges. The authorities believe he paid another man, Christopher J. Gooding, about $2,000 to start the blaze. Gooding has also been arrested.

Quadir, who is up to his eyeballs in debt, had recently taken out a $500,000 insurance policy on the diner, and saw arson as a way out of his financial predicament, the FDNY spokesman said.

Here's the Bronx News Network's coverage of the fire and its aftermath (scroll down for additional posts). It was the third major fire in the area since April.

Bronx News Roundup, Dec. 14

Last night, members of the Glory Christ Church in Parkchester held a vigil to mourn the loss of their church, which was burned down by a satanic arsonist last Wednesday.

A father who once planned on building a center to promote leukemia research in Morris Park in honor of his son who died from the disease now owns an empty lot with little hope of building his dream center.

Today, Governor Paterson stated that he plans to cut $750 million from New York state public schools and local governments.

A report from a task force created by Governor Paterson found that juvenile justice system in New York is ineffective and harmful to youth. In one juvenile institution, a Bronx boy was killed and no criminal charges were filed.

The NYPD and Toys for Tots gave away toys to preschoolers on Friday at the New York Institute for Special Education in Bronxdale.

A judge dismissed the innocent William McCaffery from all charges in a case where he was accused of raping a woman in the Bronx. Recently, the alleged rape victim admitted that she had lied about the rape.

Bronx News Roundup, October 28

A wounded Marine from the Bronx will root for the Yankees tonight while sitting next to the First Lady, Michelle Obama, at the World Series opener.

The Daily News suspects foul play in the Bloomberg administration's purchase of 10 acres of land in the East Bronx this past July. The New York City government paid $46 million to buy the land from a realty firm connected with the Mafia and the firm originally paid only $5.5 million for the land in the 1990s. The land will be used to build a backup center for 911 operators.

A Bronx resident was charged with second-degree murder and second-degree arson after allegedly starting a fire in Yonkers. The fire killed one firefighter and injured two others.

Yesterday, street vendors accused the police of harassing them with fines during a protest on the steps of City Hall. In the Bronx, vendors complained that police commonly issue $1,000 fines to vendors who have a vendor license, but do no have a cart permit.

amNewYork compiled a list of Edgar Allen Poe's New York City residences just in time for Halloween. Included in the list is Poe's last residence at the Poe Cottage in the Bronx, which is now open as a museum.

Boogiedowner recently profiled two restaurants in Bedford Park on 204th Street between Grand Concourse and E. Mosholu Parkway.

Bronx News Roundup, September 23

Newly appointed Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor will throw the first pitch at Yankee Stadium on Saturday's game against the Boston Red Sox. Sotomayor's pitching arm will be used to celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month at Yankee Stadium.

Yesterday, Jonathon Huff, a dean of a Bronx high school-- the Urban Assembly Academy of History and Citizenship for Young Men-- pleaded not guilty to the charge of inappropriately touching a 14 year-old student.

The Bronx Supreme Court sentenced a former police detective, Christopher Perino, to four months in jail after he was convicted of perjury during an attempted murder trial in the Bronx.

Police arrested a Bronx man, William Crean, for allegedly setting fire to a building in Westchester Square in March. The fire caused $2 million worth of property damage and minor injuries to three fire fighters. Crean faces charges of arson and up to 25 years in prison.

The New York City Administration for Children's Services cut their budget, and they will no longer provide 5 year-old children with after-school day care. Only children under 5 years-old will receive day care assistance, which leaves many Bronx working parents struggling to find care providers.

This afternoon, police arrested seven Bronx hospital workers (six at Lincoln Medical and Mental Health Center and one at Jacobi Hospital) for taking bribes and steering patients into clinics operating insurance scams. Authorities are still conducting an investigation of bribery and insurance scams at New York City hospitals.

Yesterday, a sudden shooting in Mott Haven on East 146th Street left a 25 year-old woman dead and a 25 year-old man injured.