Balto. Co. officer injured by his gun during training
A Baltimore County police officer suffered minor injuries when his gun accidentally discharged during training Wednesday morning, a department spokesman said. The officer’s gun discharged when the officer attempted to disassemble it just before 7 a.m. inside a classroom at the county’s range at Dulaney Valley and Ivy Church Roads in Timonium, said police spokesman Shawn Vinson. The officer, whose name was not released, was taken to a local hospital for treatment. “We’re looking into what led up to the discharge of the weapon and to see if proper procedures were followed by the officer,” he said. The officer was completing regular in-service training, which officers are required to complete twice a year, Vinson said. Two years ago, an officer accidentally shot himself during training at the facility. That officer, an18-year-veteran, had pulled his gun from his holster and was preparing to shoot a target in the outdoor section of the range when he shot himself.
Men sentenced in telemarketing scheme
Two area men were sentenced Wednesday on fraud charges related to a nationwide telemarketing scheme that prosecutors say reaped $50 million from companies and nonprofits for unwanted and overpriced light bulbs and cleaning supplies. Eric Epstein, 58, previously of Owings Mills and most recently living in Florida, was sentenced in U.S. District Court in Baltimore to just over11years in prison for conspiracy to commit mail fraud and conspiracy to defraud the Internal Revenue Service. Andrew Stafford, 58, of Bel Air received a sixyear sentence for conspiracy to commit mail fraud. The U.S. attorney’s office in Maryland said in a press release that Epstein and Stafford were leaders in a scheme that sent fraudulent invoices to companies for more than $100 million, and received more than $50 million in payments. Citing plea agreements from both men and other court documents, officials said that in 2003 Epstein cofounded Midway Industries LLC in Maryland, and that he, Stafford, and co-conspirators charged businesses exorbitant prices for light bulbs and supplies and deceived them into paying for products they never ordered. Officials said victims included global companies as well as small familyrun businesses and nonprofits. Several other coconspirators from Maryland and Pennsylvania already pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail fraud in connection with their roles, and were sentenced to between 30 months and 72 months in prison, according to the Maryland U.S. attorney’s office.