News Staff

A Romanian man admitted to installing credit card skimming devices at multiple retailers in West Virginia, amassing a quarter million dollars in fraud totals, federal prosecutors said. Andrei Fagaras, 36, pleaded guilty to an access device fraud charge, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of West Virginia. … Read more

A meeting regarding issues with a West Virginia utility provider was suspended Friday, but counsel indicated the company is leaning towards a sale. Black Diamond Power Company, which serves nearly 5,000 customers in Clay, Raleigh and Wyoming counties, has been under investigation for months following numerous complaints regarding billing and reliability.The West Virginia Public Service … Read more

A West Virginia man is accused of shooting his brother multiple times and another man is accused of helping him, troopers said. Derek Arbogast, 37, and Larry Talkington, 62, both of Montrose, are charged with attempted murder following an incident Thursday night in Randolph County. Troopers responded to Mule Hollow Road where Brett Arbogast, 31, … Read more

Greenbrier Minerals LLC issued a WARN notice Friday announcing the layoffs of 530 employees beginning April 14. The mine operator has announced plans to idle more than a half-dozen operations in West Virginia and permanently lay off more than 500 workers. According to the notice, the layoffs will be permanent. The impacted operations include mines … Read more

Agriculture officials are warning of a biosecurity threat stemming from unsolicited packages being mailed in from China. Packets of seeds are being sent to addresses in the state, according to a social media post from the West Virginia Department of Agriculture. The post seed packets are part of a brushing scam, meaning unsolicited packages without … Read more

February is American Heart Month, and Putnam County EMS has introduced the PulsePoint app, designed to speed up response times during sudden cardiac arrests. The app alerts nearby CPR-certified users when someone is experiencing cardiac arrest and shows the closest registered AED locations. The project has been two years in the making and is built … Read more

A trial date has been pushed back again in the 2020 Elkview quadruple murder case. Gavin Smith is now scheduled to go to trial June 22 after Wednesday’s delay due to a scheduling conflict with a medical examiner. A pretrial hearing is set for June 1. Smith was 16 when his mother, stepfather and two … Read more

James Paul, a former charter school leader with a background in school choice policy, was appointed Wednesday to the West Virginia State Board of Education. Gov. Patrick Morrisey announced the appointment, saying he hopes it will spark changes amid low education outcomes, school board takeovers, and declining public school enrollment. Paul, formerly director of state … Read more

Officials report a 7.5% increase in the number of children served at West Virginia Child Advocacy Centers during the 2025 fiscal year. According to a new statewide report, 4,734 children received services — the highest number in the past five years. Of those cases, 17% involved drug endangerment allegations, four times the national average. Nearly … Read more

Lane closures are scheduled on Interstate 64 next week for both the eastbound and westbound lanes at the Montrose Drive interchange in Charleston. According to West Virginia 511, contractors will start installing an overhead protection system under the Montrose Overpass bridge, and lanes will be closed from 9 p.m. Monday, Feb. 16, to 6 a.m. … Read more