June 13, 2017 |
By Jason Togyer | Posted in: Crime and Police News
The outspoken owner of a Versailles gun shop that closed abruptly a few months ago has pleaded guilty in federal court to possession of illegal firearms, tampering with evidence and witness tampering.
Erik D. Lowry, 37, former owner of Pittsburgh Tactical Firearms on Walnut Street, entered the plea in U.S. District Court in Pittsburgh, Acting U.S. Attorney Soo C. Song said today in a prepared statement.
In conjunction with Lowry's guilty plea, a guilty plea to a charge of illegally selling firearms also was entered on behalf of Pittsburgh Tactical Firearms.
Prosecutors allege that Lowry sold firearms at his store and through gun shows on what he called a "cash-and-carry" basis in which he failed to determine whether or not his customers had a criminal record.
In addition, they claim, Lowry acquired what federal officials classified as a "destructive device" --- a 12-gauge shotgun with a high-capacity drum magazine --- but failed to register it, as required, with the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
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June 13, 2017 |
By Submitted Report | Posted in: Crime and Police News
Two city residents were sentenced to three years in federal prison for their role in a drug trafficking ring that also snared the former postmaster of West Newton.
Jeffrey Turner, 35, and April Racan, 37, also will face five years' probation following their release under the sentence handed down last week by U.S. District Judge Arthur J. Schwab in Pittsburgh.
Federal prosecutors said that from 2011 and 2015, Racan and Turner acted as the local contact persons for an alleged drug dealer in Brownsville, Texas, Dante Lozano. Investigators allege that Lozano mailed dozens of packages of cocaine, weighing about 18 pounds total, to Racan and Turner in Elizabeth and McKeesport.
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June 02, 2017 |
By Submitted Report | Posted in: Crime and Police News
A Mt. Oliver man is wanted in connection with the robbery of the PNC Bank at the Waterfront in Homestead.
Allegheny County police on Friday obtained a warrant for the arrest of David Payo, 52, on charges of robbery, theft by unlawful taking and receiving stolen property.
Police said that the PNC Bank located inside the Giant Eagle was robbed on May 27. After surveillance photos of the robbery suspect were posted on Facebook, police said, tips from the public identified Payo as a suspect.
Payo is described as white, 5-feet-9, weighing 205 pounds. Anyone with information is asked to call Allegheny County Police at (412) 473-3000.
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May 31, 2017 |
By Staff Reports | Posted in: Crime and Police News
A McKeesport teen-ager has been charged with homicide after Allegheny County police accused him of suffocating to death his four-month-old son.
De-John Johnson, 16, was arrested this afternoon after the Allegheny County medical examiner's office ruled the death of Isaiah Brooks-Leonard a homicide.
He is being charged as an adult, county police Sgt. Scott Scherer said.
The Allegheny County medical examiner's office today said Isaiah Brooks-Leonard died of asphyxiation due to smothering. The incident happened at 3:43 a.m. Feb. 6 in a home in the 2400 block of Banker Street in the city, the medical examiner's office said.
Brooks-Leonard died a short time later at UPMC McKeesport hospital, the ME's office said.
Court officials said Johnson is awaiting a preliminary hearing in Pittsburgh Municipal Court on a single charge of criminal homicide.
May 31, 2017 |
By Jason Togyer | Posted in: Crime and Police News
At least six people were arrested after what police described as a "chaotic" brawl at a bar Saturday morning on Evans Avenue.
McKeesport police said a fight broke out at about 1:55 a.m. inside the Double S Saloon and spilled into the street.
As the first officers arrived, police said, at least 10 people were in the street, "fighting and throwing punches," with another 10 or more watching. One man was armed with a pool cue, police said.
Officers needed pepper spray to subdue two people, while another man was bitten by a K-9 officer and taken to UPMC McKeesport hospital for treatment, police said.
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May 30, 2017 |
By Staff Reports | Posted in: Crime and Police News
A McKeesport man died Saturday night after being shot in the 1800 block of Wesley Avenue in the city.
Antonio Wallace, 31, was pronounced dead at the scene, said a spokesman for the Allegheny County police homicide unit, which is investigating the incident.
Police said Allegheny County 9-1-1 received a report of a shooting at 10 p.m. Saturday. McKeesport police arrived and found the victim. No further details were released by county police.
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April 27, 2017 |
By Submitted Report | Posted in: Crime and Police News
A West Mifflin man was arrested after police said he shot his wife in the chest during a domestic dispute.
The victim was hospitalized in critical condition, police said.
Richard Kadish, 55, is charged by Allegheny County police with attempted homicide and aggravated assault in connection with the incident at the family's home on Rossmoor Drive.
Although the victim's name was not released by police, court records identify her as Karen Kadish.
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April 26, 2017 |
By Submitted Report | Posted in: Crime and Police News
- Arrest records published here were provided by the McKeesport Police Department.
- Not all arrest records are published.
- A report of an arrest does not mean the person identified has been convicted of a crime.
- All people arrested are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
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April 26, 2017 |
By Submitted Report | Posted in: Crime and Police News
A 14-year-old was shot to death at a home on Ridge Street Tuesday afternoon, Allegheny County police said.
The teen-ager, a student at Founders' Hall Middle School, was identified by the Allegheny County Medical Examiner's Office as William Chaffin. Chaffin was pronounced dead at the scene by paramedics, police said.
McKeesport police were dispatched to a home in the 1300 block, just off Versailles Avenue, at 2:35 p.m. when callers reported that a young man had been shot.
County police Sgt. Scott Scherer said in a statement that Chaffin was a visitor to the home where the shooting occurred, and a close friend of the occupants.
All of the parties involved in the incident have been identified, Scherer said, and no charges have yet been filed. However, Scherer said, all of the investigative information will be turned over to Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen Zappala Jr., who will decide whether charges are warranted.
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April 20, 2017 |
By Staff Reports | Posted in: Crime and Police News
UPDATED with identity of the second victim, cause of death of the first victim.
Two people are dead following a shooting early Thursday morning near the Crawford Village housing complex in the city.
The victims are Raffel Greene, 49, of Clairton, and Jessica Taylor, 32, of Finleyville, Washington County, according to the Allegheny County police and the medical examiner's office.
Neither victim is a resident of Crawford Village, a police spokesman said in a statement, and it's still unclear what they were doing in the area.
County police said McKeesport officers were dispatched just after midnight to Building 39 after callers to 9-1-1 reported hearing shots fired.
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