Detectives investigated five homicides early this year, several shootings throughout the year and battled several serious fires. But five stories in particular caught readers’ eyes over the past 12 months – starting with a plane crash that shattered a calm morning in August.

PLANE CRASHES NEAR

JAMESTOWN AIRPORT

First responders rushed to the Chautauqua County Airport at Jamestown at 10:15 a.m. Monday to find a crashed plane on fire. Responding departments include: Jamestown, Falconer, Stockton, Frewsburg, Chautauqua County EMS, Kennedy, Busti, Cassadaga, Kiantone, Ellery Center, Lakewood, Ellington, Sinclairville, Fluvanna, Mayville, and Gerry.

SWAT vehicles are pictured outside a home at 84 Victoria Ave., Jamestown, on Tuesday. P-J photo by Michael Zabrodsky

An odor of smoke was an early sign something was wrong, a preliminary National Transportation Safety Board report into the crash landing and fire of a Cessna 750. The pilot, Gerald Buchheit of Orchard Park, was seriously injured while the copilot escaped with minor injuries. The aircraft, owned by Access Stripe, was en route from Dunkirk to Fort Lauderdale to collect airplane parts and a mechanic for work on another company airplane at the north county airport.

Not long after takeoff, air traffic control communication data revealed a Buffalo approach controller advising the flight to expect a clearance to flight level of 47,000 feet that brought no response from the crew. After multiple unsuccessful attempts, the controller contacted Cleveland to see if the flight had switched to its radio frequency.

“About 5,000 feet in the initial climb, (the copilot) smelled ‘electrical smoke,’ but the pilot did not,” the report said. “The copilot then no longer detected the smell but as the airplane reached about 8,000 feet in the climb, both pilots detected the smell of electrical smoke. Both pilots stated there was an odor of smoke but no visible smoke.”

Later, the Buffalo controller established intermittent contact with the Cessna crew, that included “very garbled” transmissions. The last transmission from the flight crew included “we are about to land at Jamestown.”

As the airplane was at 10,000 feet, “accelerating… well over 250 (knots) with the nose trimming down,” the copilot said the “Master Caution” and panel segments illuminated, along with other Crew Alerting System messages. He tried to contact the controller before he noticed that “Comm 2 had failed, and the Garmin 5000 had big, red X’s,” the report said.

The wreckage of a Cessna Citation X which crashed in August at the Chautauqua County Airport at Jamestown. Submitted photo

“The copilot described the actions of both crew members after landing as the cabin filled with smoke and they assessed their best paths of (exit), as the airplane was surrounded by fire,” the report indicated. “Eventually, the pilot opened the main cabin door and both crew members egressed the airplane without assistance.”

During a recent Chautauqua County Legislature meeting, it was learned that the county will receive $1.4 million from its insurance carrier to pay for damage at the airport from the crash. The plane left Dunkirk with about 1,300 gallons of fuel, and when it crashed some of the plane’s fuel had contaminated the soil at the Jamestown airport. That soil had to be removed, which was about 1,300 cubic yards. Some of the fuel spilled and burned into the pavement. That required that about 1,200 feet of the airport runway be rehabilitated. Some fuel actually went down an active drain, which caused it to spread, but it was cleaned up.

SHERIFF TO RELEASE NEW BINDICS INFORMATION

Cold case investigators took their search for new leads in the murder of Yolanda Bindics to Florida.

Det. Tom Tarpley of the Chautauqua County Sheriff’s Office Unsolved Cases Team sent a news release to Tampa-area media outlets in Florida laying out new information that has turned up after Clarence Carte was named a person of interest.

“As a result of news coverage in the Tampa Bay area regarding Clarence Carl Carte, who is a person of interest in the Aug. 10, 2004, murder of Yolanda Bindics of Jamestown, New York, the Chautauqua County Sheriff’s Office has received a number of tips called into the tip line in Western New York,” the release stated. .

County investigators say the investigation hasn’t revealed an alibi for Carte to explain where he was the night of Aug. 10, 2004. Carte is the father of Bindics’ youngest child. Two new photos — one of Carte exiting the nearby Kwik Fill store and a pickup truck being driven by Carte on the night of the alleged murder — were released recently by the Chautauqua County Sheriff’s Office.

“There was only ever one alibi provided for Carte and it was later determined to be false,” the release states.

Bindics was 25 when she was reported missing to the Jamestown Police Department after she didn’t return home after completing a work shift at the Family Dollar store on Fluvanna Avenue, Jamestown, on Aug. 10, 2004. On Sept. 10, 2006, Bindics skeletal remains were found in Boutwell Hill State Forest in Charlotte, which is in the jurisdiction of the Chautauqua County Sheriff’s Office. Bindics’ death was determined by a county coroner to be a homicide.

Previously, Investigator Tom Di Zinno said Carte walked out of the Kwik Fill gas station located at Fluvanna Avenue and Washington Street in Jamestown on Aug. 10, 2004, at about 8:10 p.m. At the same time, Bindics was seen leaving work at Family Dollar. Di Zinno told The Post-Journal that Carte bought soda and a lottery ticket from the Kwik Fill before leaving the store. He said the Sheriff’s Office wants to speak with anyone — a store clerk, a customer or motorist — who may have come into contact with Carte between 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 10, 2004, and 6 a.m. the following morning.

“Carte was familiar with the area in which Bindics body was located,” the Sheriff’s Office news release states. “This is a highly remote area of Chautauqua County, New York, which is a significant distance from where Bindics was last seen.”

Also of note is a possible motive mentioned. That motive, along with what investigators say is a documented history of violence by Carte that includes a 2018 battery charge in Florida, are another reason investigators are seeking more information about Carte.

“Another form of criteria used to include or exclude someone as a suspect is motive,” investigators said in Thursday’s release. “Our investigation has revealed that court orders in regard to child support/expenses leading up to Bindics’ disappearance may have created significant financial motive for Carte.

After 20 years, Anne Chmielewski is hopeful that the person who killed her sister Yolanda Bindics will be brought to justice.

Bindics was 25 when she was reported missing to the Jamestown Police Department after she didn’t return home after completing a work shift at the Family Dollar store on Fluvanna Avenue, Jamestown, on Aug. 10, 2004. On Sept. 10, 2006, Bindics’ skeletal remains were found in Boutwell Hill State Forest in Charlotte. Her death was determined by a county coroner to be a homicide.

New photos — one of Carte exiting the nearby Kwik Fill store and a pickup truck being driven by Carte on the night of the alleged murder — were released Wednesday by the Sheriff’s Office.

Previously, Investigator Tom Di Zinno said Carte walked out of the Kwik Fill gas station located at Fluvanna Avenue and Washington Street in Jamestown on Aug. 10, 2004, at about 8:10 p.m. At the same time, Bindics was seen leaving work at Family Dollar, which was located at 194 Fluvanna Ave. Di Zinno told The Post-Journal that Carte bought soda and a lottery ticket from the Kwik Fill before leaving the store. He said the Sheriff’s Office wants to speak with anyone — a store clerk, a customer or motorist — who may have come into contact with Carte between 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 10, 2004, and 6 a.m. the following morning.

“We’re constantly fighting for justice for Yolanda, and with the new investigators on this team, we are confident that we are so close to having this solved,” Chmielewski said. “People are talking and there are people out there who have claimed that ‘so-and-so brags about it.’ We need those people to come forward even if it’s anonymously, which we expect.”

Those with information are asked to call the Chautauqua County Sheriff’s Office’s confidential tip line at 716-703-5955.

TWELVE PEOPLE CHARGED AFTER DRUG RAID

Twelve people faced charges in early August after a drug raid at 70 Forest Ave., Jamestown.

After the property and people were secured, detectives searched the property and located 52 grams of methamphetamine, 4.9 grams of fentanyl, $106, digital scales, calibration weights, packaging materials, and mannitol.

Two of those charged Friday played a part in Operation Meltdown, an investigation that publicized a large-scale drug conspiracy that brought methamphetamine originating from Mexico into Jamestown for several years. There were several raids that exposed the conspiracy, with Jarried Dean and Christine L. Dean playing a minor role in the drug ring.

TWO CHARGED AFTER ATTEMPTED DRUG ARRESTS LEAD TO STANDOFF ON VICTORIA AVENUE

Amidst a rash of shootings over the summer in Jamestown, one incident ended up resulting in investigations that continued for months. Investigation into a burglary at the site of an August shooting led to a standoff at 84 Victoria Ave., Jamestown, in early September. The incident began when Jamestown police officers were dispatched to 84 Victoria Ave., for a reported burglary in progress. Officers were told there were unknown individuals inside one of the apartments. The house was the same location of an Aug. 17 shooting that resulted in a man being shot and taken to the hospital with life-threatening injuries. Police updated the man’s condition Wednesday, saying he is expected to survive.

As part of that investigation, officers executed a search warrant in the upper apartment at 84 Victoria Ave. and a vehicle associated with one of the apartment’s occupants. While searching, detectives reported finding 111.9 grams of methamphetamine, 23.3 grams of cocaine powder, 9.4 grams of crack cocaine, 66.5 grams of fentanyl and a 9mm pistol. There were no charges at the time the search warrant was executed because the occupants of the apartment, identified by police as Kylah Seiberg and Jensen Vazquez, had fled the scene.

As the investigation into the burglary continued, it was determined Seiberg and Vazquez had returned to the residence, now nearly two weeks later. Seiberg was taken into custody fairly quickly by patrol, but Vazquez refused to exit the residence. It was reported that Vazquez had armed himself with a firearm and a portion of the residence was barricaded off, making it difficult to enter the home. The Jamestown Police Department SWAT Team was requested to the scene to assist in the apprehension of Vazquez due to the fact that he currently has a warrant for his arrest out of the United States District Court of Western New York for violating his federal probation. The Chautauqua County Sheriff’s Office also responded with their SWAT Team to assist. After several hours and the deployment of chemical munitions in an attempt to get Vazquez to surrender peacefully, he continued to refuse to exit the residence. The Jamestown SWAT Team ultimately made entry into the residence after a search warrant was issued by Jamestown City Court Judge John LaMancuso. Police report Vazquez was located hiding under insulation and floorboards of the attic by SWAT personnel and taken into custody without further incident. Another search of the residence was completed which revealed 65.3 grams of fentanyl in the same area as where Vazquez was apprehended.

Seiberg and Vazquez were later indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of narcotics conspiracy, possession with intent to distribute 40 grams or more of fentanyl, possession with intent to distribute 50 grams or more of methamphetamine, possession with intent to distribute cocaine, and using and maintaining a drug-involved premises. The charges carry a mandatory minimum penalty of 10 years in prison and a maximum of life.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Evan K. Glaberson, who is handling the case, stated that according to the indictment and a previously filed complaint, in August Vazquez, who is currently on federal supervised release, falsely informed his supervising probation officer that he was changing residences and moving into a room on Victoria Avenue in Jamestown, with another individual. Vazquez actually moved in with Seiberg.

In the early morning hours of Aug. 17 Jamestown Police received a 911 call requesting emergency assistance for a serious head injury at the Victoria Avenue residence. Paramedics found a victim lying in a pool of blood at the bottom of a staircase and appeared to have been shot. The investigation remains ongoing.

The victim survived and told police that shortly before the shooting, an individual known as “Billy” purchased a firearm from Vazquez. Shortly after first responders arrived, officers found Vazquez coming down the stairs from an upper apartment. Officers also encountered Seiberg standing on the side porch. Vazquez claimed to police that his e-bike appeared to have been stolen, suggesting that the stolen e-bike was connected to the shooting.

Investigators subsequently executed a search warrant at the Victoria Avenue residence, recovered the e-bike, quantities of methamphetamine, fentanyl and xylazine, cocaine, drug paraphernalia, handgun magazines and ammunition, Investigators also recovered a 9mm handgun from Seiberg’s vehicle, the same caliber as the bullet that shot the victim.

Vazquez and Seiberg left the residence before completion of the search warrant, hiding out in Jamestown for two days before fleeing to Florida and remaining at large until Sept. 3.

After losing the keys to Seiberg’s vehicle in Florida, they stole another vehicle, driving it back to Jamestown.

On Sept. 3, investigators received information that people were inside the Victoria Avenue residence.

CONVICTED MURDER PAROLEE KINDT NABBED IN SALAMANCA AFTER ESCAPE

A parolee who was convicted of murdering and raping a Salamanca woman in 2000 was nabbed in Cattaraugus County after fleeing the location he had been staying in at Poughkeepsie. Edward Kindt, who was released from state prison more than a year ago, was caught in Salamanca after his escape.

Kindt was convicted of murdering Penny Brown. On Mother’s Day 1999, while she was out jogging with her two dogs on a nature trail near her home, she was ambushed and sexually assaulted by Kindt, who ultimately strangled her with her dog’s leash.

Both state Sen. George Borrello and Assemblyman Joseph Giglio blasted Gov. Kathy Hochul’s pro-criminal Board of Parole upon learning Kindt escaped custody of his supervised transitional housing in Dutchess County and returned to Salamanca. This is the second time he has violated his parole since being released by the Parole Board. In returning to Salamanca, he also violated the order of the Seneca Nation banning him from their nation for at least one year.

Borrello condemned the Division of Parole for not notifying the Cattaraugus County Sheriff’s Office of his escape until six days after he had absconded, a situation which put the community unknowingly at risk. He was taken into custody at 1:50 a.m. this morning.

“We are outraged that our community was put at risk by the Division of Parole’s failure to notify authorities in Cattaraugus County that Edward Kindt had escaped until six long days had passed,” Borrello said. “With his record as a vicious predator and murderer and disciplinary violations while in prison, this individual should have never seen the light of day again. The very least that DOCCS could do to ensure public safety is to make sure his transitional supervision was as tightly controlled as possible. They failed to do that and there should be an inquiry as to why.”

Borrello and retiring Assemblyman Joe Giglio, R-Gowanda, were then critical of the state’s decision to release Kindt again after he was caught.

“I am appalled at the judge’s decision to release rapist and murderer Edward Kindt after he committed two parole violations, including the serious charge of absconding from parole supervision. This is one more example of how dangerously far New York state has fallen when it comes to public safety,” Borrello said. “The horrendous ‘Less is More’ law allows criminals on parole to ignore the rules without penalty. This is the upside down, ‘no consequences’ criminal justice system Democrats have given us.”