[naviga:h3]Phony drug test leads to jail time[/naviga:h3]

ALLENTOWN — A drug counselor who gave clean urine to a client she was dating so he could pass a drug test — which he took shortly before dying from a heroin overdose — will now go behind bars.

Authorities had sought a three-month county jail term for Kristianna Belotto. But a judge sentenced her Monday to 11½ to 23 months, saying she earned the extra time because she disrupted Michael Rubery’s treatment.

The 26-year-old Bethlehem woman pleaded guilty in April to tampering with or fabricating physical evidence and furnishing drug-free urine.

Detectives who searched Rubery’s cell phone after his October 2017 death found more than 23,000 texts between him and Belotto.

The messages indicated they were in a sexual relationship, that she had given him clean urine and warned him a warrant was issued for his arrest.

[naviga:h3]Officials: Deaths are murder-suicide[/naviga:h3]

PETERS TWP — Authorities say a Pennsylvania man strangled his wife before killing himself inside their home.

The bodies of Craig Bryan, 48, and his wife, Kelly, 44, were found by their children around 6:30 a.m. Sunday in the family’s Peters Township home. Their deaths have been ruled a murder-suicide.

Authorities believe the couple had been arguing when the dispute turned physical. They say it appears that Bryan killed his wife, then cut his own neck.

The couple’s two children, ages 17 and 12, were not injured. They are now being cared for by relatives. Authorities have not said what the couple was arguing about.

Judge to decide if slaying was planned

[naviga:h3]EASTON — A judge must decide whether a man who acknowledged killing his cousin and also shooting his cousin’s wife and their family dog planned his [/naviga:h3]actions or committed them in the heat of passion.

Authorities said 62-year-old John Hann killed Joseph Mullner and shot Melinda Mullner multiple times in 2017. She survived by playing dead. Hann surrendered the following day. A third-degree rather than first-degree murder conviction might allow Hann’s release someday.