Cincinnati police hope this sketch helps them find the man who broke into a Walnut Hills house early Tuesday and raped a 17-year-old girl.

        The victim described the man as black, about 20 to 25 years old, skinny with close-cut hair, no facial hair and a dark complexion. He's about 5-foot-7 and 130 pounds.

        He came into the house on Luray Avenue through a window, found the girl asleep in her bedroom and forced her to have sex twice. He then left the house, taking some property with him, police said.

        Police ask anyone with information to call Crime Stoppers at 352-3040.

Warning issued on fake utility workers

        Following reports of people impersonating utility workers, the Cincinnati Water Works is cautioning customers about letting strangers into their homes.

        Two customers on opposite sides of town reported that people tried to get in their homes Monday, saying they needed to read a meter or check the water heater, said Alison Posinski, Water Works assistant superintendent.

        In the first case, a west-side woman let a man posing as a utility worker enter her home. The man, dressed in street clothes, asked her to go upstairs and turn on cold water while he waited downstairs. She said no, and he left when she asked for his ID.

        In the second case, a person dressed in a light blue uniform tried to enter an Oakley woman's home, but she did not let him in when he failed to show identification.

        “The thing that disturbs us is that not everyone who this happens to calls us,” Ms. Posinski said. “If we got two calls, that means it probably happened to other people, too.”

        Water Works employees always wear blue uniforms with a Water Works patch and carry photo identification. They generally drive white vehicles with the city seal.

        People wanting to verify if the person is a Water Works employee should call the department's 24-hour hot line at 591-7700.

City delegation looks for money in D.C.

        Cincinnati Mayor Charlie Luken led city officials on a lobbying trip to Washington on Wednesday, trying to build congressional support for a plan to build a $78 million, 52-acre park on the Ohio River.

        Mr. Luken accompanied officials of the Cincinnati Park Board and the Port of Greater Cincinnati Development Authority to Capitol Hill, where they met with Ohio's senators and the two congressmen representing the city.

        Tops on the agenda: a $400,000 appropriation to complete a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers study. That's needed to clear the way for future federal funding, said Jim Morrell, a spokesman for Rep. Rob Portman, R-Terrace Park.

Interim school head on board's agenda

        The board of Cincinnati Public Schools today will consider who should be named interim superintendent to oversee day-to-day operations.

        Superintendent Steven Adamowski, who announced last month he's leaving the district, asked that Aug. 19 be his last day. Ohio law stipulates that a district must have a superintendent in place at all times, according to the Buckeye Association of School Administrators.

        Board members have said they'd like to name a permanent superintendent by early fall.

Zone code changed; plans can proceed

        LOVELAND — Council members approved a zoning code amendment Tuesday that will allow a 16-acre commercial development on the 85-acre

        White Pillars property.

        Before the change, no residentially zoned property could be rezoned for nonresidential purposes unless surrounding land had the same zoning.

        With the amendment, rezoning will be allowed if the property is more than 5 acres.

        The change will permit Hines-Griffin Joint Venture and Parrott & Strawser to build the commercial development, along with 85 single-family houses and 70 town houses, along Ohio 48.

Husband charged after wife's death

        DAYTON, Ohio - A man was charged with reckless homicide Wednesday in the death of his wife, who died after being pulled from the Great Miami River in suburban Moraine.

        Judy Setzer, 51, of West Carrollton, died Sunday at Kettering Medical Center.

        Montgomery County Prosecutor Mathias Heck Jr. would not say what led authorities to charge David Setzer, 53, or discuss any evidence.

        Mr. Setzer and his wife were at the river for a picnic and went for a swim in water 4 feet deep, police said.

        A bicyclist called 911 and reported that a woman apparently had drowned and that a man was bringing her to shore.

        The charge against Mr. Setzer accuses him of recklessly causing the death of another.

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