(From the Ohio Investigative Unit)

Agents from the Ohio Investigative Unit’s Toledo District executed a search warrant at Smokehouse Bar in Fostoria, Ohio, uncovering a complex illegal gambling operation.

The investigation exposed multiple violations, including the illicit sale of Instant Bingo tickets and the operation of electronic video gambling devices that paid out cash prizes.

The raid revealed three unauthorized weekly and monthly raffles, with one prize potentially reaching $20,000.

Seized items included:

-Seven electronic video gambling devices

-14 bags of illegal Instant Bingo tickets

-$6,328.90 in cash

-Miscellaneous records

Four administrative violations were issued for gambling infractions. Toledo district office agents will present criminal charges for fourth-degree and fifth-degree felony gambling offenses to the Seneca County Grand Jury.

The Northwest Ohio Railroad Preservation’s North Pole Express is a holiday tradition for many and this year it is once again part of the 2024 Ohio Holiday Lights Trail.

This is the fourth year that the North Pole Express will be a featured display on the Holiday Lights Trail.

Jim Gabriel, Vice President of the NWORRP, considers their North Pole Express Findlay’s premier holiday light display.

The North Pole Express runs on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays through December 29.

It’s closed on Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve.

Learn more about Northwest Ohio Railroad Preservation by clicking here.

They are located at 12505 County Road 99 in Findlay.

The City of Findlay is reminding residents that the Green Waste Site will be closing for the season.

The last day for the site will be Saturday, December 7 from 8 to 4.

The Green Waste Site provides a place for city residents to dispose of green waste, such as yard clippings, leaves and fallen tree limbs. 

The site is for residents of the City of Findlay only and is not for commercial use.

The Green Waste Site is located at 330 North Cory Street behind the Public Works Department with the entrance near the railroad tracks.  

The Hancock County Board of Commissioners is exploring cost-saving measures in regard to the Hancock County Jail in Findlay. 

The commissioners are looking at reducing the jail from a full-service jail and transporting inmates to and from the Corrections Center of Northwest Ohio (CCNO) in Stryker, which is in Williams County about an hour and 20 minutes away.

Hancock County Sheriff Michael Heldman says Hancock County is at a size that it needs to keep a full-service jail and says reducing it would lead to a host of issues including logistical problems for the courts, the cost of transporting inmates, and the lack of mental health services for inmates.

Findlay Police Chief James Mathias also spoke at the meeting, saying having a full-service jail means a lot to the community and that CCNO is not an option as far as he is concerned.

Officials with ADAMHS, the Hancock County Board of Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services also spoke at the meeting saying they were concerned about the mental health assistance inmates would get at CCNO.

The current jail is nearing the end of its viability and a new jail has been discussed for a while now.

The group will meet with the commissioners again in the near future to discuss next steps.

(From the Ohio State Highway Patrol)

The Findlay Post of the Ohio State Highway Patrol is investigating a fatal crash that occurred on December 5, 2024, at approximately 6:22 A.M. The crash occurred on Interstate 75 southbound on the exit ramp to State Route 103 in Orange Township, Hancock County.

Joshua Little, age 42, of Wapakoneta, Ohio was operating a 2009 Chevrolet HHR on Interstate 75 southbound at the exit for State Route 103, when it became disabled on the right shoulder. Mr. Little got out of his vehicle and walked south on the exit ramp to State Route 103 from Interstate 75. Michael Rahrig, age 64, from Findlay Ohio was operating a 2016 Ford Edge, and exited onto the southbound exit ramp to State Route 103 from Interstate 75, and struck Mr. Little walking up the ramp.

Mr. Little was pronounced deceased on scene, and there were no injuries to Mr. Rahig. Mr. Little was transported to the Lucas County Coroners office. The exit ramp to State Route 103 southbound was closed for approximately one hour, and is now open.

The Patrol was assisted on scene by Bluffton Police Department, Bluffton EMS, HANCO EMS, Ohio Department of Transportation, R and A Towing, and D and D Towing.

The crash remains under investigation

(ONN) – A new law could make it easier to adopt children in Ohio.

Ohio House Bill 5 was introduced by Republican Representative Sharon Ray of Wadsworth and Democratic Representative Rachel Baker of Cincinnati, who both have personal experience with adoption.

The new law would make it easier to adopt children in Ohio by reducing paperwork and red tape associated with the process.

It would also permit adults with developmental disabilities to be adopted.

Neglected or abused children could also be adopted without birth parent consent under certain conditions.

The bill passed the House and Senate unanimously.

(From the City of Findlay)

Residents currently enrolled in the City’s electric aggregation program can expect to receive a notice regarding a change in the name of the program supplier through the mail.

This notice is purely informational, and residents do not need to take any action in response to the letter they receive.

The notice will inform residents that the City’s electric aggregation program supplier’s name will be changing from Energy Harbor to Dynegy. There will be no interruption to their electric service as a result of this change. All of the current terms and conditions of the aggregation offering will remain the same. Program participants will simply notice the new name, Dynegy, next to the supply charges on future electric bills.

As this change is implemented for individual accounts, residents will also receive the standard utility “switch” notification indicating that Dynegy will be their new supplier. No action is needed in response to that notice either.

Residents should contact Dynegy at 888-682-2170 with questions about the letter they receive or status in the aggregation program.

A Findlay City Schools bus with students onboard was involved in a crash late Wednesday afternoon.

The crash happened on South Main Street at Sixth Street/Lake Cascades Parkway.

The crash involved three vehicles and one of the vehicles struck the side of the school bus which was heading north on South Main and was in the left turn lane.

No students were injured. They were loaded onto another bus to continue their ride home.

No injuries were involved with the drivers of the vehicles.

The crash was under investigation by Findlay Police.

(From the Ohio Division of Wildlife)

Hunters across Ohio checked 26,667 white-tailed deer on Monday, Dec. 2 during the opening day of the weeklong gun hunting season, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Division of Wildlife. This is the highest harvest for opening day since 2012 (29,297). Ohio’s seven-day gun season is open until Sunday, Dec. 8, with an additional gun hunting weekend on Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 21-22.

This year’s opening day harvest total includes 9,602 antlered deer and 17,065 antlerless deer (antlerless deer are does and button bucks). In 2023, hunters took 19,363 deer on opening day of the gun season, which traditionally falls on the Monday after Thanksgiving. From 2021 to 2023, hunters checked an average of 19,439 deer during the gun season opener. 
 
The top 10 counties for deer checked on opening day were:

1. Coshocton (1,053)
2. Tuscarawas (954)
3. Knox (881)
4. Muskingum (852)
5. Carroll (804)
6. Guernsey (750)
7. Ashtabula (686)
8. Harrison (671)
9. Ashland (653)
10. Columbiana (592)

So far this deer season, archery and firearms hunters have taken a total of 128,408 deer through Monday, Dec. 2. Hunters ages 17 and younger checked 10,449 deer in the two-day youth season. 

(From Bowling Green State University)

A recent project commissioned by UNESCO sought out the expertise of Bowling Green State University researchers to better understand the complicated, but influential, world of digital content creators on a global scale in a first-of-its-kind study.

UNESCO chose the Global Social Media Influencer Research Lab (GSMI) at BGSU – founded by Professor of Research Excellence Dr. Louisa Ha – to study the motivations and ethical standards of content creators, marking the first time the University received funding from the United Nations organization for a research project.

Ha and her team anonymously surveyed more than 500 content creators across 45 countries and eight languages who post public content and meet the “nano-influencer” threshold with more than 1,000 followers, then conducted in-depth follow-up interviews with 20 of the surveyed creators.

The findings, which were released Nov. 26, revealed that content creators typically have a clear mission and good intentions, but researchers found significant gaps in fact-checking and determining source credibility.

Nearly two-thirds of respondents said they did not check for accuracy before sharing content with others.

Further, creators often incorrectly correlated popularity with credibility, a significant issue with online misinformation.

“One of the major discoveries is that many of these creators equate popularity – the number of views and likes – as credible sources,” Ha said. “If a post has a lot of likes and views, they view it as credible, even if it may be wrong information.”

Ironically, researchers found many content creators started with pure intentions to share information or expertise with others, though most aren’t treating the role as a full-time career.

Just more than half of surveyed content creators said they accept any sort of sponsored content agreements, and less than one-third of those sampled said content creation was their main source of income.

Researchers discovered information verification proved to be the major gap for content creators as they evaluated what to share with their audiences.

“When they share content with other people, 62% said they did not check the accuracy,” Ha said. “That is a major issue because it presents the possibility of disseminating misinformation.”

UNESCO asked for and accepted a proposal from GSMI, which was established in the BGSU School of Media and Communication. The research venture has become a leader in academia and beyond for understanding digital content creation, which includes but is not limited to social media influencers.
  
Ha said GSMI plans to further expand its research on a global scale, while UNESCO is exploring ways to help content creators become stronger fact-checkers.

With social media continuing to serve as a key connection between consumers and information, Ha said additional resources for creators could make a difference in fighting online misinformation.

“We want content creators. They are real people who have a lot of passion, but we know they have some constraints and they’re not doing too well in terms of fact-checking and verification,” Ha said. “But in general, they are usually well-intentioned. They just need guidance.”