🌱 Alleged Bank Robber Arrested + Indoor Vax-Or-Mask Mandate Ends

Happy Thursday, Woonsocket, and happy National Umbrella Day! Let's get you all caught up on what's happening locally to start today off on an informed note.

Was $1,000 worth an arrest? Also, the Governor is ending the indoor vax-or-mask mandate. Finally, a man will be doing time for setting a couch on fire.

First, today's weather:

Breezy; a morning shower. High: 49 Low: 29.

Here are the top five stories today in Woonsocket:

1. An alleged bank robber was arrested Friday. The individual handed a Bank RI teller a note. The teller then turned over $1,000. Surveillance showed that the individual, who has a distinctive tattoo, headed toward the Holiday Inn Express on Fortin. Residents at that location recognized the individual and gave police the room number. The PD found the alleged bank robber “hiding in the shower of the room.” (Woonsocket Call)
2. Governor Dan McKee announced Wednesday that the state “will remove its indoor vax-or-mask mandate later this week and end the mask mandate for schools next month.” The executive order requiring proof of vaccination will expire Friday. The school mask mandate will end on March 4. However, he did give school districts the power “to set their own mask policies.” (WPRI)
3. We learned Wednesday that a 31-year-old Woonsocket man was “sentenced to 10 years at the ACI with five to serve, and the rest suspended with probation.” He pleaded no contest to first-degree arson. The case dates back to February 2020, when he set a couch on fire in his girlfriend’s apartment. There were three children in the home; everyone got out safely. (WPRI)
4. Do you buy Batch Ice Cream at “Market Baskets in Massachusetts, Big Y stores in Massachusetts and Connecticut, and Roach Brothers Markets in Massachusetts?” The Rhode Island Department of Health announced Wednesday that Royal Ice Cream Company is recalling specific batches because processing equipment tested positive for Listeria monocytogenes. Check your 16-ounce pints that “are coded with the Date of Manufacture as 1/19/22 and Best By: 7/19/23, found on the bottom of the cup. UPC Vanilla – 837654968505; Ginger – 83765496856; Mocha chip – 83765496853.” (On Worldwide)
5. Pizza strips are a thing, but who sells the best ones? A blind taste test identified Palmieri’s Bakery in Johnston as having the tastiest. Unfortunately, there were no Woonsocket contenders. (Rhode Island Monthly)

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Today in Woonsocket:

• Chelo's Hometown Bar & Grille hosts the RI Business Connections Monthly Luncheon (11:20 AM)
• Ciro's Tavern hosts Wine & Spirits With Psychic Medium Joanna (5:30 PM to 9 PM)
• DIY Green Products - Cinnamon Mouthwash *For Adults at the Ashland Public Library (6:30 PM)
• Blackstone Valley High Schools Jazz Concert at the Stadium Theatre (7 PM)

From my notebook:

• The American Legion Post 85 announces today’s 3p.m. “rally at the RI State House in the Rotunda. The purpose of the rally is to support the Governor’s proposal to exempt military pensions and survivors' annuities from state income tax.”

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You're all caught up for today. See you all tomorrow morning for another update!

— Sylvia Cochran

About me: Sylvia Cochran works out of sunny Southern California and has been freelance writing full-time since 2005. She loves dogs, cats, books, plays Best Fiends (don't judge), embraces social justice, and tries to live out Micah 6:8.