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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

In brief: Admiral denies role in making chips

From Wire Reports

WASHINGTON – An admiral linked by Navy investigators to counterfeit casino chips denied any involvement in making them.

Rear Adm. Timothy M. Giardina acknowledged to the Associated Press that he played the chips at a casino in Iowa in June 2013.

But he denied any role in the counterfeiting or even knowing the chips were fakes at the time he used them. The chips had been altered to make genuine $1 chips look like $500 chips.

Giardina declined to discuss details, but said he stands behind a written statement he submitted in April 2014 to Adm. Bill Gortney, who at the time was determining disciplinary action. The AP on Sunday obtained a copy of that statement, which has not been publicly released and was not included in NCIS records of the case that the AP obtained last week.

In the statement, Giardina said he deeply regretted having not immediately surrendered to security officers the four chips which he said he found in a toilet stall at the casino. He said it was an “error of judgment” that he put three of the chips in play at a poker table, and said he was sorry that he subsequently lied in saying he had purchased them from a man in the bathroom.

Buffalo readies evacuation plans

BUFFALO, N.Y. – Residents of flood-prone areas around Buffalo should move valuables up from the basement, pack a bag and prepare for the possibility of evacuation as up to 7 feet of melting snow posed the threat of flooding, Gov. Andrew Cuomo warned Sunday.

Rain fell Sunday, with temperatures rising to 50. It was expected to be even warmer today, accompanied by more rain and rising winds.

The National Weather Service said core samples of the deep snowpack showed it contained as much as 6 inches of water. Forecasters said some stretches of road in urban areas might become submerged under several feet of water if storm drains remained clogged.

Police ambusher was anti-government

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – A man who set his house on fire and ambushed responding police officers held “anti-government, anti-establishment” views and had previously threatened law enforcement, authorities said Sunday.

The gunman was identified as 53-year-old Curtis Wade Holley. Authorities said he fatally shot Leon County sheriff’s Deputy Christopher Smith, 47, on Saturday and wounded another deputy before he was killed in a gun battle outside his home.

Holley’s name and address had been entered into a law enforcement computer system because of his previous threats, but the 911 dispatcher who took the fire call put in the address of a neighbor who reported the blaze, so the alert wasn’t activated and the deputy who responded first had no warning, according to an official who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to release the information.