Latest

Jan 7

2020

Readers select iPost’s top story of last year

Published by Investigative Post staff

Investigative Post’s best story of 2019, as voted on by readers, reported on City Hall’s push to generate revenue at the expense of motorists. The story by Marsha McLeod, which published Feb. 27, documented how Buffalo police stepped up enforcement of traffic laws and city lawmakers imposed additional fees and fines. Revenues jumped from $500,000 to $2.8 million. McLeod wrote: “The city’s strategy is costing drivers a lot of money, and, in some cases, their driver’s license. Black and Latino drivers, whose neighborhoods have been targeted for traffic enforcement, appear to be hit the hardest, both in fines and loss[...]

Posted 6 years ago

Dec 20

2019

Attorney charges OTB intimidating witness

Published by Phil Gambini

The attorney for a senior manager of the Western Regional Off Track Betting Corp. says his client is being punished for cooperating with a federal investigation of the agency. Federal investigators apparently consider the allegation of witness intimidation serious enough that they have subpoenaed records from the OTB to review the matter. “He’s being intimidated because he’s cooperating,” Steven Cohen, the senior manager’s attorney, said. “All my client is doing is not lying to federal investigators.” Not only are OTB Chairman Richard Bianchi and President Henry Wojtaszek retaliating against his client, Cohen contends, but they have falsified OTB records. “Henry[...]

Posted 6 years ago

Dec 19

2019

Metro Rail riders losing benefit of the doubt

Published by Investigative Post staff

Come next summer, the Niagara Frontier Transportation Authority plans to abandon its honor system to ride Metro Rail. Instead, it will require riders on the underground portion of the transit line to pay and pass through a turnstile to board a train. The change is intended, in part, to discourage riders from boarding without paying a fare at Metro Rail’s eight underground stations. “It’ll make it a little easier on the officers because it’ll be a very clear barrier that people will know, without a doubt, that if you go through this turnstile, you need a ticket,” said George Gast,[...]

Posted 6 years ago

Dec 18

2019

Mychajliw’s muddied campaign finances

Published by Geoff Kelly

Stefan Mychajliw may have a federal campaign finance law problem. Should the Erie County comptroller ever officially declare his candidacy for New York’s 27th Congressional District seat, he could face fines and sanctions from the Federal Election Commission for the way he’s financed his undeclared but vigorous campaign thus far. Mychajliw insists he is not currently a candidate for the 27th Congressional District seat. “I’m not a candidate for anything right now,” Mychajliw told Investigative Post in a recent phone interview. And yet he acts like a candidate for the 27th District seat. He sounds like one, too. And he’s[...]

Posted 6 years ago

Dec 10

2019

Buffalo Billion felon: Wired and hired

Published by Phil Gambini

Republicans on the Niagara County Legislature voted Tuesday to hire a felon involved in the Buffalo Billion scandal to serve as the county’s spokesperson. In a partisan 8-5 vote, the Legislature approved the hiring of Kevin Schuler, a politically wired executive at LPCiminelli until he pleaded guilty in May 2018 to two felony charges involving the fixing of a bid to manage the construction of the $750 million Tesla plant in South Buffalo. Schuler will serve as the county’s public information officer and earn $79,003, an increase of nearly $10,000 from the job’s 2019 salary. The job entails handling[...]

Posted 6 years ago

Dec 7

2019

Vote for Investigative Post’s top story of 2019

Published by Investigative Post staff

Investigative Post has enjoyed a 70 percent growth in website traffic this year. This surge comes in addition to the audiences we garner through our partners at WGRZ, WBFO, The Capitol Pressroom and Buffalo Spree. What’s driving the growth in our online audience? The quality of our reporting. Investigative Post has chalked up another banner year, and now it’s time for you, our readers, to tell us what you think by voting in our online poll for the best story of the year. Here are the choices: City Hall cashing in on traffic tickets Buffalo’s in bad fiscal shape State[...]

Posted 6 years ago

Dec 7

2019

Gambini joins Investigative Post staff

Published by Investigative Post staff

Phil Gambini is off to a running start with Investigative Post. Gambini joined the Investigative Post reporting staff last week after five years with the Niagara Gazette. He broke his first story Friday and has another teed up for this coming week. In recent months, while still with the Gazette, Gambini teamed with Investigative Post Editor Jim Heaney to report on several stories on the Western Regional Off Track Betting Corp. “Phil’s a digger,” Heaney said. “He’s widely respected in Niagara County for his work with the Gazette and his reporting skills are going to be a real asset to[...]

Posted 6 years ago

Dec 7

2019

Spotlight reporter’s dismay over clerical abuse

Published by Investigative Post staff

Matt Carroll has something to say about the sexual abuse of children by Catholic priests. And he said it Wednesday here in Buffalo. He was a reporter on The Boston Globe Spotlight team that produced more than 600 stories on the topic in 2002-03. He and his colleagues won a Pulitzer Prize and were later the subject of the Academy Award winning film “Spotlight.” Carroll spoke to an audience of about 140 on Wednesday at an event at 166 Chandler sponsored by Investigative Post. Attendees included many people involved in the effort to reform the Buffalo diocese. Carroll answered questions[...]

Posted 6 years ago