Lean Cuisine products recalled

Giant Food Stores and Martin's Food Markets on Tuesday removed from stores two Stouffer Lean Cuisine products due to a Class I recall announced by Nestle USA, the product manufacturer. Stouffer Lean Cuisine Chicken Mediterranean Meal and Stouffer Lean Cuisine Grilled Chicken Tuscan Meal were removed from store shelves due to potentially containing pieces of hard plastic. Both items are frozen food products.

The product UPC for the Stouffer Lean Cuisine Chicken Mediterranean Meal in a 10.5 ounce package is No. 1380016612 with "Best Before" dates of "SEP 2010, OCT 2010 and NOV 2010." The product UPC for the Stouffer Lean Cuisine Grilled Chicken Tuscan Meal in a 12-ounce package is No. 1380014890 with "Best Before" dates of "SEP 2009, OCT 2009 and NOV 2009."

Consumers should check their freezers and return either of these items to the store for a full refund. For additional information from the manufacturer, customers are encouraged to call Nestle Consumer Services at 800-993-8625.

All Class I and Class II product recalls of products carried in Giant Food Stores or Martin's Food Markets are posted at www.giantfoodstores.com and www.martinsfoods.com.

Criminal charges have netted a Fayette County teenager a one-way ticket to Saudi Arabia.

Zack Al-Balawi, 16, of 60 Duck Hollow Road, west of Uniontown, is charged as an adult by Uniontown police with aggravated assault, simple assault, recklessly endangering another person, terroristic threats and possession of a firearm by a minor.

In a criminal complaint, police accused Al-Balawi of pointing a shotgun at a 38-year-old woman on Nov. 10 and threatening to "blow" her head off. The woman told police Al-Balawi threatened her at her Downer Avenue home when she tried to help a man that Al-Balawi allegedly had shoved down the stairs.

Al-Balawi was born in Saudi Arabia and has dual citizenship there and in the United States, said his mother, Tammy Al-Balawi. He has been visiting with family in Uniontown for the past several years.

Officials with the Royal Embassy of Saudi Arabia in Washington hired Uniontown attorney Nick Timperio to represent Al-Balawi at a preliminary hearing on Tuesday.

Timperio said the embassy has agreed to send a security team to Uniontown to pick up Al-Balawi and escort him to Saudi Arabia, where he is to live with his father. Al-Balawi is to remain in the county jail prior to his departure, which is expected to occur within the next several days.

Phyllis Jin, assistant district attorney, said once Saudi officials assure her that Al-Balawi has been returned to his homeland, she will drop the criminal charges. In exchange, Al-Balawi is never to return to the United States, according to Jin.

Timperio yesterday said the agreement includes a promise not to post Al-Balawi's $20,000 bond. Had Al-Balawi been released on bail, Jin was considering filing an emergency motion to have his passport revoked.

A Fayette County man may have picked the wrong time and place to hawk cookie dough disguised as crack cocaine.

Uniontown police officers who were looking for an armed robber on Monday near Gallatin Avenue stopped the man when he tried to elude them, according to a police report.

In the man's pocket, police found plastic bags containing a substance resembling crack cocaine. The man told the officers not to be concerned -- the substance was a concoction of cookie dough and Orajel that he was pawning off as crack cocaine.

The man told police he is an ex-convict who needed rent money.

Officer David Rutter yesterday said charges are pending results of toxicology tests on the substance. Rutter said even if the substance is cookie dough, police can file charges of possession with intent to deliver a counterfeit substance.

The armed robbery remains under investigation, Rutter said. According to police, the robber pointed a gun at a man in the alley behind North Gallatin Avenue and took the man's wallet about 6:45 p.m. Monday.

Rutter said a video camera on a private residence filmed the man, but police could not identify him. The robber is described as a black male between the ages of 16 and 20.

The robbery is the latest in a series of armed robberies in the city that remain under investigation.

State police are investigating the theft of an air-conditioning unit from Ed's Diner in Dunbar Township.

The theft happened between midnight and 5:54 a.m. Monday, police said.

Anyone with information about the incident may contact police at 724-439-7111.

All driver's license and photo centers, including the full-service center in Harrisburg, will be closed Nov. 27 and 28 for the Thanksgiving holiday. Customers may still obtain a variety of driver and vehicle products and services online through PennDOT's driver and vehicle services Web site at www.dmv.state.pa.us.

Driver and vehicle online services are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week and include driver's license and photo ID renewals, vehicle registration renewal, driver history services, change of address and exam scheduling. There are no additional fees for using online services.

Retirees and current soldiers of the Pennsylvania Army National Guard 1st Battalion 110th Infantry Regiment will serve and deliver free meals on Thanksgiving Day to those who normally would not enjoy a traditional Thanksgiving dinner.

Various community organizations, including the American Legion, South Connellsville Fire Department and the Bethlehem Center Leo Club, are showing support by offering donations and volunteering for the event. Nearly 100 meals have been reserved, and it is expected between 200 and 300 meals will be delivered in Mt. Pleasant, Connellsville and Scottdale. Reservations are being taken now. Leave your name, address, phone number and number of meals needed at 724-542-0309. The menu includes roasted turkey, mashed potatoes, salad, pie and all the trimmings. Meals will be delivered from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Nov. 27. Meals will also be served at noon at the armory at 2239 School St., Mt. Pleasant.