In brief: Gunman wounds store co-workers
Reno, Nev. – A gunman who police said was about to be fired surrendered Friday after shooting three co-workers at a Walmart store in Nevada in a possible retaliation attack, authorities said.
The peaceful surrender capped a six-hour standoff during which police negotiators said they spoke by telephone with 45-year-old John Dennis Gillane as he was holed up in an office in the store.
Gillane was taken into custody and will be charged with three counts of attempted murder, Reno police Lt. Mohammad Rafaqat said.
No shots were fired after the three male victims, including a manager, were wounded shortly after 8:30 a.m., police said.
“I’m very happy he is out and the situation didn’t escalate,” Rafaqat said. “We convinced him the best move was to surrender.”
New York – Mobster Salvatore Vitale had a hand in at least 11 murders, including that of a fellow gangster in the fallout from the infamous Donnie Brasco case.
Despite the carnage, he was spared a life term Friday. A judge instead sentenced the Mafia turncoat to time served after federal prosecutors praised his total betrayal of his own crime syndicate – and after he apologized to the families of his victims.
“I committed some really horrible crimes I’ll always be ashamed of, and I pray for forgiveness,” Vitale said in federal court in Brooklyn.
The evidence provided by the 63-year-old since his arrest in 2003 has helped decimate the once-fearsome Bonanno organized crime family, said Assistant U.S. Attorney Greg Andres.
The former underboss pleaded guilty in April 2003 to racketeering conspiracy and murder-in-aid of racketeering, and has served nearly eight years behind bars. He admitted involvement in 11 slayings between 1976 and 1999.
Jemez Pueblo, N.M. – Kids who have been eagerly awaiting a fun-filled night of trick-or-treating in this small Native American community will need to find a new way to spend Halloween.
Leaders of Jemez Pueblo have banned trick-or-treating on Halloween, saying it’s a safety concern for children walking near unlit roads at night and a holiday that’s not part of pueblo culture.
Pueblo leaders say anyone trick-or-treating on tribal land will be sent home, and suggest parents who want their children to participate take them elsewhere.