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Petitions to offer online gambling in Pennsylvania roll in

VA Police: Man threatens woman over $21 debt

<p>NANTICOKE &#8212; A one-hour standoff with police Sunday began with a woman finding naked pictures of a female on her live-in boyfriend&#8217;s cell phone, according to charges filed.</p><p>Authorities from several law enforcement agencies secured the area around 12 Honeypot St. where Richard J. Simon Jr., 33, barricaded himself inside after he allegedly threatened his girlfriend with a handgun.</p><p>City police allege Simon&#8217;s girlfriend confronted him about naked pictures of a woman on his cell phone. When he arrived home from work on Sunday, she claimed he choked her and aimed a handgun at her.</p><p>Three children inside the house were unharmed.</p><p>According to the criminal complaint:</p><p>Police responded to the house after a woman called her father claiming Simon had a handgun and aimed it at her. Simon told her if she called police, he would kill her and officers.</p><p>The woman made it out of the house with three children.</p><p>She told police she called Simon at work Saturday night about naked pictures of a female he had on his cell phone. Simon responded by saying, &#8220;I don&#8217;t want you, bye.&#8221;</p><p>Simon did not arrive home after he got out of work at 11 p.m. Saturday. He arrived home at about 11 a.m. Sunday when he was told by his girlfriend to gather his belongings and get out.</p><p>She claimed Simon slapped her, pushed her to the floor, choked her and threatened to kill her with a handgun if she called police, the complaint says.</p><p>She gathered three children in the house and went to the basement.</p><p>Police said the woman had visible injuries around her neck.</p><p>When officers arrived at the house, a side door was open but Simon did not respond. Officers detected an odor of burnt marijuana in the house, the complaint says.</p><p>Police said they were unable to contact Simon as his cell phone went unanswered and voice mail was full. Simon had access to surveillance cameras on the house, police said.</p><p>Police closed several streets and evacuated residents that shared a separate apartment in the same building.</p><p>Simon eventually surrendered just before 2 p.m., police said.</p><p>Police allegedly found a bottle with white powder marked &#8220;Poison&#8221; and a Kel-Tec handgun with a round in its chamber from a fishing vest inside the house.</p><p>Simon was arraigned by District Judge Richard Cronauer in Wilkes-Barre on two counts of simple assault and one count each of criminal attempt to commit aggravated assault, terroristic threats, recklessly endangering another person and stalking.</p><style>
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<div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/web1_Richard-Simon-07152018-1.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Simon </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/web1_Richard-Simon-07152018-1.jpg</photo0><caption0>Simon </caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Ed Lewis</p><p>elewis@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div>

Police: Nanticoke standoff went back to naked female pictures on phone