The U.S. scrambled jet fighters to intercept two Russian bombers that flew near the Alaskan coast Monday night, several American officials said.

The Russian long-range TU-95 Bear bombers breached airspace around the U.S and Canada known as the Alaskan Air Defense Identification Zone, in which aircraft must be readily identified and report details of their course and destination. The Russian bombers stayed in international airspace, NBC News reported.

The bombers flew near the Aleutian Islands. The Russians also had maritime patrol aircraft in the vicinity.

The U.S. scrambled two F-22 fighters from Elmendorf Air Force Base in Anchorage, Alaska, to intercept the Russian planes.

Adidas said it was "incredibly sorry" for an insensitive email sent to participants of the 2017 Boston Marathon one day after the race.

The athletic wear company sent an email blast to customers Tuesday congratulating them on "surviving" Monday's 26.2-mile race. "Congrats, you survived the Boston Marathon!" the subject line of the email read.

The poorly worded email drew immediate backlash online and participants of the annual event were outraged at the lack of consideration for the victims and survivors of the 2013 Boston Marathon bombings, and the people of Boston.

The email comes four years after two pressue cooker bombs detonated on the crowded finish line, killing three people and injuring more than 260 others.

"Adidas, you may want to rethink the subject line," Mike Denison tweeted with a screenshot of the email. Others quickly chimed in, voicing similar sentiments on social media.

Adidas tweeted out a statement Tuesday afternoon apologizing for the marketing email.

"Clearly, there was no thought given to the insensitive email subject line we sent Tuesday. We deeply apologize for our mistake," the company's statement read. "The Boston Marathon is one of the most inspirational sporting events in the world. Every year we're reminded of the hope and resiliency of the running community at this event."

This is the latest public relations disaster for a major brand this month. Pepsi drew criticism for an ad that depicted model Kendall Jenner attempting to quell a protest by giving police officers a can of Pepsi, and United Airlines is still under fire after a video surfaced of a man being dragged off of a Kentucky-bound flight in Chicago.

After a 74-year-old man in Cleveland was shot by a stranger who posted video of the killing to Facebook, at least six GoFundMe pages claiming to benefit his family cropped up.

The crowdfunding website shut down all but one of the pages after verifying that page is legitimate. On that page alone, people horrified by the killing of Robert Godwin Sr. donated more than $74,000 toward a $20,000 goal in just one day.

Well-intentioned donors need to be wary of scammers trying to profit off tragedies, consumer advocates say.

"Disasters and tragedies generally attract questionable websites popping up and other untoward things that donors have to watch out for," said Bennett Weiner, chief operating officer of the Better Business Bureau's Wise Giving Alliance. He spoke at a Federal Trade Commission (FTC) conference on charity and consumer protection issues, held March 21.

GoFundMe says cases of fraud on the website are rare. The California company has computer systems that flag "high-risk campaigns," such as those created after a police officer or firefighter has died, and a team of investigators fact checks claims made on the pages, GoFundMe's Head of Trust and Safety, Daniel Gordon, said at the FTC conference.

The company guarantees that donors' funds will go to the right person. If GoFundMe determines that fraud occurred in connection to a page created after Oct. 3, 2016, donors can get as much as $1,000 back, and the beneficiary can have as much as $25,000 guaranteed. Several conditions apply.

If you want to donate, here's what you should know.

How to Check If a GoFundMe Page Is Legitimate

Contact the organizer. GoFundMe recommends that anyone with questions about a campaign write a message to the organizer. If you still have questions, contact GoFundMe.

Do your homework. Get as much information as you can about who created the campaign and where the money will go, said Evan Zullow, an attorney in the FTC's Division of Financial Practices.

Search the names of the beneficiary and the campaign organizer. Can you see through their social media profiles that they appear to know each other? Did either person recently create a social media profile? That could indicate that something is off, according to Adrienne Gonzalez.

Gonzalez, a journalist who lives in Washington, D.C. and Richmond, Virginia, has tracked alleged misuse of GoFundMe for more than two years. Her website GoFraudMe.com tracks cases of people accused of faking cancer and using stock photos of supposedly sick animals to collect donations.

Donate to people you or people in your social network know. Be wary of anyone who contacts you asking for donations. "If someone reaches out to you, that's usually a big red flag," Gonzalez said.

Do a reverse image search. An image search can reveal if someone is using a stock photo or a photo of someone else.

Trust your instincts. If something doesn't seem right, it might not be, Gonzalez said.

How Much GoFundMe Fraud Occurs?

GoFundMe says cases of fraud are rare and make up less than 0.1 percent of all campaigns.

The majority of GoFundMe campaigns are for individuals' own benefit or for an immediate family member's benefit and raise less than $900, Gordon, the GoFundMe's safety manager, said. 

When fraud attempts occur, they tend to fall into two main categories: outright lies or what the company calls beneficiary risk.

"There are instances where we see people lie to their families, friends, communities, media about a medical condition they don't really have," Gordon said. "That happens. That will happen whether it's on GoFundMe or off-line."

In the "beneficiary risk" cases, the reason the page was created is legitimate, but the funds are not headed to the correct person.

A sudden windfall of money raised through a GoFundMe campaign can spark a family dispute.

"We often see that the biggest fraud is by friends and family after there's all of a sudden money there when there never used to be money there," Gordon said.

The FBI says it has seen a small increase in reports of fraud related to fundraising websites.

"As crowdfunding sites increase in popularity, there has been a minor uptick in instances of fraud stemming from use of these platforms," a spokeswoman said in a statement.

D.C. police, the U.S. Attorney's Office for D.C. and the Office of the Attorney General for D.C. all said they had no recent theft or fraud cases related to crowdfunding. Police in Arlington County, Virginia, and Prince George's County, Maryland, said the same.

How GoFundMe Monitors for Fraud

GoFundMe has investigators and computer systems that try to ferret out fraud. Algorithms flag high-risk campaigns and allow the company to see anytime anyone talks about GoFundMe on social media.

If GoFundMe can that the first donors to a campaign are not friends or family members, the page can be flagged.

"If it's strangers who are donating first, that would be very strange behavior, and we'd know about it," Gordon said.

If GoFundMe doubts the legitimacy of a campaign, they can pause withdrawals from the account. 

How to Report Suspected GoFundMe Fraud

If you believe a page is misleading or fraudulent, contact GoFundMe.

Complaints can be filed with the FTC online or by calling 1-877-FTC-HELP.

D.C. residents can report complaints to the Office of the Attorney General for D.C. "You definitely should complain to us if you live in the District and feel like you've been scammed by one of these, so we can take action," spokesman Robert Marus said.

How Can I Donate to the Godwins?

GoFundMe said the Help for Cleveland Victim & Family page created by Wesley Scott Alexander of Phoenix, Arizona, is legitimate. All other pages had been removed from the site as of Tuesday morning.

"All funds raised for the Godwins will be transferred directly to the family," spokesman Bobby Whithorne said in a statement.

GoFundMe deducts a 5 percent fee from each donation received. Additionally, a 2.9 percent payment processing fee plus an additional $0.30 are deducted.

Gonzalez, who runs GoFraudMe.com, said she hoped that cases of misuse of GoFundMe pages would not deter people from donating to worthy causes.

"I think people should be skeptical but they shouldn't be so completely turned off that they don't want to help people," she said.

Two people are dead following a plane crash in East Windsor, according to the Broadbook Fire Department. 

Tolland County Dispatch said a small plane crashed on Rolocut Road by Wells Road in Broadbrook in East Windsor.

According to the Skylark Airpark's manager, the plan had just taken off before the crash. The airport is located on 54 Wells Road, within the area of the crash. 

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said they are investigating crash of a Luscombe 8A in Connecticut, according to a tweet. 

Two LifeStar helicopters were called to the scene before being cancelled. 

The Federal Aviation Administration has been requested to the scene. 

No other details were immediately available on this developing story. Please check back for updates.

Police are searching for a suspect who forced his way into the home of an elderly woman in Marlborough Monday morning.

According to the Marlborough Resident Trooper’s Office, a man broke into a home on Denler Drive around 11:40 a.m. The victim told police that the man kicked in an exterior door and argued verbally with her before stealing jewelry and fleeing.

The victim was not hurt, police said.

Troopers responded and a K9 track was attempted, but no suspect was found.

The homeowner described the suspect as around 30 to 40 years old with a “chubby” build, wearing dark pants, sneakers, a maroon shirt and a dark baseball hat. He was wearing white gloves at the time of the home invasion.

Anyone who noticed anything unusual in the area of Denler, Cheney, or the neighboring areas Monday is asked to contact Connecticut State Police Troop K at 860-465-4569. Police are also asking anyone who lives in the area and has a home security camera to review footage for anything suspicious.

Police have arrested a Chinese food delivery driver in connection with the hit-and-run that killed a 61-year-old Middletown grandmother who was putting a letter into her mailbox in March 2016.

Charles Leroy Demoranville, 47, of Haddam, is accused of hitting 61-year-old Barbara Eddinger, on Chamberlain Road around 2:15 p.m. on March 31, 2016, while making a food delivery.

Lifestar flew her Eddinger to a hospital, where she later died.

Demoranville has been charged with negligent homicide with a motor vehicle and evading responsibility. 

Bond was set at $75,000 and lowered to $50,000 cash-only bond.

A pilot who knew the two pilots killed in a plane crash in East Windsor Tuesday night said both pilots were experienced and were loved by fellow pilots.

"It's devastating. I knew these people personally and it's just devastating." said pilot Dan Frederick.

Frederick said Tuesday's plane crash took two of his friends he has known for years.

"They were experienced pilots probably have had their licenses for five,10 or 15 years. I know one of them had it for at least 15 years," said Frederick.

Authorities said the single-engine plane crashed in a wooded area near Skylark Airpark. They suspect the plane stalled. Frederick watched the plane take off.

"Something happened. It's stalled...Then took a left turn and went down," Frederick said.

He said not only were the pilots experienced but they were admired for their skill.

"They were very proficient. Their landings were perfect before. I couldn't tell you what happened. They were doing a fine job. So whatever happened must've been catastrophic," Frederick said. 

In their tight knit pilot community family and friends mourn the loss of two of their own.

"Very gentle, intelligent, well-liked among the community. Really, just a bunch of great people and it's a sad loss. It really is." said Frederick.

Many pilots visited the airpark to console relatives of the two killed in this plane crash.

With construction on the Gold Star Memorial Bridge expected to last for five years, some businesses off the exits of the construction zone are concerned about possible traffic and potential business loss.

The bridge connects Groton and New London. The southbound side is a way for people in towns like Groton, Mystic and Stonington to drive through. And there’s usually a big crowd during the summer season.

"I am a little nervous because it's a main artery that comes down into downtown in New London,” said Jackie Jaskiewicz, manager at Berry's Ice Cream and Candy Bar in New London. The shop is seasonal.

“As a small business we really rely on that traffic flow,” Jaskiewicz said.

This week drivers started seeing a barrier put up on the bridge's southbound side, shifting the four lanes of traffic to the right.

The Connecticut Department of Transportation said the approximately $30 million southbound project includes structural steel repairs, replacing expansion joints and re-paving. It should wrap up in November 2018.

Project engineer Keith Shoppe said that after Labor Day crews will reduce the southbound side to three lanes of traffic. It will stay that way until Memorial Day 2018, when the summer crowds are expected back in town. After Labor Day 2018, the south side of the bridge will be reduced to three lanes once again.

But some downtown New London businesses, like Flavours of Life, The Fair Trade Store, aren't as concerned about the bridge work.

“Summer traffic is people who are taking the ferries and people who are traveling by train,” said owner Ellen Cummings.

Cummings also said she offers a niche product. So people will travel for fair trade merchandise.

Construction will be more intense on the northbound side. A spokesperson for CTDOT said crews will replace the entire bridge deck and strengthen and upgrade steel. But the project, with a preliminary estimated price tag of $250 million, won't start until at least spring 2018.

That doesn’t mean businesses on the Groton side aren't worried.

“If they working in New London and they wanted to come over here for their lunch break, I don't think they'll be able to do so,” said Lisa Villano, general manager of Olio Restaurant and Bar.

Olio Restaurant and Bar is right off an exit on the Groton side of the Gold Star Bridge. Not only does Villano fear less customers, but for the time it could take her employees to get to work.

“(The bridge) needs to be fixed. I rather it not fall apart,” Villano added.

A burglar made himself at home in a New Orleans preschool this week, even making himself a bed out of stuffed toys, a mat and a blanket and settling in for the night, NBC News reported.

New Orleans police are looking for the man, seen on security video entering Clara's Little Lambs Preschool Academy through a window Sunday and climbing over cribs to get inside.

He wandered through several rooms, taking a snack from food and drink in the staff break room, before crawling out the same window before 7 a.m. Monday, police said.

"He took the food with him when he left," Sonjia Joseph, the school's owner and director, told NBC affiliate WDSU. "We could see very clearly on the camera he had toilet paper."

A Jewish real estate agent in Whitefish, Montana, joined with the Southern Poverty Law Center to sue the founder of a neo-Nazi website who allegedly incited an anti-Semitic "troll storm" against her family.

Tanya Gersh said in her lawsuit that The Daily Stormer blogger Andrew Anglin urged his followers to send hateful messages to her, her husband and 12-year-old son.

"My friends used to joke that I was the happiest girl on the planet," Gersh told NBC News. "Overnight, my life was stolen from me. I'm in trauma therapy and the safe world I lived in inside my beautiful mountain town was changed for me."

Anglin allegedly targeted Gersh after Sherry Spencer, the mother of white nationalist Richard Spencer claimed the real estate agent tried to extort her in order to profit from a real estate transaction.

Anglin and Spencer did not respond to request for comment from NBC News.

The U.S. military may not be able to shoot down missiles launched by North Korea, as top generals have asserted for years, NBC News reported.

According to independent scientists and government investigators, generals fail to acknowledge huge questions about the effectiveness of the $40 billion missile defense system they rely on to stop a potential nuclear-armed ballistic missile fired by North Korean or Iran.

"They are leading political leaders to believe that they have a military capability that they don't, in fact, have," physicist David Wright, who has studied the program for years as co-director of the Global Security Program at the Union of Concerned Scientists, told NBC News.

Chris Johnson, a spokesman for the Pentagon's Missile Defense Agency, told NBC News the Pentagon "is confident in our ability to defend the homeland against ballistic missile threats."

But last year, the Government Accountability Office, the investigative arm of Congress, concluded that the agency that runs the missile defense system "has not demonstrated through flight testing that it can defend the U.S. homeland."

A Litchfield man faces charges in connection with a fatal accident in Southbury last May.

According to Connecticut State Police, on May 13, 2016, 30-year-old William Richard Foley was driving a dump truck on Main Street North when he struck a Subaru Legacy at the intersection with Old Waterbury Road.

The Subaru driver, 69-year-old Ruth Grant, suffered fatal injuries. Foley was not injured in the crash.

There is a traffic light at the intersection.

Foley was arrested on a warrant Tuesday and charged with failure to obey a control signal and misconduct with a motor vehicle. He was held on a $50,000 bond and is scheduled to appear in court Wednesday.

A photo of a Syrian photographer rescuing a child victim after a bombing in the country has gone viral online, NBC News reported.  

Abd Alkader Habak told NBC News he was taking pictures of Syrians being evacuated aboard buses on the outskirts of Aleppo Saturday when a huge bomb hit.

Habak, a photographer and anti-government activist, said he came across children lying on the ground after the blast. When he realized one child was dead and another was clinging to life, he said he put down his camera.

Habak then picked up the child who appeared to still be breathing and ran to seek shelter.

The scene was captured by a fellow photographer and shared widely online, with the harrowing images becoming yet another window into Syria's brutal six-year civil war.

The Wish School in Hartford was closed as workers removed asbestos debris, but it is resuming operations today after the state Department of Health gave the all-clear.

Over the spring break, contractors removing old lockers had exposed some insulation within the school. As protocol, experts tested this material and found that asbestos was present. 

The school partnered with a contractor from Eagle Environmental and the State Department of Public Health to develop a plan to remove the asbestos. 

During the removal processteh school was closed on Monday, April 17 and Tuesday, April 18. School officials said the asbestos was removed Monday and air samples were taken.

No students, staff or families were exposed since the lockers were taken down during spring break. 

Two days will be added on to the school calendar to make up for the days.

The school provided a timeline of the process so far and going forward:

• April 10, Monday: Contractors on site of Wish School to begin removal of lockers.
• April 11, Tuesday: During removal of lockers, after suspicious insulation is discovered, Eagle Environmental is contacted and arrives to school to take samples for testing on a rush basis. Test results confirmed presence of asbestos in the insulation.
• April 12, Wednesday: Eagle Environmental works with State Department of Public Health to develop a remediation and abatement plan of the asbestos debris. Abatement process begins that evening. Building is closed until process is completed.
• April 13, Thursday: Further tests results reveal the need for an extended scope of work and that successful air clearance in time for a Monday school opening is not possible.
• April 17, Monday:School district determines that Wish School will close Monday to complete the remediation and abatement. Letters mailed to families and school messenger and emails to staff, family and partners.
• April 18, Tuesday: School district determines that Wish School will close Tuesday to complete the remediation and abatement. Letters mailed to families and school messenger and emails to staff, family and partners.

A 37-year-old Newtown man was killed in a motorcycle accident on Riverside Road Tuesday, according to Newtown police.

Police said that Martin Vanburen Amidon was riding his motorcycle in the area of 195 Riverside Road in the Sandy Hook area of Newtown, around 5:30 p.m., when the crash happened. Amidon was pronounced dead at the scene.

No other vehicles were involved, police said.

The accident is under investigation. Anyone who witnessed the crash is asked to contact police at 203-270-4255.

It appears that in death, Aaron Hernandez may be a free man, at least legally speaking.

The apparent suicide of the former NFL player, who had been acquitted in a 2012 double murder last Friday, may have vacated his conviction in the 2013 death of Odin Lloyd, according to NBC Boston/necn legal editor Randy Chapman.

"There is a doctrine that says when a conviction is not final, if somebody dies while the appeal is pending, that the case is then dropped," he said.

Hernandez's appeal had not yet been heard by a Massachusetts high court.

The civil case against Hernandez is also likely to be dropped, Chapman said.

John M. Thompson, Hernandez's attorney handling his appeal of the Lloyd conviction, called for a thorough investigation into his client's death.

"It's an unusual circumstance, and we would have to prepare carefully before we decide to go about it. But normally, a judgement is vacated if the defendant dies amidst an appeal," he said.

Thompson would not give details on a possible timeline for the process.

This would not be the first time a high-profile defendant's death has resulted in a removed conviction. Chapman referred to the case of John Salvi, who was convicted of murdering two people outside an abortion clinic in 1996, but then committed suicide. His murder conviction was reverse and charges were dismissed.

Chapman also said prisoners at Souza-Baranowski Correctional Center in Shirley, Massachusetts, where the former New England Patriots tight end was incarcerated, are not monitored all day long unless they're on suicide watch.

"If he was on watch, there might have been greater measures, but it sounds like he was in general population, but if someone wants to do this, which we have seen in the past, barricading his cell, it is certainly capable and it does happen," he said.

Hernandez was found hanging from a bed sheet attached to his cell window just after 3 a.m. on Wednesday. He was pronounced dead about an hour later at UMass Leominster.

A Thompson mother is accused of drinking several alcoholic beverages, then driving drunk with her 5-month-old baby in the car.

Police said they found 30-year-old Amy Janette Desourdy, 30, of Thompson, parked along the right shoulder of Interstate 395 in Killingly at 11:50 p.m. Friday, April 14.

The back left tire was badly damaged, but Desourdy was not aware, police said.

She failed a field sobriety test and admitted to drinking several alcoholic beverages before driving, according to police.

Authorities took the 5-month-old baby from the car and family members picked the child up.

Desourdy was charged with operating under the influence and illegal operation of a motor vehicle with a child while under the influence.

Her vehicle was towed from the scene.

The race for governor and statewide offices in Connecticut grew significantly Wednesday morning. 

Two Democrats formally entered the race and one Republican threw his name into the ring as well. 

Jonathan Harris, the outgoing Commissioner of the Department of Consumer Protection, announced he would form an exploratory committee for a statewide run. 

Harris, a former state senator from West Hartford and chairman of the Connecticut Democratic Party, has remained a close ally of Gov. Dannel Malloy, who announced last week that he would not run for a third term. 

Harris has been a rumored candidate for governor for months, though his exploratory committee would allow him to raise money for another statewide office, like lieutenant governor or secretary of the state. 

The other Democrat to announce his exploratory committee for a gubernatorial bid is Chris Mattei, the former Assistant United States Attorney who successfully prosecuted former Gov. John Rowland on corruption charges in 2014. 

Mattei announced his intention to raise funds for a bid for the state's highest office. The Windsor native headed up the state's public corruption unit during his time in the U.S. Attorney's Office. 

"This is a time for citizenship and what I believe is that if we are to resist what's happening in Washington, that work starts right here," he said in the announcement which was posted on YouTube. 

Joe Visconti is making a direct entry into the race for the Republican nomination without forming an exploratory committee. 

Visconti, who ran an unsuccessful petitioning candidacy for governor in 2014, appeared in one debate with Governor Malloy on NBC Connecticut as GOP nominee Tom Foley refused to appear.

Visconti’s intention is to collect nearly 9,000 signatures of registered GOP voters, bypassing the party's nominating convention, with the intention of appearing on the primary ballot.

Multiple Republicans have formed exploratory committees for statewide office, including Peter Lumaj, State Representative Prasad Srinivasan and Trumbull First Selectman Tim Herbst.

A Quinnipiac University student trying to cook in a dorm building caused a fire that displaced three people Tuesday evening, according to the Hamden Fire Department.

Fire crews responded to the Whitney Village Quinnipiac University student housing complex at 3075 Whitney Avenue around 6:30 p.m. When they arrived the occupants were already evacuating and there was light smoke in the hallways.

Fire officials said that by the time firefighters arrived the fire had been extinguished by a sprinkler system in the complex. Crews cleaned up and ventilated the building.

No injuries were reported. Three students in three apartments were displaced due to water damage, fire officials said.

Hamden Fire Marshal Brian Dolan determined the fire was caused by a student who was cooking on the stove. When the fire started the student tried to put it out with a hand-held fire extinguisher but failed. At that point the resident warned the Resident Assistance about the fire and the students safely evacuated.

The three displaced students were relocated by the university.

Fox News host Bill O'Reilly was officially pushed out at the network. This comes after O'Reilly had paid out more than $13 million to five different women over allegations of sexual harassment. In a statement, 21st Century Fox said, "After a thorough and careful review of the allegations, the Company and Bill O’Reilly have agreed that Bill O’Reilly will not be returning to the Fox News Channel." O'Reilly has denied any wrongdoing.