BODY FOUND IN PACHAUG POND
GRISWOLD, Conn. (AP) – State and local authorities have found a body in a pond where a snowmobiler went missing in December after falling through the ice. The body was found at Pachaug Pond in Griswold on Tuesday. Local firefighters and officers with state police and the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection were on the scene. Officials say the identity of the person needs to be confirmed by the medical examiner’s office. Authorities previously said 56-year-old John Dubois, of Griswold, went missing Dec. 16 while snowmobiling on the 840-acre pond, which was covered with ice. First responders found the snowmobile at the time, but not the rider.
SCHOOL RE-ALIGNMENT PROPOSAL PANNED
Opposition tonight from parents, and school board members regarding a proposed school re-alignment plan in Norwich. The board’s budget expenditure committee released the proposal in light of a projected 11-percent increase in education spending next year. The plan would eliminate eleven teaching positions, saving an estimated 800-thousand dollars, by making the Stanton, Veterans Memorial, and Mahan schools kindergarten through second grade, and Huntington, Uncas, and Wequonnoc Schools third through fifth grade. Parent Alyssa Pendleton says there’ll be too many disruptions for students. School officials note school spending would still have to be increased 8-percent next year, even if the school realignment goes through. A public hearing on the budget proposal will be held a week from tomorrow night at 6 at the Kelly Middle School. The proposed realignment would not affect the Moriarty school, or the middle schools.
ALLEGED ARSONIST WILL GO IT ALONE IN COURT
A Norwich man facing arson charges will represent himself in court. 38-year old Tyree Davis says he says it’s time to-quote-take things into my own hands. He rejected the services of a public defender while in New London Superior Court last week. Davis is accused of intentionally setting fire to a combined commercial and residential building on Central Avenue in Greeneville January 25th. Police say they smelled a strong odor of gasoline at the fire, and have surveillance footage showing someone pouring liquid from a container and lighting a match. All occupants got out safely. Davis remains held on one million dollars bond, and is due back in court March 23rd. A not guilty plea was entered on his behalf by Judge Hillary Strackbein.
CITIZEN OF THE YEAR!!
A lifetime of giving back to the local community has paid off with a prestigious honor for Louis Ziegler. The long-time executive director of housing for the Mohegan Tribal Housing Authority has been named the 68h Citizen of the Year by the Chamber of Commerce of Eastern Connecticut. Ziegler serves as board chair of the Chamber Foundation, something he says he takes great pride in. Ziegler has worked for the Mohegan Tribal Housing Authority since 1996. He played the lead role in overseeing construction of the tribe’s Elderly Housing Complex in 2002. The program was later expanded to include assisted living. Ziegler will be honored during a banquet at the Mystic Marriott in May.
WIFE OF DEAD UCONN DOCTOR ARRAIGNED
Authorities are investigating whether a University of Connecticut doctor, whose body was found wrapped up in his home, has been dead since June. Dr. Pierluigi Bigazzi’s wife, Linda Kosuda-Bigazzi, was arraigned Tuesday on a murder charge. His body was found during a Feb. 5 wellness check by police in Burlington. The medical examiner determined the pathology professor died of blunt force trauma to the head. Kosuda-Bigazzi declined to comment as she entered Bristol Superior Court. The 70-year-old scientist, who worked with her husband, is free on home confinement after agreeing to wear a monitoring ankle bracelet and posting a $1.5 million bond. The arrest warrant in the case has been sealed, but court documents indicate police believe Bigazzi could have been killed as early as June 13.
CT LAWMAKERS TOLD TO HELP IMMIGRANT STUDENTS
HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) – Immigrant students without legal status in the United States are again urging Connecticut legislators to make them eligible for institutional financial assistance at state-run colleges and universities. This marks the fifth year that legislation has been proposed to make immigrant students eligible for financial aid funded by tuition payments from all students. Opponents have said the bill sends the wrong message. Students and their supporters told the General Assembly’s Higher Education and Employment Advancement Committee on Tuesday about the struggles the immigrant students face in trying to fund their education. Both Democratic Gov. Dannel P. Malloy and Lt. Gov. Nancy Wyman are urging lawmakers to finally pass the legislation this year, saying circumstances by which the students arrived in the U.S. should not determine their futures.
ASHES MORE IMPORTANT THAN VALENTINES FOR CATHOLICS
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) – The Roman Catholic bishop of Providence says Catholics who want to celebrate Valentine’s Day had better reschedule. Valentine’s Day this year coincides with Ash Wednesday, a penitential holiday that is among the most solemn of the year. It begins Lent and carries with it an obligation to fast and abstain from meat. Bishop Thomas Tobin says Ash Wednesday has priority. He tells WPRO-AM he’s not even sure he has the authority to issue dispensations from the holiday’s requirements. Tobin says the day “belongs to God, and we shouldn’t take it away from him.” Rhode Island is the most Catholic state in the nation, with 44 percent of those surveyed by Gallup in 2017 identifying as Catholic. Tobin suggests those who want to celebrate should do so on Tuesday instead.
