*New York’s tax department says 27 people have been indicted on charges of trafficking in millions of dollars in untaxed cigarettes taken from Virginia for resale in New York.

*A bear that roamed through business and residential areas in Upper Saddle River has been captured and will be released back into the wild, officials said.

*Former Irvington NJ Mayor Michael Steele has been indicted on bribery and misconduct charges – he allegedly took at least $120,000 in kickbacks for rigging school district contracts while serving as business administrator for the Irvington Board of Education.

*A Newark man escaped from city lockup Thursday, law enforcement officials said. The man remains at large as police continue a manhunt aided by helicopters. Police identified the escaped man as Gregory Blanche, of Newark.

*An employee at a Queens car wash is dead and police are searching for another employee who they say ran him over. Police say the accident happened Thursday morning after one car-wash employee got behind the wheel of an SUV and struck two other employees. The second employee is in stable condition at a hospital. Police say the driver of the SUV fled the scene after striking the men; investigators discovered the SUV a few blocks from the car wash.

*NYS Gov. David Paterson chose a prominent Western New York banker and longtime advocate for upstate revitalization as his statewide head of economic development. Paterson nominated Robert Wilmers, chairman and CEO of M&T Bank Corp. based in Buffalo, to be chairman of New York State’s economic development agency, the Empire State Development Corp. Wilmers, a millionaire, will serve without pay pending Senate confirmation.

*NYS Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver today announced Assembly passage of legislation to further improve the accountability and efficiency of New York state’s Empire Zone economic development program, which provides tax relief for businesses that meet certain job creation and economic stimulus criteria within designated areas in New York State.

*The New York State Senate today passed legislation (S.1651), sponsored by Senator Stephen Saland (R-C-I, Poughkeepsie), that would toughen the state’s law against the crime of identity theft by expanding the types and amount of personal identification that would be needed to charge someone with identity theft, as well as increasing criminal penalties for the crime.

*TRI-STATE WEATHER: The day started off dreary, but the sun will break through before lunchtime to kick off a sizzling weekend, according to the National Weather Service. Shabbos will kick off four straight days of mid-90s temperatures with excessive haze and humidity. The highs on Shabbos will be in the low 90s, but it will feel like 100. Sunday will be in the mid 90s, and it will remain sunny, hot and humid on Monday and Tuesday, with highs in the mid 90s.

The Baltimore News Roundup has expanded to include the Baltimore area, as well as provide newsworthy information for the Silver Spring-Olney, Columbia  and DC communities (due to many requests). Therefore, we have changed the Baltimore roundup to the Maryland Area Morning Roundup.

*WASHINGTON ― One day after powerful storms caused a host of damage across the Mid-Atlantic Region, the National Weather Service has confirmed a tornado touched down in Chesapeake Beach.  Forecasters say the storm was an EF0, the weakest tornado in strength.

*GLEN BURNIE, Md. ―  Just up the road from Annapolis, an unusual discovery at a Glen Burnie golf center. A passerby did a double take after he realized that he saw a real, live alligator, hanging out in the golf park’s pond.

*BALTIMORE, Md. — Court documents show that federal agents seized bank statements, tax records and correspondence, and found marijuana during a search at the home of state Senator Ulysses Currie. The documents show agents found marijuana and “drug packaging materials” in a bag on a dresser and in other bags on the floor of a room in the house last week. The 70-year-old Prince George’s County Democrat is the chairman of the Senate Budget and Taxation Committee and one of the most influential lawmakers in Maryland.

*BALTIMORE, Md. — A report released to the family of a man killed when his car was struck by a police cruiser says the off-duty officer was driving twice the speed limit in the December crash. According to the report, released this week to the family of 20-year-old Brian Gray, the officer, Mario Chavez, was driving a police cruiser at 50 miles per hour in a 25-mph zone on Dec. 10. Gray pulled his vehicle into Belair Drive at 15 mph to make a left turn; Chavez tried to avoid Gray’s car, but the two crashed. Gray was killed and Chavez was injured.

*BALTIMORE — An FBI agent pleaded guilty to accepting a cruise from a company doing business with the agency. The Department of Justice said that Curtis Jones, 47, of Annapolis, pleaded guilty Thursday in federal court in Baltimore.

*SAVAGE, Md. – Public Works officials say some 400,000 gallons of sewage flowed into the Little Patuxent River after a power failure hit the wastewater treatment plant after storms pounded the area.  The strong winds and rain on Wednesday cut power at the two main independent power sources to the Little Patuxent Water Reclamation Plant. According to Jim Irvin, the public works director, nothing was pumped through the station for 28 minutes.

*Baltimore – Specialists from the University of Maryland’s Shock Trauma Center will travel to China’s Sichuan Province to assist doctors treating victims from the May 12 earthquake.

*Baltimore Candle Lighting: 8:13
*Baltimore Shkia: 8:31

*Baltimore Weather: Today – Mostly cloudy this morning then becoming mostly sunny. Highs in the mid 80s. Tonight – Mostly clear. Lows in the lower 70s. Shabbos mostly sunny, with highs in the mid 90s. Heat index values up to 110. Motzei Shabbos: Partly cloudy. Lows in the mid 70s.

Have a good Shabbos!

(YWN Desk / YW-MD03)