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Parents Ask for Missing Student's Last Communication

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UPDATE: Jacob's father Dr. Jon Marberger spoke to NBC10 during a community vigil for his son Wednesday. DETAILS HERE


The search for a missing Maryland college student — who may be armed — stretched into its third day Wednesday with no sight of Jacob Marberger or word from the Pennsylvania native.

Although Marberger has made no direct threats, his parents fear he may have left home with a gun, and investigators said he was seen on surveillance video buying ammunition at a Wal-Mart about halfway between his home and Washington College, where he studies.

The college went into lockdown Monday, canceled classes Tuesday and said Wednesday the Chestertown, Maryland, campus would be shuttered through Thanksgiving.

College administrators opted to close the school because Marberger had been recently suspended for showing off an unloaded antique rifle on campus in early October. Two days earlier, he'd been the victim of a prank that left him feeling persecuted by other students.

Marberger's distraught parents asked the school for a copy of their only child's last known communication  — an email sent Sunday to college officials that included the 19-year-old's letter of resignation from his position as speaker of the student senate:

"Senators and members of the Washington College community,

"I first and foremost wish to apologize for my failures in conduct and behavior. What I have done is unacceptable and something I gravely regret. It does not suit a leader and representative of this fine campus to be engaging in such things that threaten and sully stability here at Washington. For this I am deeply sorry.

"As such, I step down from my position as Speaker and hope to pass it onto another more tempered and capable individual who will do you all well.

"I hope that my transgression has not been enough to completely obscure what I had hoped to provide by holding this position. Student government has been a great passion of mine and I hope you can all recognize that in SGA business I always put my best foot forward and strove to get the most out of the group we have here.

"It was a pleasure to have had the opportunity to work with every one of you, and I wish to make clear that this situation should not reflect on any of the members of the executive or review boards. They are all honest, competent, and wonderful examples of student leadership — this was my own failure.

"I hope that I can receive your forgiveness.

"Thank you, are there any motions on the floor?" 

Investigators believe Marberger's resignation may have pushed him too far, emotionally. The sophomore left campus abruptly Sunday, drove to his parents' home overnight in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, took a gun case — and possibly a gun — then left around 4 a.m. Monday without talking to anyone.

Marberger hasn't answered phone calls since, but investigators said surveillance video shows him buying five rounds of ammunition around 7 a.m. Monday inside a Wal-Mart in Hamburg, Berks County, about three hours north of his college and less than two hours from his parents' Cheltenham Township home.

 

Friends organized a vigil Wednesday night to support his family. The vigil is planned for 6:15 p.m. at Beth Am synagogue located at 971 Old York Road in Elkins Park, Pennsylvania.

When Marberger vanished Monday, his former high school — Cheltenham — also took precautions and went in to "lockout" mode, which keeps anyone from readily going in or out of the school.

High school classmates described Marberger as honest, outspoken, intelligent and ethically conscious.

"He has a very goofy, individual sense of humor," Josiah Harmer said, remembering a conversation he had over the summer with Marberger, who "was really happy about his college experience and seemed to be doing really well."

Harmer said Marberger had different interests than most teens and in high school it took time for him to find a good group of friends.

"When kids are doing typical high school stuff and you're reading foreign policy journals, it can be hard to relate," Harmer said.

Evan Brown, who has been friends with Marberger since middle school, is pleading for his safe return.

"He loves to talk and debate and crack jokes and do silly accents," Brown said. "We care for him and want him to come home safe. Whatever actually happened that sparked all this, whatever is happening now, it will get better. I'm worried about you, bud. Please get in touch with someone; we just want to hear from you."



Photo Credit: Family Photo

Instagram Threat Leads to Lockdown at Montco School

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A man was arrested after he allegedly threatened his ex-girlfriend on Instagram leading to a lockdown at a suburban Philadelphia high school.

Devin Hitchens, 21, of Stowe, Pennsylvania was arrested and charged with terroristic threats, stalking and other related offenses.

Investigators say a friend of Hitchens' ex-girlfriend contacted Pennsylvania State Police early Wednesday morning. The friend claimed Hitchens was sending threatening posts to his ex on Instagram and showed police the images.

Police say Hitchens was threatening to shoot the woman and harm her younger siblings who attend Methacton High School on Kriebel Mill Road in Eagleville, Pennsylvania. 

Methacton High School went into lockdown as police searched for Hitchens. Lower Pottsgrove Schools also went into lockdown, officials said.

Hitchens was eventually arrested and taken into custody after a foot chase with State Police and officers from several local departments, officials said. 

After Hitchens' arrest, the district lifted the lockdown around 9:25 a.m.



Photo Credit: SkyForce10

Privacy Laws Called Into Question After Paris Attacks

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NBC10's George Spencer takes an indepth look at what means of communication terrorists use to coordinate attacks & how it effects U.S. citizens.

Photo Credit: AP

Scheme Artist Targets Local Businesses: Police

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NBC10’s Ted Greenberg has the details on how a schemer is tricking local businesses into giving him more money.

CHOP Opens New Mother’s Milk Bank

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The bank allows women to donate breast milk which is then pasteurized and processes at the hospital.

South Jersey Residents Now Have Crime Tips App

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Police in Vineland & Bridgeton can now receive tips via an app on peoples’ smart phones. NBC10’s Cydney Long has more.

New Security Measures For Holiday Travelers

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The recent terror attacks have brought changes to holiday travel security measures. NBC10’s Lauren Mayk has the details.

Photo Credit: Getty Images

4 Firefighters Injured During Darby House Fire

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Four firefighters were injured during a house fire in Darby Borough.

The fire started at a home on the 100 block of Whitely Terrace Wednesday evening. Crews were eventually able to bring the flames under control.

Four responding firefighters were injured during the blaze. All four were taken to the hospital. Officials have not yet revealed their conditions.



Photo Credit: SkyForce10

Homes Evacuate After West Philly Gas Leak

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Several homes were evacuated during a gas leak in West Philadelphia Wednesday afternoon.

Officials say a contractor struck a gas line on the 5500 block of Vine Street, causing the leak. Several homes on the street were evacuated. No injuries were reported.

Crews responded to the scene to make repairs.



Photo Credit: SkyForce10

Makeover Day in Center City

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A week before Thanksgiving those in need in Philadelphia received free makeovers in Center City.

Woman Sells Pot While Working at Pizza Shop: Police

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An employee at a Delaware County pizza shop was arrested for allegedly selling marijuana while she was on the job.

Brandy Nicole Weldon, 36, was arrested and charged with manufacturing, delivering and/or being in possession of a controlled substance and other related offenses.

Weldon worked as an assistant manager at Seasons Pizza on the 300 block of W. Lancaster Avenue in Wayne. Police received information stating she was selling marijuana during her shifts.

Police launched an investigation during which Weldon sold marijuana to two undercover officers on Nov. 11 and Tuesday, according to investigators. Police say Weldon walked outside the shop, sold the drugs to the officers and then returned to work.

After they spotted her selling marijuana to the undercover officer Tuesday, officers entered the pizza shop around 5 p.m. and took Weldon into custody, according to officials. Police say they found marijuana inside her purse at the time of her arrest.

The Health Department in Radnor shut down Seasons Pizza so that the store could be sanitized. Officials say there are concerns that Weldon may have been handling both the marijuana and the food at the restaurant at the same time.

“She’s dealing with food that’s going to your and my kids, your or my mom and dad, and that’s unacceptable, but especially in Radnor Township,” said one of the undercover officers.

Police say workers at Seasons Pizza have been very cooperative during the investigation and the shop should reopen soon.
 



Photo Credit: Radnor Township Police

56-Year-Old Grudge Over $300 Leads to Vandalism: Police

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A grudge over $300 that lasted for 56 years led to the repeated vandalism of a gravestone at a Montgomery County cemetery, according to police.

Paul Donovan, 68, of Phoenixville, was arrested last week and charged with theft and vandalism.

Police say Donovan repeatedly vandalized a man’s gravestone at the St. Matthews Cemetery in Conshohocken, Pennsylvania. The vandalism, which lasted from the Spring of 2014 to Nov. 6 included black and red paint, as well as tar on the same gravestone.

“This vandalism has occurred on at least four occasions,” said Whitemarsh Police Lieutenant Christopher Ward. “It really disturbed and bothered the family.”

Police determined the vandal was targeting one family and set up a surveillance camera in the tree above the gravestone. They then captured surveillance images of the suspect which NBC10 released last week. After that, the tips came in leading to Donovan’s arrest, officials said.

Police say Donovan has a relative who is buried at St. Matthews not far from the vandalized gravestone. After his arrest, Donovan allegedly confessed to the crime. What police say was most shocking however was his motive behind it.

“The suspect claims that 56 years ago when the deceased was 10 and this subject was 12, he claims that the [deceased] stole money from him and 56 years later he was getting back at him,” Lt. Ward said. “So for 56 years he lived with this grudge. He only realized that he had passed away within the last two years.”

Donovan allegedly claimed he would pay the victim’s family the money the vandalism cost them, minus the $300 he says he’s still owed from 56 years ago. 

Donovan is set to appear in court in December.
 



Photo Credit: Whitemarsh Township Police

Arsonist Sets Cars and Himself on Fire: Police

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A suspected arsonist torched nearly a dozen cars in the Overbrook section of the city and even set himself on fire in the process, according to police. NBC10's Randy Gyllenhaal has the details.

NJ Tip Leads to Arrest in Threat Towards TX Mosque: Police

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A tip from a Gloucester Township, New Jersey resident led to the arrest of a Texas man who allegedly threatened to shoot up a mosque.

Gloucester Township Police first received a tip from a local resident reporting a man who was making terroristic threats on a social media website. The suspect allegedly threatened to “shoot up a mosque” and posted pictures of an assault rifle and ammunition.

Police later identified the suspect as Clayton Alexander Cansler, 26, of New Territory, Fort Bend County, Texas.

Gloucester Township Police contacted the Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Office around 3 p.m. Wednesday. Sheriff’s Deputies then responded to Cansler’s home which is located near a mosque, investigators said. They later found him at his place of employment, the Sugar Land Municipal Airport in Sugar Land, Texas.

Cansler was arrested and charged with terroristic threats. Officials say they never found any weapons during the investigation and Cansler was cooperative.

Cansler allegedly admitted to making the threats and said he was upset due to the loss of a close friend during the Sept. 11, 2001 World Trade Center attacks in New York as well as the recent terror attacks in Paris, France.
 



Photo Credit: Fort Bend County Sheriff's Office

Dad of Missing College Student: 'Please Come Home'

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Very few eyes were dry Wednesday night as the father of a 19-year-old college student who vanished days ago, possibly with a gun, spoke publicly for the first time since his son's disappearance.

"You have no reason not to come home," Dr. Jon Marberger said, addressing his missing son at a vigil Wednesday in Abington, Pennsylvania. "Please come home and show yourself. Jacob, wherever you are and whatever discretions you have done they are all recoverable."

Jacob Marberger has been missing since early Monday, when he made the two-hour drive from Washington College in Maryland, where he studies, to his parents' home in Cheltenham, Pennsylvania. He arrived after 3 a.m. Monday but was gone by 4 a.m., taking a rifle case with him. His parents said they were unsure whether a gun was inside.

His disappearance has prompted alerts at both Washington College, which will be closed through the week of Thanksgiving, and his former school, Cheltenham High School in Wyncote, Pennsylvania, which went into lockout mode Tuesday and remains on alert.

His father was one of about 75 people who gathered at the Beth Am Temple on Old York Road in Abington Wednesday night for a candlelight vigil. The attendees sang songs, prayed and pleaded for Jacob Marberger to come home.

Jon Marberger told NBC10 the trouble began on Oct. 7 when his son was the victim of a prank that left him hurt and humiliated by his fellow students at Washington College.

"Someone had placed a trash can full of water against his dorm room door, so when he opened the door, the water came into his room,” said Washington College public safety director Jerry Roderick. "He felt very hurt by that and he saw this as (people) reaching out to ridicule him in some way. In speaking to Jacob, he did feel persecuted by several students on campus."

Two days later, Jacob Marberger, who began collecting unique guns about a year ago, brandished an unloaded, antique rifle in front of some other students while intoxicated, according to officials.

"He’s not a kid who got high or drank regularly and then you do foolish things when you’re drunk, especially the first time," Jon Marberger said.

About two weeks later, Jacob Marberger was suspended after police found the antique weapon at a house off campus. He returned to school only recently, after a forensic psychologist cleared him and determined he wasn’t a threat.

Jon Marberger said his son then spent a difficult week back on campus. He was kicked out of his fraternity, faced an Honor Board hearing and was confronted Sunday night by members of his student government group, according to his father. Jacob Marberger then resigned his elected position as speaker of the senate.

"Just because he’s made so few mistakes in his life, I don’t think he knows how to deal with that, the shame he feels when one lets themselves down," Jon Marberger said.

After his cellphone was pinged, Jacob Marberger was spotted on surveillance video around 7 a.m. Monday buying five rounds of ammunition at a Wal-Mart in Hamburg, Berks County. His cellphone has registered no activity since 7:30 a.m. Monday, investigators said.

During his interview with NBC10 Wednesday night, Jacob Marberger insisted his son was not a threat even as his college remains on alert.

"He made no threats to anyone," Jon Marberger said. "I think he just wanted to climb into a hole. But he’s never made any threats to anyone, never hit anyone. He would never strike out to anyone."

Fighting back tears, Jon Marberger begged for his son to return. 

"We want him back. We want to see him again. We love him. Everyone loves him," he pleaded.

If you have any information on Jacob Marberger’s whereabouts, call Washington College at 410-778-7810 or Chestertown police at 410-778-1800.



Photo Credit: NBC10/Family Photo

Syrian Refugee in NJ: I Found Peace

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As a growing number of governors say they won't accept Syrian refugees in their states following last week's terror attacks in Paris, one Syrian woman living in New Jersey holds up her own life as an example of how the opposite approach works.

"America is heaven," said the 26-year-old refugee named Sandy. "I found peace. I found a chance."

Sandy, whose last name is not being published because her family remains in Syria, spoke with NBC 4 New York Wednesday at Ponds Reformed Church in Oakland, where she met Rev. Nathan Busker, whose family has taken her in.

"These are people who just want a chance. They just want an opportunity," Busker said, who met Sandy when she knocked on the church's front door and asked to pray there. "Sandy's a great story about what can happen when we trust the process, and we welcome them into our communities."

Sandy is one of about 75 Syrian refugees allowed into New Jersey over the past year. She vividly recalled the horror of living in a nation gripped by war, and said she constantly worries that her family in Syria will become ISIS' next victims.

"Sometimes, when I'm going to school, when I say goodbye to my mom, I don't know if I'm coming back alive or no. It's horrible," Sandy said of living in Syria.

After last week's terror attacks in Paris, there are growing fears ISIS could infiltrate the U.S. by posing as Syrian refugees. Governors from 31 states have said they won't accept Syrian refugees, including New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.

Christie sent a letter to President Obama Tuesday reading in part, "I have no doubt ISIS will try to exploit American humanitarianism. Neither you nor any federal official can guarantee that Syrian refugees will not be part of any terroristic activity."

Connecticut Gov. Dannel Malloy and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo have said their respective states would continue to take refugees.

Sandy said she's hurt by Christie's comments, and believes America can help thousands of refugees without sacrificing security.

"They deserve a better life. They deserve a safe life," she said.

Community leaders in New Jersey also immediately pushed back against Christie's statements. 

"This type of language is really perpetuating a discourse of hate, a discourse of fear," Sami Catovic of New Brunswick Islamic Center told NBC 4 New York Tuesday.

Seth Kaper-Dale of the Reformed Church of Highland Park said, "The people in the state of New Jersey can smell a skunk, and this connection is just so absurd." 

Kaper-Dale has also taken a leading role in support of refugees; on Sunday, his church sponsored a march to raise money to bring more of them to New Jersey. 

"We're not going to stop," he said. "Are you kidding me?" 

Sandy now works two jobs in the hope that one day she can bring her family to the U.S.

Asked where she wants to be in 5 or 10 years, she smiled: "I want to be American." 



Photo Credit: NBC NY
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Blaze on Roof of Popular Chain Restaurant

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A blaze broke out on the roof of a popular West Philadelphia restaurant overnight.

The fire began around 11:45 p.m. on the roof of the Applebee’s at the City avenue Shopping Center along City Avenue near 77th Street in West Philadelphia, said firefighters.

Everyone made it out of the eatery safely.

No word yet on what caused the blaze.

It isn’t clear the extent of damage to the restaurant. A health inspector must give the go-ahead before the eatery can reopen.
 



Photo Credit: NBC10

Veterans Job Fair at The Linc

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Military veterans can come to Lincoln Financial Field from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Thursday. Several companies, including Home Depot will be on site looking to help veterans find a career.

Delaware County Fire Station Under Investigation

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Officials for the Delaware County District Attorney's official served a search warrant at the Colwyn Fire Department Wednesday amid allegations of misuse of taxpayer money.

Wegmans Recalls Refrigerated Ravioli

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A Philadelphia area supermarket chain recalled one of its products over possible allergen concerns.

Wegmans recalled 9-ounce servings of it Wegmans Italian Classics Butternut Squash Ravioli “because it may contain undeclared cashews and almonds (tree nut allergens),” said the grocery chain.

The packaged trays were sold in refrigerated cases and were sold between June 6 and Nov. 17 with the UPC 77890-36434.

Wegmans said anyone who purchased the item can return it for a full refund. Concerned customers can call the company’s consumer affairs department at 1-855-934-3663.



Photo Credit: Peter Van Allen
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