Free Republic

KINGSTON – The offices of two firms connected to a dredge site in Hazleton were searched Tuesday by agents with several federal offices, including the U.S. Department of Defense. More than a dozen agents spent several hours removing dozens of boxes of evidence from 580 Third Ave. in Kingston, which houses the offices of Fort Mifflin Reclamation Associates and Hazleton Creek Properties. The firms are involved in a project to transport dredged material, or sludge, from the Delaware River to a mine reclamation site in Hazleton. The building is also home to Mark Realty Inc. and Mark Development Inc., which...

Longtime state legislator says he’s in dark PITTSTON TWP. – FBI agents searched the home of state Sen. Ray Musto Thursday afternoon and left the senior lawmaker wondering what they were looking for during their two-hour stay. “I haven’t been told and I’m sure I’m not a target in any way,” said Musto after the agents left. Special Agent J.J. Klaver in the FBI’s Philadelphia office declined comment. The 81-year-old Democrat cast off the scrutiny from the 10 agents who converged on his home as the price he has to pay for being in office for nearly 40 years. “It’s...

Federal agents spent three hours searching the Pittston Township home of state Sen. Raphael Musto today, removing a satellite radio and other items from two vehicles after taking photographs. Musto theorized the agents, who were armed with a search warrant, might have been acting on information provided to them as part of a wide-ranging public corruption probe that has led to nearly 30 arrests in Luzerne and Lackawanna counties since January 2009. The 81-year-old Democrat said today was his first contact with federal agents. He said he did not ask them the reason for the search, telling them: “You have...