ARREST WARRANT SERVED 1/25/2012

On Monday January 24, 2012 at approximately 5:00pm the Penn Township
Police Department located and arrested Andrew J. Kakol, age 22, from 15
Oakridge Drive in Penn Township.

His arrest took place in the side parking area of the Giant Eagle on Penny
Lane Drive in Penn Township after considerable planning and investigative
work by Penn Township Police Officers along with Detective Todd DeNillo.
Kakol had been eluding Probation Officers, Sheriffs Deputies and Law
Enforcement Officials since November, 2011.

Kakol was wanted on numerous Westmoreland County bench warrants for
failure to appear for numerous Probation Revocation Hearings on charges
including:

1.  Criminal conspiracy to commit Burglary
2. Theft
3.  Receiving Stolen Property
4.  Burglary
5.  Possession of Drug Paraphanalia
6.  Theft by Deception
7.  Driving under suspension

He was taken to the Penn Township Police Department where Sheriffs
Deputies responded and transported Kakol to the Westmoreland County
Prison.


          John Otto
       Chief of Police

 

 

SERIOUS ACCIDENTS INVESTIGATED BY PENN TOWNSHIP POLICE 12/28/2011

During the past week, the Penn Township police department has investigated
2 separate vehicle accidents resulting life threatening injuries.

-On Saturday December 17th at 1:48pm, Officers responded to SR 130 at
Wayne Drive in Level Green for a one vehicle/single occupant accident.

Upon Officers arrival they located a Chevrolet Blazer overturned along
side the roadway.  The driver, identified as Richard Lee age 54 of Penn
Twp, was entrapped within the vehicle and freed by volunteer fire dept
personnel.  He was then transported via Rescue 6 ambulance service to UPMC
Mercy hospital with serious injuries.

Lee was travelling Eastbound on SR 130 when he failed to negotiate a left
hand curve in the roadway and exited the highway, striking a large
decorative boulder, causing the vehicle to roll over.


-On Thursday December 22nd at 5:12pm, Officers responded to
Claridge-Export Road for a one vehicle/single occupant accident.

Upon Officers arrival they located a Pontiac sedan along side the highway.
The vehicle had rolled over numerous times, sheared a telephone pole and
came to rest approximately 300 feet later.  The driver, identified as
Shawn Bernhardy age 22 of Penn Twp, had been ejected from the vehicle and
sustained serious injury.  He was flown by medical helicopter to Allegheny
General hospital for treatment.

Bernhardy's vehicle was travelling South on Claridge-Export Road when he
failed to negotiate a left hand curve in the highway near Frye Road.  The
vehicle subsequently exited the highway, travelled through several yards,
before rolling over numerous times and shearing a telephone pole.

Patrol Officers, along with Accident Reconstructionist Doug Lewis, will
continue to investigate these accidents to determine cause and other
relevant factual information.



          John Otto
       Chief of Police

 

 

ADDITIONAL ARREST DURING THEFT OF SCRAP METAL 11/19/2011

The Penn Township police department  has made an additional arrest for
theft of scrap material from an area business.

On Thursday November 17th 2011 at 3:06am uniformed officers of the Penn
Township police department were conducting a surveillance operation at the
Versa-tech manufacturing plant on Enterprise Drive in Penn Township due to
recent thefts of scrap material from the business.  At 3:06 am officers
did observe a male actor, identified as Jeffery M. Miller age 31 of
Edgewood Avenue in Pittsburgh arrive at the business, climb into the area
where scrap metal is held, and steal the scrap material.

Miller was arrested at the scene and charged with the following offenses.

1. Theft by Unlawful Taking
2.  Receiving Stolen Property
3.  Possession of Instruments of Crime
4.  Defiant Trespass
5.  Operation of Vehicle Following Suspension of Registration
6.  Driving while Suspended/ DUI related

Miller had previously been arrested for stealing material from this same
business 2 weeks prior to this arrest.  He had outstanding criminal
warrants for his arrest and was taken before District Justice Helen
Kistler.  Judge Kistler revoked Millers original bond and placed him into
the Westmoreland County Prison in lieu of $50,000. strait cash bond.


          John Otto
       Chief of Police

 

 

 

ADDITIONAL LEVELGREEN ARREST 11/17/2011


 
The Penn Township Police Department has made an additional arrest in
response to the previous criminal activity reported throughout the Level
Green area of Penn Township.

On Wednesday, November 16, 2011, the Penn Township Police Department
arrested Michael L Schweikarth, age 27, from 1019 Greggerson Road for the
following offenses:

Theft by Unlawful Taking (Felony) ten counts
Receiving Stolen Property (Felony) ten counts
Forgery (Felony) fifteen counts

Police investigation determined that Michael Schweikarth removed a 52"
Sony television set along with a Bose 6-disk CD changer from a residence
along Greggerson Road and sold these items at an area pawn shop.

In a separate investigation, police determined that Michael Schhweikarth
had stolen a checkbook, belonging to a business along Murrysville Road in
Penn Township, and forged checks in the amount of $2852.85

Michael was taken into custody for arraignment and will be held in the
Westmoreland County Prison pending resolution of a separate detainer
warrant issued by the Westmoreland County Adult Probation office.

"We are very pleased to be able to make this arrest and clear these
crimes.  Our officers have been putting a lot of time and effort into
solving these cases and it's nice to see their hard work pay off.  I only
hope that things calm down and we can get back into the business of crime
prevention, but this is definitely a sign of the times."


          John Otto
       Chief of Police

 

 

 

 

 Additional Arrest in Relation to the Level Green "PoliceAdvisory" 11/11/2011

The Penn Township Police Department has made an additional arrest in
relation to the recent thefts from vehicles in the Level Green area.

Arrested was Matthew John Matesic, age 19, from Oak Drive in Level Green.
Matesic was charged with numerous counts of the following offenses:

      1. Loitering and Prowling at Nighttime
      2. Theft from a Motor Vehicle
      3. Theft by Unlawful Taking or Dispostion
      4.  Receiving Stolen Property
      5.  Criminal Attempt

On Monday, 11/11/11 at approximately 2:38 A.M., uniformed officers
patrolling the Level Green area located Matesic along Stella Drive in
possession of the following articles:

- Dell laptop computer
- numerous GPS units
- two bottles of wine
- power cords and iPod connectors
- wallet, money and identification of another person

Throughout the morning hours, officers were able to determine that many of
the items in Matesic's possession were in fact stolen from various
vehicles throughout the Level Green area.

Matesic has been transported to the Westmoreland County Prison and is
awaiting arraignment at this time.

The Penn Township Police Department is asking that residents check the
contents of their vehicles and ascertain if anything is missing.  Several
items seized from Matesic have not yet been claimed.

"It's very reassuring to see that the officers are out in the community
patrolling our businesses and housing plans as the rest of us sleep.
There's a lot to be said for these officers that are consistently solving
the crimes that occur in our community"


John Otto

Chief of Police


 

 

ARRESTS MADE IN LEVELGREEN DAYTIME BURGLARIES 11/7/2012


This press release is in response to the "Police Advisory" sent out on
October 21, 2011 indicating a significant increase in daytime burglaries
throughout Penn Township, specifically the Level Green area.

The Penn Township Police Department is proud to announce 2 arrests for
involvement in our recent daytime burglaries.  Police investigation led
officers to obtain arrest warrants for the following actors.

1. Michael Lapaglia age 21 from Pine Hollow Road, Level Green/Penn Twp
charged with Receiving Stolen Property.

2.  Marc Yanovich age23 from Meadowbrook Road, Level Green/Penn Twp
charged with Receiving Stolen Property.

Both men are charged with the forementioned crimes after it was determined
that they had sold valuables stolen from burglarized homes at area pawn
shops.

Upon their arrests, both actors were interviewed and arraigned.  Yanovich
was placed in the Westmoreland County Prison in lieu of $15,000 bond.
Lapaglia was released to his residence where he has been placed upon house
arrest.

Additional charges for Burlgary will be filed against Marc Yanovich at
District Justice Helen Kistlers office tomorrow, November 7, 2011 for his
additional involvement in several of the recent burglaries.

"We are very happy to be able to determine who has been burglarizing our
residents homes and make these arrests.  We patrolled a lot of miles, and
spent a lot of hours in Level Green trying to keep these guys from
committing more burglaries while Detective DeNillo and Officer Schwer
determined who was responsible, and where these guys were unloading the
stolen valuables.  When it started to unravel we wanted these guys picked
up as fast as possible."

I would also like to thank the Pennsylvania State Police Aviation Patrol
Unit for providing valuable assistance in this investigation.  The
investigation continues and more arrest and/or charges may be filed
depending upon the results of this investigation.

 

John Otto
Chief of Police
Penn Township Police Dept.

(724) 863-9113

 


 

 

POLICE ADVISORY 10/24/2011

The Penn Township Police Department would like to inform the residents of
Penn Township that we have seen a significant increase in the amount of
thefts from vehicles, and daytime burglaries over the past several days
and weeks.  While no area of Penn Township has been immune from these
criminal activities, the Level Green area seems to have had the most
occurrences.

Unknown individual(s) are taking money and items of value from unlocked
vehicles parked along the street during the overnight hours.

In addition, individual(s) are forcibly entering unoccupied homes during
primarily daylight hours and removing items of value.  These daytime
burglaries have primarily occurred at homes that are somewhat secluded or
"out of view" of neighbors or the roadway.

We ask the community members to bring their vehicles into the driveway and
off of the street whenever possible.  Also be sure to lock your vehicle.

We also would urge residents to keep an eye on your friends' and
neighbors' homes, especially if those homes are in a secluded area.

Any suspicious persons, vehicles, or activities should be immediately
reported to the Penn Township Police Department via 911.

John Otto
Chief of Police



 SCHOOL BUS WINDOW DAMAGED

  On Thursday September 22, 2011 at 3:20pm the Penn Township Police
Department received a call via Westmoreland County 911 that a school bus
travelling Sunrise Drive was shot at by a rifle and one of its windows
was destroyed.  Additional information moments later revealed that a
witness had seen a male handling a rifle in the area of Alexander Drive
located one street over from Sunrise Drive.

Officers located three individuals and an air powered bb gun in the area
of  Alexander Drive, and one of these individuals acknowledged having
fired the weapon around the time of the incident.  This male was brought
to the Penn Township Police Department, questioned and subsequently
released.

The department will continue to investigate this incident, speaking with
any witnesses and gathering relevant information in attempt to determine
what exactly happened and why.

No students were on the bus at the time of the incident as the bus was en
route to the elementary school for dismissal.

Officers located what we believe is the firearm used in the incident
within 2 minutes of the initial call due to not only several "safe school
initiatives" put into place but also excellent cooperation and
communication by the "First Student" bus company.

Penn Trafford School officials immediately implemented their safety
procedures and assisted with gathering and sharing information relevant to
the situation in order ensure the safety of our children.

"I am very proud of the way that First Student bus company and the Penn
Trafford School District handled this event, and their dedication to
ensuring  the safety of our students"

Anyone who may have information relevent to this incident is asked to
contact the Penn Township Police Department at 724 863-1119
.

 

John Otto
Chief of Police
Penn Township Police Dept.

(724) 863-9113